Extraction of high quality DNA from biological materials and calcified tissues

Calcified tissues, such as bone and tooth, and some other sample types, such as those containing adhesive, present a challenge to standard extraction protocols. We have developed a lysis reagent, BTA™ lysis buffer, which is designed for use with PrepFiler™ Kit reagents. The BTA™ lysis buffer disrupts calcified tissue matrices and achieves effective extraction of DNA from pulverized bone and tooth samples. In addition, the BTA™ lysis buffer mildly but efficiently extracts DNA from challenging substrates like tape, chewing gum, and cigarette butts and, as with bone and tooth, DNA from these lysates is purified using established PrepFiler™ reagent extraction protocols.We successfully extracted DNA from powdered human bone samples, chewed gum and smoked cigarettes using BTA™ lysis buffer. Extraction yields for bone, gum and cigarette samples tested were consistent and reproducible. This extraction method efficiently removed potential PCR inhibitors from all samples tested, and C_T values for the internal PCR control of Quantifiler^® Human DNA Quantification Kit were consistent and within the normal range. The DNA extracted from these samples also provided conclusive profiles that were free of PCR artifacts when amplified using the AmpF?STR^® Identifiler^® PCR Amplification Kit. The protocol is easily adapted for automation.     

Case report of a homicide resolved 15 years later: The robustness of Chelex extraction

DNA typing techniques is one of the most advanced tools for human identification. During the last 10 years, a great number of methods for DNA extraction and analysis have been introduced to forensic genetic, with considerable success but also with considerable controversy. The success and validation of a criminal investigation are very closely related to the process used for obtaining and preserving biological evidence.We report the strategy that we employed to analyze evidences belonging to a homicide happened in Brescia (Italy) in 1992, not resolved at that time, with the forensic genetic analysis. After 16 years the analysis were conducted on DNA samples extracted with Chelex maintained at −80 °C, bloodstain, and biological specimens of perpetrators. Standard autosomal and Y-chromosome STR analysis identified the persons involved and victim's profiles. This case is of interest as a demonstration of a more successful application of DNA typing in well conserved DNA samples than in bloodstains kept in the Court Office.     

甘肃省司法鉴定现状及问题研究

甘肃省司法鉴定工作改革发展的势头良好,但存在的问题依然严重。当前甘肃省司法鉴定工作主要存在三个方面的不适应:鉴定能力与人民群众、司法机关日益增长的诉讼需要不相适应;管理能力与管理工作面临的新形势、新要求不相适应;外部执业环境与司法鉴定行业健康顺利发展的要求不相适应。     

船舶螺旋桨损伤特点及成伤机制

目的总结船舶螺旋桨损伤的主要特点,探讨螺旋桨损伤的特点及形成机制,探索螺旋桨损伤与碎尸的鉴别方法。方法收集浙江省湖州地区1994─2005年尸检的100余例船舶螺旋桨损伤案例,对螺旋桨造成的损伤（擦划伤、表皮剥脱、创、骨折和全部离断创）的特点,以及衣着特征,进行回顾性分析。并与常见碎尸案中使用的工具造成的断面特征进行比较。结果船舶螺旋桨损伤是高速旋转螺旋桨的巨大劈力和机械切削所造成的损伤;碎尸是人为使用锐器切割或砍击尸体。两者由于形成机理、作用力及反作用力大小不同,导致损伤断面呈现不同的特征。结论船舶螺旋桨损伤具有独特的特征,可与碎尸损伤进行鉴别。     

Policy Forum: Studying Eyewitness Investigations in the Field

This article considers methodological issues arising from recent efforts to provide field tests of eyewitness identification procedures. We focus in particular on a field study (Mecklenburg 2006) that examined the “double blind, sequential” technique, and consider the implications of an acknowledged methodological confound in the study. We explain why the confound has severe consequences for assessing the real-world implications of this study.     

