DNA forensics

Transforming Forensic Science with DNA from Dust

Posted on by Anna Bennett
A ray of sun coming through the wooden shutters, illuminates dust on the inside of a dark room. Close up, selective focus. Vintage background. This image is licensed from Adobe Stock.

In the evolving field of forensic science, a study by Fantinato et al. has opened new avenues in using DNA extraction and analysis to recover important information from crime scenes. Their work, “The Invisible Witness: Air and Dust as DNA Evidence of Human Occupancy in Indoor Premises,” focuses on extracting DNA from air and dust. This novel approach could revolutionize how crime scenes are investigated, especially in scenarios where traditional evidence—like fingerprints or bodily fluids—is scarce, degraded or has been removed from surfaces.

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Promega’s Top Three Most-Viewed Blog Posts of 2023

Posted on by Riley Bell

This year, our bloggers wrote about a range of topics, including semaglutide, a 20,000-year-old pendant, and type 1 diabetes. Each topic is unique and has proven its popularity by our Promega Connections readers! Take a look at our top three most-viewed blog posts of 2023. 

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How an Innovative Mobile DNA Analysis Lab Helped Identify War Victims in Ukraine

Posted on by Natalie Larsen

Each year, the International Symposium for Human Identification (ISHI) covers a variety of the latest topics in DNA forensics through sessions, workshops and poster presentations. While last year’s meeting largely focused on using investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) and developments in DNA databases, another topic that garnered widespread interest was current efforts being taken to mobilize DNA analysis labs.

One of the speakers, Sylvain Hubac, PhD, Head of the DNA Division of the Forensic Science Laboratory of the French Gendarmerie, helped create a mobile DNA lab solution back in 2015. This innovative mobile lab, designed and patented by the French Armed Forces for the French Gendarmerie (IRCGN), has been used to facilitate DNA identification in a number of emergency settings since it’s inception. From identifying the remains of the Germanwings Flight 9525 plane crash victims in 2015 and the victims of the 2016 Bastille Day terrorist attack in Nice, to adapting the lab to aid in sample processing during the COVID-19 pandemic, the mobile lab has played an especially instrumental role in Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) scenarios.

However, the mobile lab was more recently employed in a new DVI context: identifying victims of the conflict in Ukraine. On the last day of ISHI 33, Dr. Hubac presented on the unique challenges posed when identifying victims of war, and the tools, protocols and system that made the mobile lab uniquely suited for this purpose.

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Pursuing Justice For Victims: DNA Forensics

Posted on by Riley Bell

Last year’s International Symposium of Human Identification (ISHI) covered a span of topics during various workshops, sessions, and poster presentations. Topics ranged from investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) to customary updates about CODIS and DNA testing standards to mobilizing DNA analysis labs. However, one topic particularly stood out to attendees—Ashley Spence’s powerful testimony on pursuing justice for victims.  

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The 33rd International Symposium on Human Identification: The Past, Present and Future of Investigative Genetic Genealogy

Posted on by Jordan Nutting

It’s hard to imagine a better way to celebrate the 33rd International Symposium of Human Identification than a night spent wandering through the Hall of Human Evolution at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. The meeting, which took place in Washington D.C. from October 31–November 4, focused largely on using investigative genetic genealogy (IGG). When used to identify human remains or solve cold cases, IGG (a.k.a. forensic genetic genealogy or forensic investigative genetic genealogy, take your pick) relies heavily on techniques developed to sequence DNA from ancient human remains.

A crowd dances in a stone courtyard with a taxidermy elephant on display.
Credit: ISHI

New to ISHI this year were live-streamed presentations, building off the success of last year’s session recordings for online streaming. Another first was attendees dressing up in costume for the welcome reception, which happened to coincide with Halloween. From a nucleic acid-themed group costume to Sims characters to a bunch of grapes, ISHI 33 attendees had a chance to show off their fun side while reconnecting with colleagues.

While a range of topics were covered during the workshops, sessions and poster presentations, three themes stood out to this first-time ISHI attendee. In addition to IGG, there was widespread interest in developments in DNA databases as well as efforts to mobilize DNA analysis labs.

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The 30th International Symposium on Human Identification: Elevating DNA Forensics

Posted on by Ken Doyle

Thirty Years of ISHI

30 years of ISHI

In the fall of 1989, a small group of forensic scientists, law enforcement officials and representatives from Promega Corporation gathered in Madison, Wisconsin, for the very first International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI). At the time, DNA typing was in its infancy and had not yet been validated as a forensic method. The available technology consisted of two methods: detection of restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) and variable number of tandem repeats (VNTRs). Promega had developed products based on both analytical methods, which essentially provide a DNA “fingerprint” or profile for each individual tested.

Among the attendees at that first symposium was Tom Callaghan, then a graduate student. That experience made a significant impact on his career path. Last week, at ISHI 30, he presented a session on rapid DNA testing. Dr. Callaghan currently serves as a Senior Biometric Scientist for the FBI. In 1999, he was instrumental in launching the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) and in 2003, he became the first CODIS Unit Chief.

