Our Family Tree
The Tree's Construction: Past, Present & Future
Connecting science and patients is a critical component of modern healthcare. A family tree can be used to locate and identify family members who may be at risk of OTC deficiency disorder, allowing them to seek testing and treatment.
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In the past, family members created a family tree with the intention of alerting relatives about OTC deficiency disorder. However, this attempt was thwarted by a variety of obstacles, resulting in the construction of a limited tree.
A New Direction
Although previous efforts were commendable, the family tree did not grow until May of 2022, when the foundation partnered with medical genetic genealogists. Medical genetic genealogists are connecting science with families by analyzing information found in family trees in the hope of informing as many descendants as possible. In addition to expanding on the past tree, this implementation is currently building a future tree that includes Jane Wright Earl's siblings.
As a result, we have expanded our ability to contact a larger number of descendants, allowing it to identify and test those at risk for OTC deficiency and, if necessary, introduce treatments. With this approach, we seek to locate others that are at risk and provide relief through OTC deficiency disorder knowledge and hope for a healthier future. By combining the scientific knowledge of medical genetic genealogists, medical geneticists, and the pharmaceutical industry, we can improve the quality of life for those affected and ensure a healthier future for future generations.
Finding Jane Wright Earl
The Common Link to OTC Deficiency
In 2018, gene sequencing technology became available and provided information of the entire DNA molecule of our family’s mutated gene. Further blood tests identified the markers on the gene and pinpointed where the defect was located.
Through genealogical research, we determined a common ancestor with another family with the same gene mutation. As a result, Jane Wright Earl was medically recognized as the proband—or the starting point for the genetic study of this type of OTC deficiency.
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Together with a Medical Genetic Genealogist, we've been able to not only build an extensive family tree, but we've also been able to identify over 1,200 individuals at risk of OTC deficiency.
Jane Wright Earl (1822-1913)
Jane Wright Earl was born in 1822 in Rugeley, Stafford, England and died in 1913 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The occupations of those in the Wright line were mainly coal miners or laborers and were born and lived mostly within a five mile radius.
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Jane married Jonathan Earl 1847 in Rugeley, Stafford, England and they were the parents of 13 children.
Less than a year after their marriage, both Jonathan and Jane were baptized members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in England.
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They sailed from England in 1848 on the ship, Erin’s Queen, and landed in New Orleans, Louisiana and then proceeded up the Mississippi River to St. Louis, Missouri 1848.
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Jonathan and Jane left St. Louis, Missouri in 1850 and traveled to Council Bluffs, Iowa.
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In 1852, they crossed the plains and upon their arrival in the Salt Lake Valley, Jonathan and Jane settled in the Tenth Ward and lived there until their deaths.
Left to right: Jane Wright Earl, Joseph Levi Earl (infant),
Joseph Henry Earl (standing), and Joseph Wright Earl.
Are You a Descendant?
Jane Wright Earl had 13 children and 9 of those have descendants. If you would like to know more about our family tree research or think you may be a descendant of Jane Wright Earl, please contact us.
