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4. Your Base Haplogroup Must Match

To even begin to look further for a common ancestor on either your Y DNA line (direct patrilineal) or direct
mitochondrial matrilineal line (your mother’s mother’s mother’s line on up the tree), your base haplogroup
must match.
In other words, you and your matches must all be in the same base haplogroup. Haplogroups are defined by
the presence of specific combinations of mutations, which are called SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms)
in the Y DNA or mtDNA.

5. Are Y-DNA haplogroups the same as mtDNA haplogroups?

No, the names in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroups do not correspond
with the same names in the Y-chromosome DNA (Y-DNA) haplogroups.

John also had a talent for reading the room. As much as his presentation made sense and his visual “adds” resulted
in many “a-ha!” moments, I think John knew it was time to take a short break from strict science and provide some
information on how genetic genealogy, and in particular mtDNA, have contributed to historical fact, the scientific body
of knowledge, and human interest stories.

King Richard III

Non-members as well as members of the Richard III Society appreciated how mtDNA
contributed to the identification of the 15 Century last Plantagenet king of England. The
th
remains that were dug up in a parking lot in Leicester, England, were confirmed to be
that of Richard III through a mitochondrial DNA analysis.

Interesting mtDNA BBC video:

Richard III: The DNA Analysis and Conclusion - Professor Turi King
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NDuzZiDWFM&t=2s

A Mitochondrial Etiology of Common Complex Diseases

Mitochondrial DNA Disease – TED talk by Professor Mary Herbert, University of
Newcastle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pc7MyUs_ORQ

Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak

It appears that Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak was interested in knowing if she had
married her cousin. Here is her story:
https://smolenyak.medium.com/dna-testing-dispels-a-genealogical-myth-7f74b851ffab
A co-author (with Ann Turner) of Trace Your Roots with DNA: Using Genetic Tests to Explore Your Family Tree
(as well as In Search of Our Ancestors, Honoring Our Ancestors and They Came to America), she can be
contacted through www.honoringourancestors.com, or megansrootsworld.blogspot.com.

An Overview of O’Mahony Mitochondrial DNA Data

As of May 2023, the O’Mahony Society DNA project includes the mtDNA of 61 individuals.
The letter names of the haplogroups (not just mitochondrial DNA haplogroups) run

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