Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Scientists Confirm the Skeleton of Richard III by DNA Analysis


A skeleton found underneath a parking lot in Leicester, England believed to be the remains of King Richard III was recently confirmed by DNA analysis of the remains as well as tracing the genetic evidence over 20 generations. This is the oldest DNA identification of any known person. The head geneticist of the University of Leicester stated, "Even with our most conservative statistical analysis, we're 99.999% sure." Along with the biological data, the historical data and recorded place, time, and cause of death also prove to confirm this identification. Retrieving 500 year old DNA was not an easy task. The researchers had to go through millions of ribbons of splintered DNA fragments. By matching mitochondrial DNA and following the passing down of the Y chromosome, it was confirmed that the remains were indeed of King Richard III. (And also stirred up proof of infidelity while they were at it.)

Original Article: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/genetics/scientists-confirm-remains-king-richard-iii-17487010

Related Article: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/12/141202-richard-iii-genes-shakespeare-science/

1 comment:

  1. This is very interesting! I find it odd that the remains of the once King of England were merely found underneath a parking lot. It's pretty shocking. The process of matching michondrial DNA and the passing down of the Y chromosome, is an interesting process I haven't heard of before.

    ReplyDelete