HUNDREDS of volunteers are being sought to give their blood for their ancestors.
People from rural Durham, the Tyne Valley, Northumberland and Cumbria have been asked to help investigate the biological influences of Celts, Romans, Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Vikings, and Normans.
Researchers are working with Newcastle University to sample DNA from rural communities. The project needs 300 volunteers aged over 18 to donate DNA by giving a small blood sample.
Volunteers must live in a rural area and their parents and all of their grandparents should have been born and raised in the area.
Research spokeswoman Dr Caroline Relton said: "The project aims to study subtle differences in the genetic code across the UK. Slight variations in the code can indicate whether our ancestors were Celt or Viking, for example.
"The genetic code only changes very slightly over several generations, so the population of the North is ideally suited, as many families have lived in rural parts of our region for many generations."
The results will be broadcast next year in a Channel 4 programme called DNA UK.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article