Regularities in Eyewitness Identification

What do eyewitness identification experiments typically show? We address this question through a meta-analysis of 94 comparisons between target-present and target-absent lineups. The analyses showed that: (a) correct identifications and correct-nonidentifications were uncorrelated, (b) suspect identifications were more diagnostic with respect to the suspect’s guilt or innocence than any other response, (c) nonidentifications were diagnostic of the suspect’s innocence, (d) the diagnosticity of foil identifications depended on lineup composition, and (e) don’t know responses were nondiagnostic with respect to guilt or innocence. Results of diagnosticity analyses for simultaneous and sequential lineups varied for full-sample versus direct-comparison analyses. Diagnosticity patterns also varied as a function of lineup composition. Theoretical, forensic, and legal implications are discussed.     

扩增12S rRNA基因鉴定生物检材种属

目的建立一种能够在同一反应条件下鉴定多个具体物种．又满足简单、快速、特异、灵敏、准确等实用要求的种属鉴定方法。方法从GenBank中获取人、鸡、鸭、鹅、猪、兔、鼠、绵羊、水牛、狗、山羊等11个物种的12SrRNA基因序列．设计一对针对上述11个物种的通用引物和分别针对人、鸡和鸭的特异引物,同时扩增各物种12SrRNA基因。以通用引物扩增片段为内部对照．以特异引物扩增片段用于人、鸡和鸭的种属鉴定,并分别对人、鸡、鸭单一检材以及人和鸡、人和鸭、鸡和鸭等二元混合DNA进行鉴定。结果通用引物扩增,各物种均有400bp左右的扩增片段：特异引物只对各自目标种属有扩增产物,片段大小：人163bp、鸡286bp、鸭374bp;测序结果与GenBank既有序列比对,Identities分值：人100％、鸡99％、鸭100％;通用引物扩增人、鸡和鸭检材的灵敏度为2．5Pg;特异引物扩增灵敏度人为2．5pg,鸡、鸭均为200Pg;混合DNA中任一种DNA的含量只要高于检测灵敏度即可被准确检出．不受另一种DNA量的干扰：盲测结果准确。结论本方法可以利用同一种PCR反应条件鉴定多个物种的种属。     

溺死法医学鉴定的研究新进展

综述了近年来在硅藻检验、水中浮游生物叶绿素（A）检测、血液化学和组织化学检验等方面的最新文献报道,并对各种溺死检验方法的优缺点进行了评价：在硅藻检验中,硝酸乙醇法、破机罐法及微波消解法,可缩短检验时间,提高办案效率;酶消化法及PCR法硅藻检出率高,适用于可疑水样中硅藻密度低等情况。早期器官组织中浮游生物叶绿素（A）、血液和组织中其他生化指标,可作为鉴定溺死的重要参考。微量元素锶检测可用于鉴定海水中溺死。另外,硅藻及其他浮游生物遗传多态性片断PCR,可望成为新的、灵敏的溺死检测方法。     

Comparing the performance of IBIS and BulletTRAX-3D technology using bullets fired through 10 consecutively rifled barrels

This study evaluates the abilities of the Integrated Ballistics Identification System (IBIS) and BulletTRAX-3D electronic imaging systems to identify bullets fired by the same weapon in a large database of images. Ten consecutively rifled handgun barrels were test fired to obtain reference sample and known match sample pairs for upload onto both bullet acquisition systems. Both copper-jacketed and lead bullets were uploaded, to account for variations in the manner in which markings are reproduced on the different metal compositions. Ranked correlation lists were examined and evaluated. For copper-jacketed bullet correlations, both IBIS and BulletTRAX-3D identified all reference samples to their known matches within the top 10 positions. For lead bullets, BulletTRAX-3D identified all reference samples to their known match in the top 10 positions while IBIS identified only 30%. For inter composition comparisons, BulletTRAX-3D was more successful than IBIS, identifying 100% of reference samples to their known match in the top 20 for copper-jacketed to lead comparisons and 90% for lead to copper-jacketed comparisons. These results suggest that BulletTRAX-3D is more effective than IBIS in the analysis of a wider range of bullet types and it was also found to produce images of superior quality.