Detection of latent fingermarks and cells on paper

•Fingermarks and cells detected following application of DMAB and IND-Zn reagent.•Different visualisation conditions allows for differentiation of the two traces.•Superior DNA profiling after use of combined reagent compared to IND-Zn alone. Fingermarks and DNA are valuable traces in forensic invest...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Forensic science international 2020-04, Vol.309, p.110185-110185, Article 110185
Main Authors: Khuu, Alicia, Spindler, Xanthe, Roux, Claude
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Benzaldehydes - chemistry
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Dermatoglyphics
DNA
DNA - chemistry
Fingermark
Fingerprint
Fingerprints
Forensic science
Forensic Sciences
Humans
Indanedione zinc
Indans - chemistry
Indicators and Reagents - chemistry
Investigations
Latent fingerprints
p-dimethylaminobenzaldehyde
Proof of Concept Study
Reagents
Recovery
Software
Thermal cycling
Touch DNA
Trace detection
Zinc
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:•Fingermarks and cells detected following application of DMAB and IND-Zn reagent.•Different visualisation conditions allows for differentiation of the two traces.•Superior DNA profiling after use of combined reagent compared to IND-Zn alone. Fingermarks and DNA are valuable traces in forensic investigations potentially allowing for the identification of the source of the trace or highlighting a link between a touched object and an individual. These traces are often latent and need to be detected before recovery. While a number of validated methods exist for fingermark detection, no routine method is in place for the detection of DNA. This study investigates the use of pdimethylaminobenzaldehyde (DMAB) in conjunction with indanedione zinc (IND-Zn) for the detection of latent cellular material and fingermarks on paper. The aim of this proof-of-concept study is to determine the successfulness of this reagent (DMAB-IND) in the detection of the respective traces and observe the impact it has on the resulting DNA profile. It was found that latent fingermarks and the associated cells could be visualised following treatment with the reagent. Samples treated with DMAB-IND showed a significantly higher percentage of alleles called compared to IND-Zn-treated and untreated samples due to the targeted recovery of cells. However, the reagent appears to degrade DNA at a rapid rate, requiring the treated samples to be processed for DNA on the day of treatment.
ISSN:0379-0738
1872-6283
DOI:10.1016/j.forsciint.2020.110185