{"id":11119,"date":"2022-03-31T09:50:54","date_gmt":"2022-03-31T08:50:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/?p=11119"},"modified":"2022-05-05T14:34:08","modified_gmt":"2022-05-05T13:34:08","slug":"is-it-true-one-person-can-have-two-dna-yes-and-heres-all-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dubawa.org\/dir\/is-it-true-one-person-can-have-two-dna-yes-and-heres-all-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Is it true one person can have two DNA? Yes, and here\u2019s all you need to know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Claim: A Facebook post claims a person can have children not linked to his or her DNA because the person has two or more cells.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Our findings and experts’ opinions reveal that it is possible for an individual to have two DNA and have children not linked to them by one DNA. This is due to a condition known as chimerism.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full Text<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. It is used to carry out paternity tests which has become a topic of discussion in Nigeria with the recent rise in cases of  paternity fraud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amidst this, several Facebook users have claimed that it is possible for a DNA test not to link a father and a child because one person can have two DNA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Facebook post<\/a> by Princess Jessy-Doo claims an individual can have two or more sets of cells and children that are not linked to him or her by DNA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA human chimera may likely produce kids who are not linked to his DNA since he is having two or more sets of cells\u201d part of the Facebook post read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Screenshot of Facebook post by Princess Jessy-Doo.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Another post by Lene Temitope<\/a> notes how DNA results can be tricky, urging parents to carry out their own DNA test to be sure none of them is a Chimera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Screenshot of Facebook post by Lene Temitope.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The comments under this post were a mixture of awe, confusion and disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One Facebook user, Aondofa Shedrack, said he still won\u2019t believe this, noting that if it’s not his DNA then it\u2019s nothing. Another user, Iji Silas, however, appreciated the poster for sharing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is this true? What are the odds, how does this work? These questions prompted us to do this check. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Verification<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We researched the topic chimerism and how it works and also spoke to experts on the issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Chimerism? <\/strong>Chimerism<\/a> is a rare condition in which a person\u2019s body contains two different sets of DNA. This condition is believed to be quite rare as only about 100 or so cases of chimerism have been recorded in modern medical literature. Chimerism can also affect animals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So an animal or human that has the cells of two or more individuals is known as a chimera<\/a>. The bodies of chimaeras contain two different sets of DNA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Types of chimerism<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Chimerism has different types<\/a> with different causes and symptoms. The types include microchimerism, artificial chimerism, twin chimerism, and tetragametic Chimarism<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microchimerism<\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This type of chimerism commonly occurs when a pregnant woman absorbs a few cells from her foetus. The opposite can also happen, where a foetus absorbs a few cells from its mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These cells may travel into the mother\u2019s or foetus\u2019s bloodstream and migrate to different organs. The cells may remain in a mother\u2019s body or a child\u2019s body for a decade or more after  childbirth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Artificial chimerism<\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This type of chimerism can occur when a person receives a blood transfusion, stem cell transplant, or bone marrow transplant<\/a> from another person and absorbs some of that person\u2019s cells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, the treatment of transfused blood with radiation helps the transfusion or transplant recipient better absorb the new cells without permanently incorporating them into their body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Twin chimerism<\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The more extreme and most talked about in Nigeria in recent times is twin Chimerism. This type occurs when a pair of twins is conceived but one embryo dies in the womb and the surviving foetus absorbs some of the cells of its deceased twin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This gives the surviving foetus two sets of cells (its own cells and some of its twin\u2019s).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tetragametic chimerism<\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This type occurs when two different sperm cells fertilise two different egg cells which fuse together into one human embryo with crossed cell lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Symptoms of Chimerism <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The symptoms of chimerism vary from one person to another and many with this condition do not show signs, or do not recognize these signs as chimerism. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These symptoms include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n