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DNA Paternity Testing
Explanation & Procedures
- DNA stands for DeoxyriboNucleic Acid (pronounced de-oxy-ri-bo-nu-clay-ic)
- DNA Paternity Testing establishes the fatherhood of a child.
- Everyone is born with a very unique genetic blueprint which is known as DNA, except genetically identical twins.
- DNA is passed down from the mother and the father to the child - with the child inheriting half from the mother and half
from the biological father.
- It is the basic genetic material which is contained in all living cells of the body, with the notable exception of the
red blood cell.
- It governs the structure and the function of each component in the body, including physical characteristics such as eye
and hair color.
What is DNA Paternity Testing?
Paternity testing means establishing the fatherhood of a child. It is the most advanced and accurate method available
for resolving parentage for medical, legal, inheritance, or other personal reasons.
Only DNA paternity testing can resolve:
- Who is, or is not the father of a child.
- Who the biological parents of an abandoned child are.
- Who the biological parents of an adopted child are.
Who can use DNA Testing?
- A man wanting to be able to positively identify if a child is his.
- Anyone wanting peace of mind or closure.
- A woman seeking child support from a man who denies he is a child's father.
- A person attempting to win visitation or custody.
- A parent going through a divorce.
- A person seeking to establish Social Security benefits, inheritance rights, or Natiave Amerian tribal rights.
- A person seeking to immigrate into the U.S. on the grounds that he/she is a blood relative of a citizen.
- Someone wanting to identify biological grandparents or siblings.
- Anyone who has received inconclusive results from other methods, or who want a "second opinion".
- A person wanting to make a claims for inheritance - ensures estates go to true heirs.
- Persons wanting to identify family relationships and reconstruct family.
- Disputes in adoption cases. Can be used to ensure the father of a child being adopted is truly the biological
father for consent purposes.
- Criminal investigations, i.e. murder, rape, abandoned babies, abducted children.
- An individual suspecting spouse of infidelity.
Why should an alleged father have a DNA Paternity Test performed?
A very serious problem in the U.S. and throughout the world is paternity fraud, or the false identification of a man
as the father of a child. A report from the American Association of Blood Banks showed that of the approximately 300,000+
paternity tests performed annually in the United States, 30% of those resulted in exclusions of the alleged father as actually
being the biological father.
Thousands of men each year are forced to pay for children fathered by other men. Many cases assign paternity
by default without testing of the alleged father, or by the appearance of the individual. The wrongfully accused are
being provided justice in some states by recent legislative trends. In the State of California, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
signed Assembly Bill (AB) 252 into law on September 28, 2004. This bill allows the court to set aside previously established
paternity judgments and related child support if the court determines the father named in the court order is not the biological
father of the child or children.
How are samples collected?
- The most common way is through a painless cheek swab. The inside of the cheek of each person being tested is swabbed
with a soft cotton buccal (pronounced buckle) swab. No one likes drawing blood when it is not necessary -- especially
from a baby.
- Samples are typically collected from the mother, child (or children) and alleged father(s). The mother's participation
in the test helps to exclude half of the child's DNA, leaving the other half for comparison with the alleged father's DNA.
However, a test can be performed without the mother's participation (a motherless test), which involves additional analysis,
without any additional charge. Results are equally as conclusive whether the mother participates or not. Motherless
tests are guaranteed to have at least a 99.9% probability of paternity for inclusions and 100% for exclusion.
- All samples are collected following a strict Chain of Custody to ensure that you receive accurate
and legally admissible results (accepted by courts and other government agencies). They must be properly collected,
sealed and submitted only to a laboratory which is accredited, certified and specially trained in DNA testing.
- All our DNA Paternity Tests are:
- Run twice, following the most stringent procedures to guarantee accurate and conclusive results.
- Complete testing in 3 business days or less from the receipt of the samples.
- Follow a strict Chain of Custody to ensure results are legally admissible.
- Maintain confidentiality of each case using strict communication protocols.
- Schedule convenient appointments close to your home or office through a network of collection sites.
Other Acceptable Samples Which Can Be Used Are:
- Blood
- Semen
- Q-tips mouth swab
- Bone marrow
- Blood stain on cloth (size, age and history is relevant)
- Hair with roots (shed hair is not usable)
- Toothbrush
- Chewing Gum (sugarless is best)
- Ear swab with a Q-tip
- Bandaid (bloody) (amount of blood present is important)
- Cigarette butt (depends on type/brand)
- Drinking straw
- Electric Razor Debris
- Semen stains on clothing (depending on the amount of semen present and the age of the stain)
- Tampon
- Condom (depends on storage condition)
- Soda Can/Drinking Glass
- Plastic fork/spoon
- Saliva Swab
- Envelope flaps
- Disposable razor/blade
- Old or coagulated blood
- Fetal demise
- Feminine pads (depends on storage condition & brand)
- Urine (depends on amount and storage method)
Note: Since these samples are not collected under a strict chain of
custody by a neutral third party, and the origin of the samples cannot be verified, test performed on these types of samples
may not be defensible in a court of law.
The success rate of these "unusual" samples
varies. We will discuss this with you when inquiring about using these types of samples to test for DNA.
NOTE: Please feel free to contact
us for your DNA testing needs. However, please be advised that policy does not allow us to consult, advise or provide
information regarding DNA tests performed by other laboratories, facilities, collection sites, etc. We always advise
that you consult with the laboratory who performed your testing first. Consultations
and advice is reserved for clients and/or individuals that our facility has performed testing for. We apologize for
this inconvenience; however, these types of calls can consume our time, thus not allowing us to serve those who are paying
for our services. If we may provide you with DNA testing services, we welcome your calls. Should you
have had testing performed by another lab or had a non legal test performed, and you would like us to assist you with another
test or with a legal test, feel free to call us.
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