Improving the detection of spermatozoa microscopically from routine sexual assault examinations

This study determined that the detection of spermatozoa could be improved by submitting sexual assault swabs directly for Differential Lysis extraction, whilst preserving the ability to conduct presumptive testing, eliminating the need to prepare a microscopic slide during initial examination. Analy...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Australian journal of forensic sciences 2024-03, Vol.56 (2), p.201-216
Main Authors: Savage, Chelsea, McNevin, Allan, Hunt, Matthew, Caunt, Emma, Scott, Kirsten, Brisotto, Paula, Allen, Cathie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acid phosphatase
Analysis
Body fluids
Cotton
differential lysis extraction
Experiments
Lysis
Microscopy
prostate specific antigen
Rayon
Semen
Sensitivity
Sex crimes
Sexual assault
Sperm
Spermatozoa
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Summary:This study determined that the detection of spermatozoa could be improved by submitting sexual assault swabs directly for Differential Lysis extraction, whilst preserving the ability to conduct presumptive testing, eliminating the need to prepare a microscopic slide during initial examination. Analysis of semen from cotton swabs, rayon swabs, scrapings, tape-lifting and excisions from both thick and thin fabrics was conducted to ensure that the methodologies evaluated were tested on a range of exhibits and biological fluids typically seen in routine forensic casework. Results showed that microscopy slides created during Differential Lysis Extraction performed favourably in comparison with slides created during initial examination. A newly developed sexual assault process gave comparable detection levels to the traditional processing for Prostate Specific Antigen (p30) and Phadebas presumptive testing. It should be noted that the detection sensitivity for Acid Phosphatase (AP) was slightly better for traditional processing. The sensitivity of p30 was shown to be far superior to that of AP across most experiments.
ISSN:0045-0618
1834-562X
DOI:10.1080/00450618.2022.2149966