Browsing by Subject "Forensic Genetics"
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Item DNA-Prokids: Forensic Genetics and Human Trafficking(2013-08-01) Eisenberg, Arthur J.DNA - ProKids is a program jointly run by the Universidad de Granada (UGR) and the University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC). The Goal of DNA - Prokids is to return trafficked individuals, specifically young people and children to their families in their home countries. The FBI estimates that there are more than 100,000 children and teens in the United States that are being trafficked in the sex trade. Since Texas is a portal into the U.S. for Central and South America, the state government has been proactive in trying to address the problem. Part of the solution is the partnership between UNTHSC and UGR to work on DNA-Prokids. DNA-Prokids is an international humanitarian effort to help identify missing children and if possible to reunite abducted and homeless children with their parents, and to provide law enforcement agencies a scientific methodology to help deter the human trafficking of children. The organization also works with law enforcement to ensure that the children are returned to their families or placed in safe environments. Since this video, 697 parent-child associations have been made, with the vast majority of those children being returned to their families. Out of those 697, approximately 12 children have not been able to return home due to crime, violence, and drugs in their biological families. DNA-Prokids has also detected and avoided 221 illegal adoptions, where the woman presenting the baby to be adopted was not the child's biological mother. The success of the program deters human trafficking and can prevent child abuse and slave labor by increasing coordination between efforts like DNA-Prokids and authorities.Item Effects of Amicon Ultra-4 Centrifugal Devices on DNA Yield From Bone Samples and Effects of Amplicon Rx Post-PCR Treatment onRelative Florescence Units Obtained During Capillary Electrophoresis(2014-05-01) Amiel, Marie B.; Arthur EisenbergThe ability to recover DNA and perform DNA analysis from skeletal remains is a valuable tool for identification of missing persons and unidentified remains. DNA extraction from bone often yields low levels of DNA, which can inhibit analysis and impact genetic profiles. Efficient recovery of DNA from bones is therefore vital. In this study, three molecular weight cut-off columns were evaluated. The Amicon® 10,000 NMWL filter device proved to be most efficient at retaining amplifiable DNA and obtaining optimal genetic analysis results. Additionally, the ability of Amplicon RxTM, a post-PCR treatment, to improve genetic profiles by providing a boost in RFUs obtained during capillary electrophoresis was evaluated.Item Results of a collaborative study on DNA identification of aged bone samples(Medicinska naklada, 2017-06-14) Vanek, Daniel; Budowle, Bruce; Dubska-Votrubova, Jitka; Ambers, Angie; Frolik, Jan; Pospisek, Martin; Al Afeefi, Ahmed Anwar; Al Hosani, Khalid Ismaeil; Allen, Marie; Al Naimi, Khudooma Saeed; Al Salafi, Dina; Al Tayyari, Wafa Ali Rashid; Argueta, Wendy C.; Bottinelli, Michel; Bus, Magdalena M.; Cemper-Kiesslich, Jan; Cepil, Olivier; De Cock, Greet; Desmyter, Stijn; El Amri, Hamid; El Ossmani, Hicham; Galdies, Ruth; Grun, Sebastian; Guidet, Francois; Hoefges, Anna; Iancu, Cristian Bogdan; Lotz, Petra; Maresca, Alessandro; Nagy, Marion; Novotny, Jindrich; Rachid, Hajar; Rothe, Jessica; Stenersen, Marguerethe; Stephenson, Mishel; Stevanovitch, Alain; Strien, Juliane; Sumita, Denilce R.; Vella, Joanna; Zander, JudithAIM: A collaborative exercise with several institutes was organized by the Forensic DNA Service (FDNAS) and the Institute of the Legal Medicine, 2nd Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic, with the aim to test performance of different laboratories carrying out DNA analysis of relatively old bone samples. METHODS: Eighteen laboratories participating in the collaborative exercise were asked to perform DNA typing of two samples of bone powder. Two bone samples provided by the National Museum and the Institute of Archaelogy in Prague, Czech Republic, came from archeological excavations and were estimated to be approximately 150 and 400 years old. The methods of genetic characterization including autosomal, gonosomal, and mitochondrial markers was selected solely at the discretion of the participating laboratory. RESULTS: Although the participating laboratories used different extraction and amplification strategies, concordant results were obtained from the relatively intact 150 years old bone sample. Typing was more problematic with the analysis of the 400 years old bone sample due to poorer