A photograph of an advertising poster has spread on social networks, allegedly appearing in one of the medical laboratories in the Ukrainian city of Lvov, which offers a new service: a DNA test for the absence of Russian genes. We have verified the veracity of this photo.
According to the poster, medical laboratory clients are offered a DNA test for the presence of the “Moskal gene.” Based on the test results, the patient will be able to receive a medical certificate stating that he is a “purebred Ukrainian.” Many Telegram channels have noticed this service (Zergulio, "Ostashko! Important", "Ukraine.ru", Rogandar NEWs, "Kherson.ru", "Urgently and accurately. War News"). Authors blogs drew a parallel with the research of Aryan doctors in Nazi Germany and the discrimination against “mudbloods” in JK Rowling’s Harry Potter books. Some Russian media ("Gazeta.ru", "Constantinople", "Pravda.ru") were outraged by such a proposal from the Lviv laboratory, calling his "Nazi initiative". Regnum.ru mentioned the Lviv poster in the context of a State Duma deputy’s statement Sergei Mironovthat in Ukraine, after the persecution of priests, persecution of cultural figures will begin, and then they will begin to look for the “Muscovite gene.”
Judging by the information in catalog clinics and search According to Google Maps, only five laboratories in Lviv offer DNA paternity testing (the first item in the list of services offered on the advertising poster). We checked the websites of all five medical institutions and found no mention of a test for “Muscovite genes” on any of them. In addition, the corporate style of these five laboratories differs from the design of the three posters that can be seen in the photograph allegedly taken in one of the Lviv laboratories. Search online by ad text ("DNA test for the genes of Muscovites - 6500 UAH; Behind the test results there is an official document about the fact that you are a purebred Ukrainian”) also did not give results.
But a search of the text of two adjacent advertisements hanging on the same board showed where these posters were copied from. The first ad - on the left - is a message about the vaccination program, taken from site Ukrainian clinic "Medicom". This network of clinics has six branches, while all of them are located in Kyiv. Medicom has no branches in Lviv.
Searching the text of the second ad - above - led us to website Airport "Kyiv" named after Sikorsky. The ad copy lists the benefits of taking a COVID-19 PCR test at the airport, including ensuring social distancing in a “spacious airport lounge.”
None of the sources who published the photograph of the notice board specified in which Lvov laboratory it was taken. Some media refer to Telegram channels. A Telegram channels claimthat the photo was sent by a subscriber. The earliest publication we found appeared in Telegram-channel “Urgent and precise. War News" on the evening of November 30, 2022. At the end of the post, the author writes: “Thanks to Evgeniy and his relative for the information.” At the same time, the post contains neither a link to Evgeniy’s profile nor a clarification of the name of the laboratory.
Separately, it is worth noting that such tests, allegedly offered by the Lvov laboratory, even in theory cannot accurately distinguish "Ukrainian genes" with "Russian genes." The authors of one of the most extensive research genotype of the Slavs came in the conclusion that most Eastern Slavs (Russians, Belarusians and Ukrainians) are genetically very similar. In addition, such DNA tests have many limitations. For example, one person's results may change over time as laboratories expand the list of clients they test and add to the database against which the test sample is then checked. In curious experiment In 2019, journalists asked a pair of twins (with almost identical DNA) to do a nationality test in five different laboratories. In all five cases, the twins' results differed from each other, and their nationalities varied from test to test. After this, a geneticist from one of these laboratories saidthat determining a person's nationality by his DNA is half science, half art. Despite this, companies (including Ukrainian) still offer similar tests for nationality.
However, based on the totality of the analyzed facts, it can be stated with a high degree of confidence that the “Muscovites gene test” is an invention of an anonymous Internet user. Most likely, someone created the poster on the computer, hung it on a random bulletin board, took a photo and distributed it via Telegram. Not a single laboratory in Lviv advertises such a test online. And the other two advertisements in the photo were most likely downloaded from the Internet and added to the board to give credibility to this fake.
Cover image: Wikipedia, Telegram
Most likely not true
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