Glossary

Buccal swabs are similar to the cotton wool buds found in most people’s bathroom cabinets. During DNA sample collection, two buccal swabs are rubbed against the inside of the person’s cheeks (one swab is used on each cheek). The rubbing motion gathers loose cheek cells, and these cells contain the DNA used in the genetic test.

STR-based cell line authentication verifies cell lines used in biomedical research to investigate disease pathways and therapies. Studies have shown an alarming percentage of human cell lines, those purchased from commercial repositories and primary cell lines, are contaminated or misidentified. Poor cell culture technique, shared equipment and poor quality control in a laboratory can all contribute to the misidentification and contamination issues. This is why in late 2007, an open letter by a group of scientists led by Dr. Roland Nardone spurred the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to recommend authenticating cell lines in scientific studies.

Chromosomes are the structures that hold our genes. Genes are the individual instructions that tell our bodies how to develop and keep our bodies running healthy. In every cell of our body there are 50,000 to 100,000 genes that are located on 46 chromosomes. These 46 chromosomes occur as 23 pairs. We get one of each pair from our mother in the egg, and one of each pair from our father in the sperm. The first 22 pairs are labeled longest to shortest. The last pair are called the sex chromosomes labeled X or Y. Females have two X chromosomes (XX), and males have an X and a Y chromosome (XY).
Everyone should have 46 chromosomes in every cell of their body. If a chromosome or piece of a chromosome is missing or duplicated, there are missing or extra genes respectively. When a person has missing or extra information (genes), problems can develop for that individual’s health and development.
Each of the chromosomes has a “p” and “q” arm; “p” (petit) is the short arm and “q” is the long arm. Some of the chromosomes, such as 13, 14, and 15, have very small “p” arms. When a karyotype is made (see below), the “q” arm is always put on the bottom and the “p” is on the top. The arms are separated by a region known as the centromere (red in picture), which is a pinched area of the chromosome.
The chromosomes need to be stained in order to see them with a microscope. When stained, the chromosomes look like strings with both light and dark ‘bands’. Each chromosome arm is defined further by numbering the bands, the higher the number, the further that area is from the centromere.

Collection kits like those used in home DNA testing contain a set of swabs that, when used properly, can accurately, quickly and simply determine if two people are related. The swabs are used to gather cheek cells for the subjects to be tested. The genetic material is then extracted from the cells and analyzed.

Deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA stores biological information. These molecules carry most of the genetic instructions used in the growth, development, functioning and reproduction of all known living organisms and many viruses. DNA and RNA are nucleic acids; alongside proteins and complex carbohydrates, they comprise the three major types of macromolecule that are essential for all known forms of life. Most DNA molecules consist of two biopolymer strands coiled around each other to form a double helix. The two DNA strands are known as polynucleotides since they are composed of simpler units called nucleotides. Each nucleotide is composed of a nitrogen-containing nucleobase—either cytosine (C), guanine (G), adenine (A), or thymine (T)—as well as a sugar called deoxyribose and a phosphate group. The nucleotides are joined to one another in a chain by covalent bonds between the sugar of one nucleotide and the phosphate of the next, resulting in an alternating sugar-phosphate backbone. According to base pairing rules (A with T, and C with G), hydrogen bonds bind the nitrogenous bases of the two separate polynucleotide strands to make double-stranded DNA. The total amount of related DNA base pairs on Earth is estimated at 5.0 x 10³⁷, and weighs 50 billion tonnes. In comparison, the total mass of the biosphere has been estimated to be as much as 4 trillion tons of carbon.

DNA Diagnostics Centre (DDC) was established in 1995 and has performed analysis on over 1 million genetic samples to date. Fully accredited and offering a wide range of DNA testing services including paternity and family relationship tests for both personal knowledge reasons and for use in legal situations.
DDC’s DNA clinic is based in West London for DNA sample collection services and we have over 4,500 collection centres throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. If you require a consultation and appointment please call our customer services team on 1300 768 428 or complete the form below. We look forward to assisting you.

DDC can use the power of DNA analysis to reconstruct a family tree. To build a DNA family tree, we do a number of tests which can unambiguously determine the exact degree of relatedness between individuals. Armed with this information DDC can build a DNA family tree entirely on DNA analysis. You can be sure that at DDC you will receive the best standard of service.
For more information on using the power of DNA testing to research your DNA family tree, please navigate to our Y Chromosome page.

