“With the new economic opportunities afforded Native Americans, this test can legitimize claims of ancestry,”reads a marketing brochure from the Salt Lake City firm offering the test.

Some DNA tests claim to be able to tell how certain drugs will react in the body and what dietary supplements would be most beneficial.

A test offered by Genelex Corp. of Seattle for $625 claims to provide a blueprint for lifestyle recommendations based on your genetic makeup.

Other tests determine whether people with the same last name are related and whether a poodle’s championship bloodline contains a bit of cocker spaniel.

At DNA Artistry in Phoenix, you can have your DNA “fingerprint”reproduced on canvas, paper or as a sculpture for prices that start at $259, including the DNA test.

“DNA testing has definitely gotten more mainstream,” said Vladimir Bolin, chief executive officer of Chromosomal Laboratories Inc., a DNA lab in Phoenix.

Bolin studied molecular and cellular biology at the University of Arizona in the 1980s and has watched the tests progress.

Bolin opened Chromosomal Laboratories in 2004 after building and selling one of the nation’s largest labs for testing the quality of indoor air. He had planned to focus on forensic testing of crime‑scene evidence but, like other firms, he has branched out into paternity tests, ancestor tracing, pet DNA and infidelity investigations.

“DNA doesn’t lie,” reads a poster advertising the firm’s infidelity‑testing services.

Non‑clinical DNA tests, those not ordered by a physician in the course of diagnosing or treating an illness, are a rapidly growing, largely unregulated industry in the United States. They bring companies hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

New services such ancestor tracing, a $1 billion federal DNA testing initiative and a move by the American Kennel Club to record the DNA of many of its registered dogs are spurring growth of the relatively new industry.

An estimated 220,000 paternity tests are performed in the United States each year, and new pharmacogenetic tests that use DNA to determine how a person will react to certain medications add to the growth of the industry.

It’s difficult to place a precise dollar amount, but Bolin estimates the industry to be worth about $300 million per year and growing.

As the tests reveal more specific medical information and as more individual profiles are finding their way into the public domain, questions about privacy, ethics and government regulation arise.

While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved clinical genetic tests for 900 diseases, “home brew” tests developed by laboratories and sold over the Internet are not regulated.

A recent government investigation of four firms offering DNA‑based nutrition assessments raised concerns about the accuracy of the tests and the veracity of the conclusions.

“It’s buyer beware,” Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon, said at a congressional hearing about the subject in late July.

New York does not permit in‑home paternity testing, and the FDA is looking more closely at licensing pharmacogenetic tests.

Because DNA samples can be held indefinitely, concern is growing that they could be used for purposes other than those for which they were gathered.

Unlike a fingerprint, DNA provides more than mere identification. It can provide insights into many personal aspects of an individual and his or her family. That can include susceptibility to diseases, paternity and, perhaps, predispositions to certain behaviors and sexual orientation. This increases the potential for genetic discrimination by governments, insurers, employers, schools, banks and others.

No federal legislation exists regarding genetic discrimination in insurance coverage or in the workplace. Genetic information privacy bills passed by the U.S. Senate in 2003 and 2005 eventually died in committee.

The primary public concerns are that insurers will use genetic information to deny, limit or cancel insurance coverage or that employers will use genetic information against employees or to screen potential employees.

In Phoenix, Chromosomal Laboratories runs about 1,000 DNA tests a week. Business comes from law enforcement agencies, private detectives and hundreds of outlets around the country that sell paternity tests, ancestor tracing and other services.

Many DNA samples are given voluntarily, but some are gathered by clandestine means. That can mean combing trash cans for used dental floss and cigarette butts or going through dirty laundry. Cigarette butts are particularly good sources of DNA because they often have traces of saliva.

“We see some pretty weird stuff,” Bolin said.

That’s particularly true with forensic evidence, which can include partially decayed human heads, blood‑soaked clothing and bits of flesh.

With more firms offering DNA testing–11 advertise paternity‑testing services in the metro Phoenix Yellow Pages–the business has gotten competitive.

So Bolin uses promotions and coupons to sell his products. On Father’s Day, the lab ran a “free paternity testing” special. Its Dog DNA Kit includes a $15 off coupon for a limited time, too.

Chromosomal Labs’ latest push is for its $160 DNA Identification Kit for determining ancestral heritage: “With just a swab to the inside of your cheek, we’ll trace your ancestral migrations over the past 60,000 years.”