quality. CONCLUSION: The laboratories performing identification DNA analysis of bone and teeth samples should regularly test their ability to correctly perform DNA-based identification on bone samples containing degraded DNA and potential inhibitors and demonstrate that risk of contamination is minimized.Item SNP Genotyping of Native DNA using Oxford Nanopore MinION Sequencing(2018-05) Ludwick, Whitney N.; Planz, John V.; Zascavage, Roxanne R.; Phillips, Nicole R.; Yang, ShaohuaShort tandem repeats (STRs) are the primary system of genetic variation used for human identity testing in forensics; however, STR typing relies on the use of time- consuming polymerase chain reaction and expensive laboratory equipment. The use of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in forensics have several advantages over STRs. In this study, a panel of Identity SNPs were interrogated and typed from native genomic DNA sequencing libraries using the Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) MinION sequencer. We determined that SNPs could be effectively captured using existing software. Four different methods of alignment were investigated, and we found that aligning sequence data to the human genomic sequence (hg19) provided partial profiles, while aligning data to a merged reference profile resulted in more complete profiles. As ONT?s platform continues to improve, SNP genotyping using the MinION may be used to generate complete SNP profiles with the sufficient depth of coverage for reliable genotype determination.Item Typing Success of Short Tandem Repeat Loci on Skeletal Remains: Comparison of the AmpFLSTR® Identifiler® Plus and GlobalFiler™ PCR Amplification Kit.(2014-05-01) Garcia, Stephanie A.; Arthur EisenbergThe AmpFLSTR® Identifiler® Plus PCR Amplification Kit (Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA), and the recently released GlobalFiler™ PCR Amplification Kit (Life Technologies) were compared to determine which provided the greater power of discrimination from DNA extracted from skeletal remains. I hypothesized, STR profiles obtained using the GlobalFiler™ kit for analysis of skeletal remains would result in an increased number of reportable genetic loci, and provide greater power of discrimination as compared to the Identifiler® Plus Kit. The results of this study showed GlobalFiler™, along with an automated extraction, could produce comparable or greater genetic typing results and discriminatory power from skeletal remains without the use of a second amplification kit.Item Use of ATCC[R] MSA-2002[TM] for Validation of Extraction and Amplification Techniques in 16S Microbial Community Profiling(2018-05) Foley, Brianna A.; Allen, Michael; Warren, Joseph; Zhang, Yan; Maddux, Scott D.The implementation of microbiome analysis is an emerging area of focus in forensic research. However, microbiome analysis is not well validated for use in forensic analyses and there is no standard protocol in place. In this research a comprehensive analysis of extraction and amplification techniques employed during investigation of microbial communities was performed using ATCC[R] MSA-2002[TM] as a mock microbial community. Comparison of DNA extraction protocols was performed followed by an analysis of commercially-available polymerases. Samples were pooled for sequencing of the V4 region of 16S ribosomal RNA gene using the Illumina MiSeq System, and subsequently analyzed for community composition. The results were compared with the known genomic data of the mock microbial community and statistical methods were employed to determine the extent of deviation.Item Validation of the ParaDNA[R] Screening System with touch DNA using mock evidence samples(2018-05) West, Whitney R.; Allen, Michael S.; Warren, Joseph E.; Staub, Rick W.; Schreihofer, Ann M.Short tandem repeat, or STR, analysis is expensive and often creates a waiting game for law enforcement agencies to receive these results due to high demand and the current backlog at forensic laboratories. ParaDNA[R] by LGC utilizes HyBeacon Probe technology to rapidly analyze DNA and provide a percentage value of the amount of DNA present, as well as 2-5 loci, depending on whether the Screening System or Intelligence System is being used. Currently, this technology is novel and is intended for sample screening and prioritizing purposes for the Plano Police Department. This validation study has shown that the ParaDNA[R] Screening System can obtain genetic data from touch DNA and trace DNA samples by using both direct and indirect sampling methods. The results from this validation have further indicated that if the Screening System provides a score higher than 60%, these samples should be prioritized and sent to forensic laboratories for full STR analysis.