Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1988 Jan;42(1):135-42.

Bayesian interval estimation of genetic relationships: application to paternity testing

Affiliations

Bayesian interval estimation of genetic relationships: application to paternity testing

D E Goldgar et al. Am J Hum Genet. 1988 Jan.

Abstract

Using genetic marker data, we have developed a general methodology for estimating genetic relationships between a set of individuals. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the practical utility of these methods as applied to the problem of paternity testing. Bayesian methods are used to compute the posterior probability distribution of the genetic relationship parameters. Use of an interval-estimation approach rather than a hypothesis-testing one avoids the problem of the specification of an appropriate null hypothesis in calculating the probability of paternity. Monte Carlo methods are used to evaluate the utility of two sets of genetic markers in obtaining suitably precise estimates of genetic relationship as well as the effect of the prior distribution chosen. Results indicate that with currently available markers a "true" father may be reliably distinguished from any other genetic relationship to the child and that with a reasonable number of markers one can often discriminate between an unrelated individual and one with a second-degree relationship to the child.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Am J Hum Genet. 1985 Jul;37(4):819-27 - PubMed
    1. Am J Hum Genet. 1986 Jul;39(1):112-22 - PubMed
    1. Am J Hum Genet. 1986 Jul;39(1):123-32 - PubMed
    1. Am J Hum Genet. 1985 Jul;37(4):826-7 - PubMed
    1. Am J Hum Genet. 1985 May;37(3):581-90 - PubMed

Substances

LinkOut - more resources