SARASOTA, June 16, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. (OTCBB:DNAG) today announced that a newspaper columnist's quest to unravel an old family mystery was solved with a Father's Day gift -- the Company's ANCESTRYbyDNA(tm) test.
"The Coopers hail from Sussex County, Va.," Detroit Free Press writer Desiree Cooper wrote in a column published in the newspaper on Wednesday, June 15. "Annie Cooper was my dad's mother... rumored to be a full-blooded Cherokee originally from North Carolina."
Columnist Cooper set out to find out if the rumor was fact or fiction. "Anticipating Father's Day, I sent my father a kit from DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. He swabbed the inside of his cheek and sent the sample back. The results are in: His ancestors were 57% Sub-Saharan African, 40% European and only 3% Native Indian."
But there still was one more mystery to be solved. Cooper sent her own DNA to another firm to see if she could trace her maternal roots back to Africa. It turned out that her DNA matched those of the Tikar people now living in Cameroon.
Cooper went on to write that the tests were worth it. "My genes may not be my destiny, but they are my history. And they hold the secrets to who I really am," she concluded.
Cooper's column can be accessed online at http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006606150317.
About DNAPrint Genomics, Inc.
DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. (www.dnaprint.com) is a developer of genomics-based products and services in two primary markets: biomedical and forensics. DNAPrint Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, develops diagnostic tests and theranostic products (drug/test combinations) using the Company's proprietary ancestry-informed genetic marker studies combined with proprietary computational modeling technology. Computational Biology and Pharmacogenomics services are also offered externally to biopharmaceutical companies. The Company's first theranostic product is PT-401, a "Super EPO" (erythropoietin) dimer protein drug for treatment of anemia in renal dialysis patients (with end stage renal disease). Preclinical and clinical development of all the Company's drug candidates will benefit from simulated pre-trials to design actual trials better and are targeted to patients with genetic profiles indicating their propensity to have the best clinical responses. DNAPrint is proud of its continued dedication to developing and supplying new technological advances in law enforcement and consumer ancestry heritage interests. Please refer to www.dnaprint.com for information on law enforcement and consumer applications which include DNAWITNESS(tm), RETINOME(tm), ANCESTRYbyDNA(tm) and EURO-DNA(tm). DNAWitness-Y and DNAWitness-Mito are two tests offered by the Company. The results from these tests may be used as identification tools when a DNA sample is deteriorated or compromised or other DNA testing fails to yield acceptable results.
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements in this press release that are not historical are forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including, but not limited to, uncertainties relating to technologies, product development, manufacturing, market acceptance, cost and pricing of DNAPrint's products, dependence on collaborations and partners, regulatory approvals, competition, intellectual property of others, and patent protection and litigation. DNAPrint Genomics, Inc. expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking, except as may be required by applicable law or regulation to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in DNAPrint's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any such statements are based.