Johannesburg, South Africa – 22/7/2015 – International DNA testing company, EasyDNA collaborates with the Australia Twin Registry, an NGO that facilitates and supports medical and scientific studies that involve the participation of twins. As part of the collaboration, EasyDNA provided a special price to the ATR members for its Twin Zygosity Test.
As part of the collaboration between the Australia Twin Registry and EasyDNA, the company provided a special price to the ATR members for the Twin Zygosity Test. The Australia Twin Registry is an openly shared resource for researchers, helping science and medicine explore new frontiers, understanding disease inheritance patterns and finding cures. Reducing the price of twin testing spurred hundreds of parents and twins to seek a twin zygosity test through EasyDNA. Commenting on the collaboration with The Australia Twin Registry, EasyDNA’s Sales and Marketing Manager states that “We understand the importance of twins in medical research because twin studies help understand how genetic and environmental factors affect the onset, development and inheritance patterns of a disease. The work this Not for Profit Organisation carry out can indirectly save the lives of many people by helping medicine find cures, treatments or preventions for diseases.”
Real Customer Experience
Paule and Sophie, parents of Ethan and Harley (pictured on the right), wanted to find out whether their sons were identical or not. The following is their response following the receipt of EasyDNA’s twin test results. “We were led to believe throughout my pregnancy that our twins were fraternal/non-identical as they were in separate sacs. After Ethan and Harley were born they grew to be so similar in appearance and had the same mannerisms that even us, their parents would sometimes get them mixed up. Strangers in the shops would even ask us if they were identical. After a bit of online research we found out that 30% of non-identical twins are carried in separate sacs during pregnancy, so we decided to take the DNA test for our peace of mind, and so our boys could grow up knowing for certain whether they were identical or not. We undertook the twin zygosity test by easyDNA and found out that they are in fact identical twins! It is such a relief to know what type of twin they are. It explains how similar they are and it can allow us to better understand them when it comes to raising our boys.”
Science Behind the Test
Asked about the science behind twin testing and its advantages over other methods, a company representative notes how during pregnancy, prenatal scans displaying one or two placentas are not a reliable means of determining whether twins are identical or not. Post birth, non-identical twins can look strikingly similar and identical twins can look somewhat different, which makes it difficult and unscientific to determine zygosity by studying appearance. EasyDNA’s representative further notes that “a twin DNA test will establish with an accuracy of 100% whether the tested twins are fraternal or identical. Besides the importance of twin studies in medicine, identical twins can save each other’s lives due to the fact that they share the same antigens, which means that in cases of organ transplants between identical twin, chances of organ rejection is much lower because the implanted organ is not flagged by the body as being foreign and is not attacked. Moreover, identical twins will also share the same blood groups”.
Over the years EasyDNA has embarked on various philanthropic endeavours, made charitable contributions and collaborated with various NGOs and charities across the world, including The Children’s Book Bank and Ireland’s Children’s Hospice, Lauralynn. EasyDNA looks forward to a long and fruitful relationship with ATR.
About EasyDNA
EasyDNA is an international DNA testing company that specialises in offering reliable, accurate and confidential testing services to both the private and public sector all over the world. EasyDNA now operates through an international network of offices in over twenty countries, offering a diverse portfolio of DNA testing services. Whilst the most common test remains the home paternity test, other tests offered include DNA relationship testing, that can help determine a wide range of relationships.