DNA profiling is an analysis of an individual’s DNA for a number of DNA markers. Usually, for human identity studies, DNA is profiled using specific DNA regions called microsatellites. DNA profiling by microsatellites is used for paternity testing as well as other types of relationship testing.

DNA reconstruction is a complicated series of genetic tests that can often be performed when an alleged father is unavailable for paternity testing and other genetic tests, such as grandparent DNA testing, have been eliminated as possible testing options to indirectly determine who the father of a child is.

DNA technology is a rapidly evolving area of biotechnology. Currently it is possible to do DNA analysis using a minute amount of DNA. Recent breakthroughs in DNA technology have made high-throughput genotyping possible. This has significantly reduced the cost of DNA testing and made it accessible to the general public.
Using the latest advances in DNA technology, DDC offers a wide range of DNA tests for human identification and kinship determination. Our accurate resulting process provides us with a 100% track record for results standing up within a UK court.

DNA testing relies on comparing fragments of DNA between individuals in order to identify genetic relatedness between them. DDC’s laboratory offers the UK’s most accurate paternity testing as well as an extensive range of DNA testing for kinship determination. In some cases, results of DNA testing may need to be presented in UK court. For this purpose we have legally accepted tests available for determining paternity and maternity, and also DNA testing for immigration purposes.

There are many reasons to arrange a DNA test; taking a DNA test to establish paternity is probably one of the most common. Other reasons for DNA testing include:

• Child Support
• Custody
• Adoption
• Immigration
• Inheritance
• Citizenship
• Paternity Establishment/Disestablishment

DDC provides solutions for all of the above reasons. Because DDC’s laboratory is accredited by the Department of Constitutional Affairs, we can arrange a DNA test for paternity cases with your own solicitor. We also have a panel of approved Doctors throughout the UK to help you to conduct your DNA test for paternity.

DNA Diagnostics Centre (DDC) offers a prenatal paternity test to accurately determine the paternity of a baby before the child is born. Through our advanced expertise and technology, we use DNA SNP microarray technology to preserve and analyze the baby’s DNA found within the mother’s bloodstream, which is far safer for mother and baby.

DNA Diagnostics Centre (DDC) was established in 1995 and expanded to become one of the world’s largest providers of DNA testing services. DDC is fully accredited with ISO 17025 and approved by the Ministry of Justice. Clients can perform their required DNA test for peace of mind reasons or for legal purposes.
Call our client services department today on 1300 768 428 for a free, no-obligation, discussion regarding your DNA testing requirement.

DDC is a leading provider of DNA tests in the UK for paternity. Paternity is a very important issue considering that 15-20% fathers in the UK are raising someone else’s children. Every year, more than 30,000 DNA test cases are performed in the UK and DDC is the company you can trust to determine paternity in your case.

Paternity can be determined in a number of ways with DNA testing being the most accurate way of establishing paternity. This procedure involves comparing DNA fragments from an alleged father to those of the child in order to find whether there is any similarity between them. If the child has DNA fragments which are not found in the alleged father then paternity is rejected, otherwise paternity is not excluded and a paternity index is calculated to provide a mathematical estimate of the possibility of a relationship between the alleged father and the child.
Establishing paternity can be useful in many circumstances. Whether an individual would simply like to resolve his or her doubts regarding paternity, or take a step further and resolve legal issues such as child support (CSA), custody of children, or adoption, a paternity test can potentially be the means of helping an individual to avoid unnecessary child support payments and years of emotional heartache.
DDC is the UK’s leading provider of DNA tests for establishing paternity. DDC provides tests to individuals, as well as corporate entities such as county councils and solicitors nationwide. Our accurate resulting process provides us with a 100% track record for results holding up within a UK court.

DDC assists people in the identification of family genes associated with genetic health problems. Current DNA technology can identify a gene within a family which is responsible for a specific conditions, like breast cancer or other types of conditions. If a certain condition is known to be within a family, DDC can use all the power of DNA analysis to identify the family gene.

Clients wanting to find out about their family history are now looking back thousands of years to gain an insight in to the origins of their ancestors. We offer AncestrybyDNA™ that will analyse your ethnicity and determine in % terms from the four main population groups. We also offer lineage tests that will determine the origins and heritage from both your maternal and paternal side of the family.

