Springfield funeral home offering service to preserve
DNA of loved ones
C all it DNA of the dead . A Springfield funeral home has begun selling a service that provides relatives with a DNA sample swabbed from the cheek of a deceased loved one .
Andreason ’ s Cremation & Burial Service and a Canadian DNA laboratory firm are collaborating to offer the opportunity to purchase a DNA sample from a deceased loved one as a way to preserve the person ’ s genetic record before he or she is cremated or buried . Andreason ’ s is charging $ 263 for the service , owner Jeff Andreason said .
Tom Cross , owner of DNA & Drug Testing in Eugene , said saving the DNA of a deceased person could be useful in tests to establish family relationships , including paternity .
“ The best way I describe it is that it ’ s a tool for future reference ,” he said . “ Let ’ s say someone with a large estate dies and somebody is coming out of the woodwork to make a claim against the estate . A DNA test would establish whether the deceased gentleman is that person ’ s biological father .”
DNA testing also could be useful if the deceased person had been adopted and not much was known of his or her ancestry , Cross said .
The preserved DNA of a father also could help a daughter if she was curious about his ancestral history but she did not have any male relatives who could be tested , Cross said .
Cross ’ company is not involved in Andreason ’ s service .
There ’ s nothing to prevent someone who is alive from having his or her DNA sampled and preserved . But if an individual doesn ’ t do that , Andreason ’ s service is a last chance — particularly if the deceased is headed for cremation . Andreason ’ s began offering the service about five months ago , according to Andreason . So far , fewer than 10 families have requested the service , he said .
His company uses DNA Memorial , a lab in Thunder Bay , Ontario , to extract and preserve DNA from samples sent by the funeral home . The DNA samples themselves are collected by Andreason ’ s staff , who swab the inside cheeks of the deceased .
Neal Esau , DNA Memorial ’ s co-founder , said his company has developed a process that allows DNA to be stored indefinitely at room temperature .
After his firm gets swabs from funeral homes , it extracts DNA through a method that attaches the DNA to a powder . The company has applied for a patent on the method , he said . The powder is placed in a glass vial filled with nitrogen , then it is sent to relatives in a display box with details of the deceased , he said .
“ The process allows the DNA to be stored at room temperature indefinitely at home in a drawer or safe place where any other family document would be stored ,” Esau said . “ With our approach , you don ’ t need to deep-freeze the DNA .”
As long as the vial remains intact and is kept out of prolonged exposure to sunlight , “ the DNA should last indefinitely ,” he said .
For families that choose traditional casket burials , DNA storage would save them the considerable expense of having to exhume the body for DNA testing , Cross said .
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