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DNA profiling of unidentified human dead bodies from costal cartilage attached with sternum bone in Himachal Pradesh, India

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Author Affiliations

  • 1DNA Unit, Regional Forensic Science Laboratory, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India
  • 2DNA Unit, Regional Forensic Science Laboratory, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India
  • 3DNA Unit, Regional Forensic Science Laboratory, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India

Res. J. Forensic Sci., Volume 12, Issue (1), Pages 1-8, January,29 (2024)

Abstract

Sternum bone is one of the most common exhibits received in forensic laboratories for the establishment of the identity of unidentified human dead bodies. However, the extraction of DNA from sternum bone is a multi-step process and time-consuming. The fleshy costal cartilage attached with sternum bone can be used as an alternative for DNA extraction. In the present study, DNA profiling from costal cartilage of one hundred nineteen sternum bones of unidentified dead bodies was done, as a part of casework analysis across seven years between 2014 to 2020.Most of the dead bodies were retrieved in conditions of advanced stages of decomposition and skeletonization. In the present study, the DNA was isolated from costal cartilage with Qiagen EZ1 Advanced XL BioRobotusing magnetic bead based method. The isolated DNA was quantified using agarose gel electrophoresis (0.8%) and subjected to multiplex PCR amplification using Power Plex® 21 System and Global Filer™ kits. The capillary electrophoresis of amplified products was done using 3130, 3500, and 3500 XL genetic analyzers. The data were analyzed using Gene Mapper® ID Software Version 3.2 and Gene Mapper™ ID ‑X Software v 1.6. Despite advanced stages of decomposition of the bodies, full DNA profiles were obtained from 115 out of 119 sternum bones. Hence, the fleshy costal cartilage of sternum bone can serve as an alternate for quick extraction of DNA as compared to hard sternum bones.

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