Development of a Protein‐based Human Identification Capability from a Single Hair |
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| Authors: | Katelyn E Mason PhD Phillip H Paul PhD Fanny Chu MS Deon S Anex PhD Bradley R Hart PhD |
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| Institution: | 1. Forensic Science Center, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, 7000 East Avenue, Livermore, CA, 94550Corresponding author: Katelyn E. Mason, Ph.D. E‐mail:;2. Forensic Science Center, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, 7000 East Avenue, Livermore, CA, 94550;3. Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, 578 S Shaw Ln, East Lansing, MI, 48824 |
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| Abstract: | Shed human hair (lacking root nuclear DNA) frequently contributes important information to forensic investigations involving human identification. Detection of genetic variation observed in amino acid sequences of hair proteins provides a new suite of identity markers that augment microscopic hair analysis and mitochondrial DNA sequencing. In this study, a new method that completely dissolves single hairs using a combination of heat, ultrasonication, and surfactants was developed. Dissolved proteins were digested and genetically variant peptide (GVP) profiles were obtained for single hairs (25 mm) via high‐resolution nanoflow liquid chromatography‐based mass spectrometry and a novel exome‐driven bioinformatic approach. Overall, 6519 unique peptides were identified and a total of 57 GVPs were confirmed. Random match probabilities ranged between 2.6 × 10?2 and 6.0 × 10?9. The new bioinformatic strategy and ability to analyze GVPs in forensically relevant samples sizes demonstrate applicability of this approach to distinguish individuals in forensic contexts. |
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| Keywords: | forensic science human identification genetically variant peptide single hair proteomics and random match probability |
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