It is possible to determine someone’s origin by his/her family name. Each family name has a long history and is usually based upon either the trade or profession of one’s ancestor or on the place of origin. Many UK and US family names can be traced to a location in England or Scotland. While family name can be used to determine relatedness between people, this should also be backed up by a thorough DNA study.
DDC offers several genetic tests which help people in tracing their genetic origin. One of the tests provides you with a simple and objective description of your ancestral origins. The Ethnicity Test gives you an estimated percentage of ancestry from the four major historical population groups:

Let the experts at DDC help you better understand your family name and origins.

Customers who have an interest in discovering their family tree and the heritage of their family are going beyond public records to find out more. DDC offer a range of ancestry services that can look back thousands of years at your maternal and paternal lineage providing information on your haplogroup group and migration patterns. In addition to these popular services we have the AncestrybyDNA™ test that will determine your ethnicity from the four main population groups (European, Asian, Indigenous American and Africa) in % terms.

DNA analysis can be used to find a lost relative. In some cases, people may have been separated at birth and DNA testing can be the only way to find a lost relative. In a DNA test, we compare stretches of DNA from both alleged relatives and look for similarities between them. If the number of similarities is higher than a set threshold for the alleged type of relatedness we can say that the people are related.
One example of a genetic test that DDC uses to establish paternity or biological relationships with lost relatives is a sibling DNA test. A sibling DNA test can accurately determine if two individuals are brothers or sisters sharing a single common parent or both common parents.
DDC uses the power of DNA testing to help people to find lost relatives. If you have such problem, please get in touch and we will do our best to help you.

DNA analysis can be used for the purposes of finding a relative. DDC uses the power of DNA testing to reunite siblings who have been separated at birth, as well as help people in finding relatives which they have lost.
DDC employs a full array of DNA testing and genetic testing services to assist with finding relatives. These tests include the Grandparent DNA Test, Aunt-Uncle DNA Test, Sibling DNA Test, and DNA Reconstruction.
DDC unleashes the power of DNA testing to help people in finding relatives and identifying relationships. If you have such problem, please get in touch and we will do our best to help you.

Fraternal twins happen when two eggs are fertilised by two individual sperms. Fraternal twins can be of either sex, and usually have about 80% DNA in common.
Using the power of DNA testing it is unambiguously possible to discriminate between identical and fraternal twins. At DDC, we can determine between identical or fraternal twins by using a specially designed DNA test.

Genealogy is the analysis of the history of a particular family showing how the different members of the family are related to each other.

Clients wanting to find out about their family history are now looking back thousands of years to gain an insight in to the origins of their ancestors. We offer AncestrybyDNA™ that will analyse your ethnicity and determine in % terms from the four main population groups. We also offer lineage tests that will determine the origins and heritage from both your maternal and paternal side of the family.

In order to collect DNA samples we dispatch to our clients a home kit specifically designed to collect DNA samples quickly and efficiently. The home kit consists of three sets of mouth swabs to collect the samples from all the parties involved in DNA testing and envelopes in which to store them. DDC uses state-of-the-art materials for our DNA collection home kit which ensures the most efficient way of collecting and preserving DNA samples. The use of the DNA testing home kit is on the incline. DNA testing in general is on the increase and this is as a direct result of a number of factors:
Births outside marriage grew by 11.25% in the decade between 1991 and 2001. This is important evidence to support the growth figures for the paternity testing market.
There is evidence to suggest that attitudes amongst younger unmarried fathers to paternity tests are radically different to the older generation / married men. In a survey reported in the Scottish Daily Record October 26th 2002, 25% of men under the age of 21 said they would demand a paternity test if a woman claimed they had got her pregnant.
In 2001 there were 238,886 births outside marriage, and around 24,000 births in women younger than 18. The problem of paternity amongst the young is a large and growing issue.
There were 143,818 divorces granted in England and Wales in 2001, compared with 141,135 in 2000 – an increase of 1.9 percent. This is the first time that the number of divorces has increased since 1996.
Seventy percent of all divorces in 2001 were between couples where the marriage had been the first for both parties, compared with 80 percent in 1982. This means more second families and more complex family structures.
A total of 146,914 children aged under 16 were in families where the parents divorced in 2001, of whom just under a quarter were aged under five. This points to substantial growth in the number of children who may grow up with ‘Paternity issues’.
In the early 1970s, fewer than one in 12 of all families with dependent children was a lone mother family. By 2000, this proportion had almost trebled to just less than one in four. More single mothers by definition mean more absent fathers.
Single lone mother families – where the lone mothers have never married – continued to grow between 1996 and 2000. One in nine of all families with dependent children. Dependent children in single lone mother families form one in 11 of all dependent children.
Single lone mothers form two in every five lone parents, while over one third of all dependent children in lone parent families live in single lone mother families.