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Is MPS right for your forensics lab?

Posted on by Promega

Today’s post was written by guest blogger Anupama Gopalakrishnan, Global Product Manager for the Genetic Identity group at Promega. 

Next-generation sequencing (NGS), or massively parallel sequencing (MPS), is a powerful tool for genomic research. This high-throughput technology is fast and accessible—you can acquire a robust data set from a single run. While NGS systems are widely used in evolutionary biology and genetics, there is a window of opportunity for adoption of this technology in the forensic sciences.

Currently, the gold standard is capillary electrophoresis (CE)-based technologies to analyze short tandem repeats (STR). These systems continue to evolve with increasing sensitivity, robustness and inhibitor tolerance by the introduction of probabilistic genotyping in data analysis—all with a combined goal of extracting maximum identity information from low quantity challenging samples. However, obtaining profiles from these samples and the interpretation of mixture samples continue to pose challenges.

MPS systems enable simultaneous analysis of forensically relevant genetic markers to improve efficiency, capacity and resolution—with the ability to generate results on nearly 10-fold more genetic loci than the current technology. What samples would truly benefit from MPS? Mixture samples, undoubtedly. The benefit of MPS is also exemplified in cases where the samples are highly degraded or the only samples available are teeth, bones and hairs without a follicle. By adding a sequencing component to the allele length component of CE technology, MPS resolves the current greatest challenges in forensic DNA analysis—namely identifying allele sharing between contributors and PCR artifacts, such as stutter. Additionally, single nucleotide polymorphisms in flanking sequence of the repeat sequence can identify additional alleles contributing to discrimination power. For example, sequencing of Y chromosome loci can help distinguish between mixed male samples from the same paternal lineage and therefore, provide valuable information in decoding mixtures that contain more than one male contributor. Also, since MPS technology is not limited by real-estate, all primers in a MPS system can target small loci maximizing the probability of obtaining a usable profile from degraded DNA typical of challenging samples.

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Forensic Scientists Improve Sexual Assault Kit Turnaround Time with Y-Screening

Posted on by Michele Arduengo

The backlog of sexual assault kit samples in crime laboratories across the nation is a topic that hit the spotlight when a group of journalists uncovered the issue in an open records search of crime lab records in 2015. Reasons for the backlog include lack of staff, lack of funding, and simply, lack of time or a decision not to prosecute the case. Processing samples can be a labor-intensive process.

We recently interviewed Lynndsey R. Simon, Forensic Scientist II and Alternate CODIS Administrator from the Columbus Police Forensic Services Center to discuss some recent changes in sample processing in their laboratory that are helping to alleviate some of the backlog. She will be presenting a talk at the upcoming International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI) in September.

The Columbus Police Forensic Services Center is a smaller forensic laboratory and according to Simon, one of the biggest challenges they face is strained resources. The DNA extraction and processing kits that forensic laboratories use are very expensive, and the number of DNA samples that laboratories are getting for DNA analysis are increasing. With limited resources and funding, maximizing efficiency and finding the best solutions for the laboratory becomes critical.

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Promega Third Party Forensic-Grade Certification

Posted on by Promega

Promega has become the first major forensic manufacturer to achieve third party certification of the published ISO 18385 standard to minimize the risk of human DNA contamination in products used to collect, store and analyze biological material for forensic purposes.

On February 2, 2016, ISO 18385:2016 was published as the first international standard specific to the forensic manufacturing community. Since the standard was published, companies have begun to self-declare that they comply with the ISO standard. Some companies have gone a step further and reached out to Certification Bodies to provide an unbiased and independent assessment their compliance to ISO18385 through a third-party audit.

When consumers see an ‘ISO 18385 Forensic Grade’ labeled product, it should inspire confidence that the product was produced in accordance with a minimum set of criteria common to all manufacturers.

So what are you actually getting in a Forensic Grade labeled product? Continue reading “Promega Third Party Forensic-Grade Certification”

Catching a Child Abuser in Five Days

Posted on by Promega

ishi_27jpg

Next week, forensic analysts from all over the world will gather in Minneapolis for the 27th  International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI). So today, we’d like to share one story from a forensics lab that highlights the importance of collaboration, knowledge-sharing and technology development–since that is what ISHI is all about. 

Crimes against children are especially heinous, and it is vitally important that the offenders are removed from the streets as soon as possible. In today’s blog, Sarah Chenoweth from the Anne Arundel County Crime Lab in Maryland describes a sexual assault case that was solved in just five days. Key to this speed were the collaboration between lab staff and state police, and the ability to quickly and reliably amplify DNA profiles from low-DNA samples. Thanks to the efforts of the investigators involved, parents in Maryland, and possibly nationwide, can sleep a little easier.

On Friday, February 5th, the Anne Arundel County Crime Lab was notified of a sex offense involving a 7-year-old victim. With our efficient DNA workflow, including use of the Fusion amplification kit with our 3500 Genetic Analyzer, we were able to identify the perpetrator in only five days. Continue reading “Catching a Child Abuser in Five Days”