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| Portrait in DNA: Can forensic analysis yield police-style sketches of suspects? |
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Christine Soares Male, short and stout, with dark skin, brown eyes, shovel-shaped teeth, type A+ blood and coarse, dark brown hair giving way to pattern baldness. He would have a high tolerance for alcohol and a higher-than-average risk of nicotine dependence—fortunately, he lived thousands of years before humans discovered smoking. The description of a Stone Age Greenland resident published in February paints an extraordinary portrait of a man who vanished more than 4,000 years ago, drawn almost solely from his DNA remains.The analysis, led by Danish scientists, not only marks the first full sequencing of an ancient human genome but also offers a startling example of how much modern-day detectives can discern just from a suspect's genetic code. Far beyond using DNA "fingerprints" to link an individual to a crime scene, forensic profiling is edging toward the capability to create a police-artist-style sketch of an unknown person by reading traits inscribed in the genome. "The body interprets the DNA to determine the appearance of the face," says anthropologist Mark Shriver of Morehouse College, who hopes to duplicate that ability within a decade. |
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| How can you participate? To help examine the potential benefits and problems associated with using genetic identification technologies in law enforcement, the Forensic DNA Ethics project is actively seeking the participation ... |
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If you know of a case in which forensic DNA phenotyping was used other than those included on our site, please tell us about it! |
| Surveys We have an active program of surveys designed to gather data on current practices in forensic science education and law enforcement. Many of these surveys are by invitation only, although public ... |
featured news
| New DNA test could help in Black case 28/04/2011 | Deseret News Sandra Yi Police here are exploring a new avenue for possible clues in the death of Sherry Black, t ... |
| New DNA test developed at Salt Lake lab could help solve 'cold cases' 12/03/2011 | Deseret News Alex Cabrero Inside an ordinary beige brick building off West Temple and about 2500 South, technolo ... |
| Emerging Forensics Field May Hit Legal, Ethical Obstacles 25/02/2011 | Science Martin Enserink The Dutch parliament adopted a law in 2003 regulating forensic DNA phenotyping, t ... |
resources
| Cases OverviewCases Overview It is not known how often law enforcement agencies have turned to FDP as part of an attempt to identify an unknown suspect or victim; some reports claim that the method has been used in several hundre ... |
| Laws Overview Is forensic DNA phenotyping regulated?
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| Research Overview We are collecting references for papers, reports, conference presentations, or abstracts that report findings relevant to FDP. Our intent is to periodically publish an annotated bibliography that trac ... |