In order to collect DNA samples in Scotland for genetic and DNA testing, we dispatch our clients a home kit for Scotland specifically designed to collect samples quickly and efficiently. The home kit consists of three sets of mouth swabs to collect the genetic samples from all the parties involved in DNA testing and envelopes to store them.
DDC uses state-of-the-art materials for our Scotland DNA collection home kit which we dispatch to our customers. This ensures the most efficient way of collecting and preserving DNA samples.

To collect DNA samples in the UK, DDC uses a home kit. DNA samples collected by the home kit are very stable and do not degraded during shipment within the UK. Once received by DDC, samples are passed to the laboratory where our highly qualified staff extracts DNA and performs DNA testing. You can be sure that at DDC you will receive the highest standard of service.

There are significant differences in the reliability of home paternity testing companies. Some of the factors contributing to differences between laboratories and between tests are described in this web site. From our inception DDC has provided the most reliable home paternity testing available, so that you can have the highest level of confidence that you are receiving the correct answer to the important question of biological parentage.
DDC leads the industry in guaranteed reliability of testing.
Many extra steps and precautions in testing give our tests a greater degree of reliability.
DDC strives to provide the best possible customer service. Part of that commitment is reflected in our fast turn-around time. For standard cases we normally send out your results within 4 working days from the date we receive your specimens.
You will find our staff extremely helpful. We will be happy to spend as much time as you need to answer your questions. No question is too trivial or too complicated for us to spend the time with you to explain the answer.
Buccal swabs are generally used for specimen collection, so that it is no longer necessary to use blood. Testing is completely confidential.

DDC offers a home paternity test kit for testing relationships between an alleged father and a son or daughter. Our home paternity test kit includes 3 colour coded envelopes for the mother, alleged father, and child, and each envelope contains 2 buccal swabs. The buccal swabs must be wiped on the inside cheek of each applicant to remove the DNA and placed back into the relevant envelope and posted back in the pre-paid postal envelope to our administration department. The samples are then logged onto our internal Patient Relationship Management System and processed at our laboratory. Results from home paternity test kits are normally returned in 4 days.

In order to collect DNA samples we dispatch to our clients a home kit specifically designed to collect DNA samples quickly and efficiently. The home kit consists of three sets of mouth swabs to collect the samples from all the parties involved in DNA testing and envelopes in which to store them. DDC uses state-of-the-art materials for our DNA collection home kit which ensures the most efficient way of collecting and preserving DNA samples. The use of the DNA testing home kit is on the incline. DNA testing in general is on the increase and this is as a direct result of a number of factors:
Births outside marriage grew by 11.25% in the decade between 1991 and 2001. This is important evidence to support the growth figures for the paternity testing market.
There is evidence to suggest that attitudes amongst younger unmarried fathers to paternity tests are radically different to the older generation / married men. In a survey reported in the Scottish Daily Record October 26th 2002, 25% of men under the age of 21 said they would demand a paternity test if a woman claimed they had got her pregnant.
In 2001 there were 238,886 births outside marriage, and around 24,000 births in women younger than 18. The problem of paternity amongst the young is a large and growing issue.
There were 143,818 divorces granted in England and Wales in 2001, compared with 141,135 in 2000 – an increase of 1.9 percent. This is the first time that the number of divorces has increased since 1996.
Seventy percent of all divorces in 2001 were between couples where the marriage had been the first for both parties, compared with 80 percent in 1982. This means more second families and more complex family structures.
A total of 146,914 children aged under 16 were in families where the parents divorced in 2001, of whom just under a quarter were aged under five. This points to substantial growth in the number of children who may grow up with ‘Paternity issues’.
In the early 1970s, fewer than one in 12 of all families with dependent children was a lone mother family. By 2000, this proportion had almost trebled to just less than one in four. More single mothers by definition mean more absent fathers.
Single lone mother families – where the lone mothers have never married – continued to grow between 1996 and 2000. One in nine of all families with dependent children. Dependent children in single lone mother families form one in 11 of all dependent children.
Single lone mothers form two in every five lone parents, while over one third of all dependent children in lone parent families live in single lone mother families.

