Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism profiling of bacterial flora derived from single human hair shafts can discriminate individuals

Among the evidence that an offender leaves at a crime scene, human hairs are often found in criminal investigation [1 –3]. Their judgment is mainly carried out by morphological observation using microscopy [1,4] and human short tandem repeat (STR) typing [3,5]. It is estimated that 50-150 strands of human hair are shed naturally every day [2,6]. Therefore, there is some possibility of collecting an offender’s h air as forensic evidence, without their knowledge. If personal discrimination of the shed hairs were possible, it would be very helpful for identifying an offender, or for establishing an offender's action [1].

Source: Legal Medicine - January 8, 2017 Category: Forensic Medicine Authors: Eiji Nishi, Kota Watanabe, Yukihiro Tashiro, Kenji Sakai Source Type: research