Privacy of Donated Genetic Data Pierced by Researchers
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Men who donate DNA to public databases can readily be identified because their Y chromosomes can be traced along with their surnames, according to a study that may raise concerns about privacy in genetic research.
Researchers led by the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts, identified 50 people among male volunteers who had donated genetic data to studies such as the 1,000 Genomes Project. They checked surnames in genealogy databases, and narrowed the search by matching surnames with donors’ ages and state of residence.