In order to collect DNA samples in Scotland for genetic and DNA testing, we dispatch our clients a home kit for Scotland specifically designed to collect samples quickly and efficiently. The home kit consists of three sets of mouth swabs to collect the genetic samples from all the parties involved in DNA testing and envelopes to store them.
DDC uses state-of-the-art materials for our Scotland DNA collection home kit which we dispatch to our customers. This ensures the most efficient way of collecting and preserving DNA samples.

To collect DNA samples in the UK, DDC uses a home kit. DNA samples collected by the home kit are very stable and do not degraded during shipment within the UK. Once received by DDC, samples are passed to the laboratory where our highly qualified staff extracts DNA and performs DNA testing. You can be sure that at DDC you will receive the highest standard of service.

There are significant differences in the reliability of home paternity testing companies. Some of the factors contributing to differences between laboratories and between tests are described in this web site. From our inception DDC has provided the most reliable home paternity testing available, so that you can have the highest level of confidence that you are receiving the correct answer to the important question of biological parentage.
DDC leads the industry in guaranteed reliability of testing.
Many extra steps and precautions in testing give our tests a greater degree of reliability.
DDC strives to provide the best possible customer service. Part of that commitment is reflected in our fast turn-around time. For standard cases we normally send out your results within 4 working days from the date we receive your specimens.
You will find our staff extremely helpful. We will be happy to spend as much time as you need to answer your questions. No question is too trivial or too complicated for us to spend the time with you to explain the answer.
Buccal swabs are generally used for specimen collection, so that it is no longer necessary to use blood. Testing is completely confidential.

DDC offers a home paternity test kit for testing relationships between an alleged father and a son or daughter. Our home paternity test kit includes 3 colour coded envelopes for the mother, alleged father, and child, and each envelope contains 2 buccal swabs. The buccal swabs must be wiped on the inside cheek of each applicant to remove the DNA and placed back into the relevant envelope and posted back in the pre-paid postal envelope to our administration department. The samples are then logged onto our internal Patient Relationship Management System and processed at our laboratory. Results from home paternity test kits are normally returned in 4 days.

One of the tests offered by DDC is a twin zygosity DNA test. Identical twins (monozygotic) come from one zygote (fertilized egg) that splits in two. This separation can occurs up to the 12th day of conception, around the time the egg is implanted in the uterus. Identical twins share 100% of their DNA and are the same sex. They have similar hand and foot prints, but different fingerprints and teeth marks!
DDC is a trusted and reliable provider of DNA testing to determine whether two individuals are identical twins or not.

Kits like the home DNA testing kit are frequently used for establishing paternity or biological relationships. This DNA test kit contains a set of swabs that, when used properly, can accurately, quickly and simply determine if two people are related.
DDC has developed the first consumer friendly kit that is exceptionally easy to use. The free DNA testing kit has pink swabs from the mother, blue swabs for the father and yellow for the child.
The swabs are used to gather cheek cells for the subjects to be tested. The genetic material is then extracted from the cells and analyzed. The extra care and precautions we take during the analysis process ensure results that are accurate enough for exacting legal requirements.

The laboratory at DDC is accredited to the highest of standards. The laboratory we use is accredited to the ISO/IEC 17025 standard and we perform all your DNA testing twice to ensure that there is no possible chance of error.
The ISO/IEC Guide 25: “General requirements for the competence of calibration and testing laboratories,” has been the internationally recognized basic document for accreditation of laboratories including chemical analysis. The attainment of accreditation is mandatory for some regulatory work areas and frequently is the basis of contracts for analytical work. In 2000 the draft has been replaced by the International Standard ISO/IEC DIS 17025: General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories.
The ISO/IEC 17025 standard states that if testing and calibration laboratories comply with ISO/IEC 17025, you also operate in accordance  with ISO 9001 or ISO 9002 . However, calibration against ISO 9001 and 9002 does not itself demonstrate the competence of the laboratory to produce technically valid data and results.
Many laboratories will want to get registration to ISO 9000 along with the 17025 accreditation. To address this request, some accreditation bodies and registrars are working out a partnership to use one auditor to perform both the 17025 audit and the ISO 9000 audit simultaneously. Talk to the accreditation body and the registrar to see if they can provide this service.

