DNA test shows Elizabeth Warren probably had a Native American ancestor generations ago
President Donald Trump calls her a fake “Pocahontas.” But genetic analysis finds that US Senator Elizabeth Warren does have Native American DNA, the Boston Globe reports.
What happened: Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, sent her DNA anonymously to the Stanford University laboratory of Carlos Bustamente, a well-known specialist in genetic ancestry. (You can read a new Q&A with Bustamente here, published today in MIT Technology Review.)
The test: Warren’s ancestry was analyzed on a “chip” that looked at 764,958 sites where people’s DNA letters commonly differ. This is the same technology used in commercial direct-to-consumer ancestry tests, like that from Ancestry.com.
What they found: According to a summary of the lab’s findings, Warren’s genome is more than 95% European. But she does have five segments in her DNA that look Native American. The largest spans about 4,700,000 DNA letters. While that is less than 1/1,000th of her DNA, it was enough for Bustamante to conclude with confidence she probably has a Native American ancestor about six to 10 generations ago, according to an executive summary of the findings.
Now what: On July 5, during a political rally in Montana, Trump dared Warren to submit to a DNA test and offered a bet, according to the Washington Post: “I will give you a million dollars, paid for by Trump, to your favorite charity, if you take the test and it shows you’re an Indian.”
Should Trump pay up? It probably depends on what he meant by being “an Indian.” You can read more about what geneticists think about race in the Q&A. In any case, he has already said he won't pay.
Deep Dive
Biotechnology
These scientists used CRISPR to put an alligator gene into catfish
The resulting fish appear to be more resistant to disease and could improve commercial production—should they ever be approved.
Next up for CRISPR: Gene editing for the masses?
Last year, Verve Therapeutics started the first human trial of a CRISPR treatment that could benefit most people—a signal that gene editing may be ready to go mainstream.
CRISPR for high cholesterol: 10 Breakthrough Technologies 2023
New forms of the gene-editing tool could enable treatments for common diseases.
An ALS patient set a record for communicating via a brain implant: 62 words per minute
Brain interfaces could let paralyzed people speak at almost normal speeds.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.