Every kind of

requires a sample from which DNA can be extracted and analyzed. These samples can be collected from almost anything that a person frequently handles. However, a swab is mostly used to collect the sample from the inside of one’s cheek. Here’s why:

Using a swab is so easy that anybody can collect DNA compared to the methods where blood is drawn out only by a trained professional.

Swab samples are very easy to be locked in sealed pouches and transported. Again, when compared to blood samples, shipping the sealed swabs is extremely easy.

A buccal swab is painless. It just feels like a soft toothbrush, that too without any bristles, brushing the side of your cheek. That is a lot more convenient than painful blood collection and saliva samples. The latter can lead to dryness in the mouth while being time consuming because saliva samples are collected through spit tubes that require at least 1-2ml, which can be quite a challenging amount.

The newest technology is adept at detecting the DNA using these swabs. There is hardly any work required and that makes the whole process extremely fast and hassle free even for the lab staff.

Epithelial cells contain exactly the same DNA as blood cells. In other words, these swab tests are more than 99.9% accurate which is the same in case of blood samples as well.