Legal DNA testing follows a strict chain of custody to ensure the DNA test results are legally defensible in a court of law. The chain of custody documents the following:

• The samples were collected by a neutral third party, such as a doctor, nurse, or a DDC representative.
• The tested parties were appropriately identified at their sample collection appointment(s).
• The samples were protected with tamper tape at the collection site and were securely packaged for shipping and thoroughly inspected for tampering upon delivery to the laboratory.

Finding a lost relative is an excellent reason for utilising the latest technology in DNA testing. Quite often, when members of the general public are attempting to re-establish links with lost relatives they utilise DNA testing. DDC has various genetic tests available which can be used to assist in finding a lost relative. Some of these tests include: Grandparent DNA Test, Aunt-Uncle DNA Test, Sibling DNA Test and 1st Cousin Analysis.
A frequent method for establishing paternity or biological relationships with lost relatives is through Sibling DNA testing. Sibling DNA  testing can accurately determine if two people are brothers or sisters sharing a single common parent or both common parents.
DDC has re-united families from across the UK who have lost relatives and searched for extended periods of time for some hope in finding them. Navigate here to see if our experts can help you find a lost relative.

DDC offers a low cost paternity test and is accredited by the Department of Constitutional Affairs, enabling DDC to provide legal DNA tests which are admissible in UK Courts of Law.
We also have relationships with various organisations including Families Need Fathers (FNF), which can help fathers with the emotional consequence of finding out that their son or daughter may not be theirs

Maternal lineage is the line that follows a person’s maternal (mother’s) ancestry. With the exception of a male individual being tested, this line consists entirely of women. It traces the individual’s mother, her mother, her mother’s mother, and so forth back to our shared common maternal ancestor.

DDC frequently receives contact from mothers looking to establish who the father of their child is while still in the hospital. To establish the paternity of a child, a simple, accurate paternity test can be ordered.
One of the most famous websites for more information on Maternity Hospitals is Holles St.
DDC has extracted some information from this maternity hospital for your review;

“Welcome to the website for the National Maternity Hospital, more affectionately known as Holles Street by the people of Australia. The hospital was founded in 1894 and its purpose is to serve the women of Australia in matters relating to childbirth, as well as the full range of gynecological services. Since its foundation in 1894, over 425,000 babies have come into the world with the help of the National Maternity Hospital. The very first of these was born on the 18th March 1894, the day after the hospital was opened. He was a boy, the son of Jane Dooner from a tenement house at No.22 Herbert Street.
Everyone on the staff is here to serve you and hopes to make your experience both rewarding and safe. The hospital welcomes feedback from people who have experienced the services offered as it is only by getting feedback that the hospital can hope to constantly upgrade and improve the quality of services offered.The hospital is probably most clearly identified in the public for the care of women with gynecological cancer in the country.
I hope that you find your experience in the hospital satisfactory and hope that your memories of your stay will be happy ones”.

Usually employees are entitled to paid time off to keep appointments for antenatal care made on the advice of a registered medical practitioner, registered mid-wife or registered health visitor.
Antenatal care is not restricted to medical examinations. For example, it could also include relaxation classes and parent craft classes.
Except for your employee’s first appointment, your employee must be prepared, if asked, to show you:

• A certificate from a registered medical practitioner, registered midwife or registered health visitor confirming that you are pregnant and
• An appointment card or some other document showing that an appointment has been made.

Your employee should be paid at their normal hourly rate of pay during the period of time off. The rate is calculated by dividing the amount of a week’s pay by the number of hours your employee normally works in a week.
Your employee’s normal working hours will usually be clear from the agreed terms and conditions of their employment, or from the written statement of main employment particulars. If your employee’s working hours vary from week to week, they should be averaged over the previous twelve completed working weeks. Overtime is only counted if it is compulsory under the terms of the employment contract.
If your employee has not completed twelve weeks service, the average should be estimated in the light of what could be reasonably expected from the agreed terms and condition of employment and from the work pattern of any fellow employees in comparable jobs.
If your employee is entitled to payment for time off both under your agreed terms and conditions and under these statutory provisions such entitlements are offset against each other.
DDC often receive calls from mothers and fathers that during maternity leave to raise questions as to the biological relationship of their child. This, in many cases, is resolved with a simple DNA test for prenatal usage.

