Hunt for Jesus’ DNA as scientists launch groundbreaking project to try and track down Christ’s LIVING relatives – The Sun

Team plans to use state-of-the-art technology to extract genetic make-up from artefacts including Shroud of Turin

A TEAM of scientists and biblical scholars are hoping to track down the DNA of Jesus Christ.

The crack team of adventurers are using state-of-the-art technology to extract the sacred genetic make-up from artefacts including Shroud of Turin and a set of bones believed to belong to Jesus cousin, John the Baptist.

George Busby

The investigators are hoping a DNA sample will lead them to a relative of the self-proclaimed son of god.

A new documentary by the History Channel followed Oxford University geneticist George Busby and biblical scholar Pastor Joe Basile as they travelled to Israel and the Black Sea hoping to find the holy building blocks of life.

One of the items inspected by the bible busting duo are the bones of John the Baptist which were uncovered in Bulgaria in 2010.

In an article printed in The Conversation, Busby explained why the ancient remains are hugely important.

He said: We can compare the DNA from a relic to DNA from other relics.

If we find other relics purported to be from John the Baptist, or a close relative of Jesus, then we could use genetics to compare the two to see if they are likely to have come from the same or related people.

Also, we have growing collections of DNA sampled form people around the world, which we can use to make a guess on the geographical origins of the relics.

Getty Images

The team also studied the Shroud of Turin an ancient cloth which is believed to have been wrapped around Jesus after he died.

They also analysed the Sudarium of Oviedo which is a piece of cloth covered in blood and some ancient texts.

But hunting down Jesus living relatives isnt as easy as it sounds and Busby explained the difficulties in the task ahead.

He wrote: DNA degrades over time, so we can test any DNA extracted from ancient remains for telltale signs of degradation.

That means we can differentiate modern contamination from ancient genomes.

We can also try to take DNA from the inside of bones and sequence DNA from the people who are known to have come into contact with the artefacts to help tell the ancient DNA and modern contaminants apart.

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Hunt for Jesus' DNA as scientists launch groundbreaking project to try and track down Christ's LIVING relatives - The Sun