Revealing new ancestral insights and connecting Asians together
through relatives matching.
Tokyo, April 25, 2023 – As part of the celebrations of DNA DAY 2023, Genesis Healthcare Co. upgrades its ancestry services with the release of Haplo 3.0 in Japan.
With increasing interest from customers for more advanced ancestry services focusing on Japanese and Asian lineages, Genesis Healthcare has been collaborating for more than 7 years in joint research with the National Institute of Genetics (NIG) to introduce new ancestry features specifically developed for
Japanese and Asian ethnicities.
In addition to revealing ethnicity mix and migration paths of ancestors, GeneLife Haplo 3.0 introduces some unique features for the diversity of Japanese and Asian ancestral heritage.
Three new ancestry features are added in GeneLife Haplo 3.0:
PREHISTORICAL ANCESTRY
GeneLife Haplo 3.0 allows to identify potential shared DNA with the Jōmon prehistorical people from ancient times. Furthermore, through research about migration paths from maternal and paternal ancestors, some haplogroups have been associated with the Jōmon people, providing further insights about potential lineage within the Japanese population.
In addition, detection of potential shared DNA with Neanderthal prehistorical people has been introduced. Genomic research applied to Neanderthals reveals higher levels of Neanderthal ancestry in East Asians than in Europeans, determining that the admixture rate into East Asians is ∼40% higher than in Europeans (*).
DNA RELATIVES MATCHING
A very popular feature in North America and in Europe, Genesis Healthcare has introduced a new feature allowing participants to identify potential relatives through estimation of shared DNA.
A first in Japan, this feature allows participants to connect and message potential relatives through the GeneLife mobile application.
ANCESTRAL FAMILY NAME LINEAGE
Participants can uncover their line of descent through potential family name affiliations between ancestors from Japan and haplogroups from ancient times. Through extensive research and proprietary statistical models, it was determined that a range of haplogroups were more commonly detected and associated with specific family names in Japan. The study covered both maternal and paternal ancestors, allowing participants to find potential associations with specific Japanese surnames.
GeneLife Haplo3.0 will be available on the 25th of April 2023 at a retail price of JPY 14,900 (inclusive of consumption tax).
Results and interactive contents are accessible through a smartphone and the GeneLife mobile application available on iOS and Android devices.
*Jeffrey D. Wall, Melinda A. Yang, Flora Jay, Sung K. Kim,Eric Y. Durand, Laurie S. Stevison, Christopher Gignoux, August Woerner, Michael F. Hammer, and Montgomery Slatkin, "Higher Levels of Neanderthal Ancestry in East Asians than in Europeans", 2013.
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About Genesis Healthcare Co.
Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Genesis Healthcare is Japan’s leading genetic testing and research company, servicing medical institutions, corporations, and individuals to benefit from personalized health and precision medicine. Through its patented AI driven prediction models, Genesis Healthcare provides advanced genetic testing services, from prevention to diagnostics.
For press and media inquiries, please contact press@genesis-healthcare.jp.
GeneLife is a registered trademark of Genesis Healthcare Co.
DNA DAY is a registered trademark of Genesis Healthcare Co. in Japan.