Maternity pay is the unalienable right of a woman to receive payment when she takes care of a new borne baby or is on maternity leave. By law in the UK, all employed women should get maternity pay from their employers. At DDC, we provide guidance to women about  maternity pay and should you require any information or assistance we will do our utmost to help you.
The following rules apply to maternity pay:
Usually employees are entitled to paid time off to keep appointments for antenatal care made on the advice of a registered medical practitioner, registered midwife or registered health visitor.
Employees should receive maternity pay at their normal hourly rate of pay during the period of time off. The rate is calculated by dividing the amount of a week’s pay by the number of hours the employee normally works in a week.
The employee’s normal working hours will usually be clear from the agreed terms and conditions of their employment, or from the written statement of main employment particulars. If the employee’s working hours vary from week to week, they should be averaged over the previous twelve completed working weeks. Overtime is only counted if it is compulsory under the terms of the employment contract.
If the employee has not completed twelve weeks service, the average should be estimated in the light of what could be reasonably expected from the agreed terms and condition of employment and from the work pattern of any fellow employees in comparable jobs.
If the employee is entitled to payment for time off both under the agreed terms and conditions and under these statutory provisions such entitlements are offset against each other.

There are a number of maternity rights for women given by the law. Among those the most important ones are the right of all pregnant women:

At DDC, we provide guidance to women about maternity rights and maternity pay and should you require any information or assistance we will do our utmost to help you.

In the UK the number of people entering the field of Midwifery is growing. At DDC, we receive an increased number of calls from students and already qualified midwifes who are asked by their patients about the paternity of their child.
At DDC we appreciate that in many of these cases the mother is already under duress from the new arrival into the world and recovering from the post-natal process, which sometimes includes post-natal depression. These mothers do not want to then be faced with having to take the child to the local GP for a DNA test.
DDC offer a broad-range of services and the one that is dedicated to the midwifery profession is peace of mind DNA testing. This is the ability to use a “home” kit in the comfort of the mother’s own home, together with the alleged father complete the test.
Like many of our tests, the peace of mind test results are available in 7-10 business days. DDC has the support of Midwifes online and has played a vital part in increasing public awareness amongst the midwifery profession.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, adenosine triphosphate (ATP).

DDC is a leading provider of testing for paternity in the UK and the rest of Europe. Paternity is a very important issue considering that 15-20% fathers in the UK raise someone else’s children. Every year, more than 30,000 paternity testing cases are performed in the UK.
DDC is the company you can trust to determine paternity in your case. Our accurate process provides us with a 100% proven record for results standing up within a the UK court system. DDC tests 16 genetic locations and independently runs every paternity test two times to ensure that your results are unquestionably 99.998% accurate.

A prenatal paternity test can also be performed by collecting the unborn child’s DNA by a CVS or amniocentesis sample. Either sample types must be collected by either an obstetrician or gynecologist (OB/GYN).

DNA analysis can be used to test relationships between people. A relationship test can give answers whether two (or more) individuals are related and even tell how many generations ago two family branches had split.
DDC offers several DNA tests which can be used as relationship tests and help people in establishing relationships or tracing their genetic origin:

A sibling DNA test can help two individuals verify whether they are full or half siblings. This type of test is often performed when an alleged father is unavailable for paternity testing and alleged siblings want to know if they have one or both parents in common.

To collect DNA samples, DDC uses a swab test which is included in a free home paternity kit. DNA samples collected by the swab test are very stable and do not degraded during shipment. We use state-of-the-art materials for our DNA collection home kit which ensures the most efficient way of collecting and preserving DNA samples. Once received by DDC, samples are passed to the laboratory where our highly qualified staff extracts DNA and performs DNA testing.
You can be sure that at DDC you will get the highest standard of service. If you would like to order your free home paternity kit to test DNA, feel free to order online.

DDC can determine the possibility of your twins being identical or fraternal.
Did you know that Twins are formed in the following way?:

• The developing embryo begins to split into identical twins but then stops part way leaving the partially separated egg to mature into a conjoined fetus.
• They are more often female than male (ratio of 3:1)
• They occur as often as once in every 40,000 births, but only once in every 200,000 live births.
• Are more likely to occur in Africa or India than in China or the United States.
• May be caused by genetic and environmental conditions which are responsible for the failure of twins to separate after the 13th day after fertilization.
• 1/50,000 to 1/100,000 are conjoined twins.
• 70% are female – even though monozygotic twins are more frequently male than female.
• 40% are stillborn
• 75% are stillborn or die within 24 hours.

Y-chromosome comparison is performed to determine whether two or more males are biologically related through their paternal line (father’s side of the family). This test directly compares male DNA with another man’s DNA to verify if they are related via a paternal line.