Cairo University inaugurated a new DNA lab to find clues of mummies' family links on Monday.

The lab is the second of its kind in Egypt. The first one was established at the Egyptian Museum two years ago, said Dr Hossam Kamel, president of the university.

Dr Kamel and Dr Zahi Hawas, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities were present at the inauguration.

"It is very important not to use the same lab to analyze the DNA of living and dead people as there may be confusion in the results," Dr Hawas said.

"I used to be against the DNA tests for mummies, because it was done by foreigners, and the mix of DNA of the dead and the alive could lead to inaccurate results," he said.

"We can not trust results from one lab, so we established another to make comparison and get precise data," he added.

Dr Sally, one of the five scientists working at the lab, said the DNA of the mummies is different from that of people alive. "It is very old and fragile, so we have to extract and multiply it before tests."

The priority of the new lab, said Hawas, is "to study the family tree of Tutankhamun, as we do not know who was his father, and where his mother's mummy was buried."

Tutankhamun (ruled from 1333 BC to 1324 BC ) was an Egyptian Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty, during the period of Egyptian history, known as the new kingdom.

"We will announce key information about Tutankhamun's family link next August, after comparing the results from the two labs, " Hawas said.

The lab, which cost one million U.S dollars, is sponsored by the American Discovery Channel, said Hawas, adding that the channel "will shoot what we will be doing."