Google has invested $3.9m in a company that lets users browse their genetic profile online. 

Genetics firm 23andMe was set up by Anne Wojcicki, wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin. 

"Even though your body contains trillions of copies of your genome, you have probably never read any of it," says a statement on the 23andMe website.

"Our goal is to connect you to the 23 paired volumes of your own genetic blueprint (plus your mitochondrial DNA), bringing you personal insight into ancestry, genealogy and inherited traits."

Brin has also personally provided around $2.6m in debt financing to the start-up.

The investment comes hot on the heels of the news that Google plans to use a huge database of personal information to suggest what its users should be doing with their lives.