MITOCHONDRIAL-DNA SEQUENCING OF SHED HAIRS AND SALIVA ON ROBBERY CAPS- SENSITIVITY AND MATCHING PROBABILITIES

Sequencing of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) has been used for human identi fication based on teeth and skeletal remains. Here, we describe an amp lification system for the mtDNA control region (D-loop) suited for the analysis of shed hair, which constitutes the most common biological e vidence material in forensic investigations. The success rate was over 90% when applied to evidence materials such as shed hair, saliva stai ns and saliva on stamps. The analysis of evidence materials collected from three similar robberies revealed the presence of mtDNA sequences identical to those of the suspects in the three crimes. The use of mtD NA control region sequences for individual identification was evaluate d. The probability of identity by chance for the mtDNA types of the su spects in the robberies was found to vary between Pr = 0.017 - <0.0017 , depending on the reference population used, emphasizing the need for large population databases to obtain the appropriate estimate.