My Heritage teams with FamilyTree DNA

MyHeritage, the genealogy social networking web site, is offering users a "cheek scraper" DNA test for under £100, as reported recently in the Guardian (UK). The site is teaming up with FamilyTreeDNA to help identify living relatives with common ancestors. According to the article, Israeli-based MyHeritage's 27 million registered members, who are mostly in the English-speaking world, use the site to document their family trees and research missing connections or relatives.

A Y-chromosome test identifies paternal descent, while a mitochondrial DNA test shows the maternal line, and both cost $129 (£87). A combined test, for men, is $219. The DNA test can identify if a member has Native American, African or Jewish ancestors and trace relatives to a migration map of the US, the article says. Both MyHeritage and FamilyTreeDNA are "keen to emphasise" that records are not shared or published and are held securely.