After 137 Years, DNA May Have Finally Revealed Jack the Ripper
How the Testing Actually Worked
The DNA used in the analysis was mitochondrial, meaning it passes down through the maternal line and is shared by many people in the same family tree. That makes it useful for excluding possibilities, but much weaker for confirming one specific individual.
Researchers matched samples from the shawl to descendants of both Eddowes and Kosminski. The results lined up with both family lines, which was remarkable for evidence this old. But to critics, it still felt more like a genetic neighborhood than a personal signature.
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