U.S. flag
      An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.
        Here's how you know
      Here's how you know**Official websites use .gov**
            
            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
      **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
            
            A **lock** (
            A locked padlock
            ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Menu

      
        close

            
            
                                              About NIJ
        
                    
  
          About NIJ
      
    
          The NIJ Director
          How NIJ Is Organized
          Mission and Guiding Principles
          Research and Development Process
          Strategic Framework
          Assessments of NIJ
          Annual Reports & Reports to Congress
          Staff Directory
          Funding & Awards
        
                    
  
          Funding & Awards
      
    
          Current Funding
          Forthcoming Funding
          Expired Funding
          Awards: Listing of Funded Projects
          Guidance for Applicants and Awardees
          Fellowship & Student Programs
          Travel Scholarships
          NIJ Challenge Program
          Library & Multimedia
        
                    
  
          Library & Multimedia
      
    
          NIJ Journal
          Podcasts
          Publications Listing
          Multimedia Listing
          Rated Practices on CrimeSolutions
          Rated Programs on CrimeSolutions
          Software & Databases
          Datasets
          Patents
          Topics
        
                    
  
          Topics
      
    
          Article Listing
          Corrections
          Courts
          Crime Prevention
          Crimes
          Drugs and Crime
          Equipment and Technology
          Forensic Sciences
          Youth Justice
          Justice System Reform
          Law Enforcement
          Tribal Crime and Justice
          Victims of Crime
          Events
        
                    
  
          Events
      
    
          NIJ 2024 Research Conference
          Scheduled Events
          On-Demand Events
          Research Meetings & Workshops
          NIJ-Hosted Online Training

                            
                                About
          Contact Us
          Subscribe
          Topics A-Z
                  Share
FacebookXLinkedInRedditPinterestEmail Home
                            Funding & Awards
 Forensic Body Fluid Identification Using Microbiome Signature Attribution
Award Information
Awardee
              Virginia Commonwealth University
Award #
              2016-DN-BX-0151
Funding Category
              Competitive
Location
                    Richmond, VA
Congressional District
              4
Status
              Closed
Funding First Awarded
              2016
Total funding (to date)
              $443,598
Original Solicitation
              Research and Development in Forensic Science for Criminal Justice Purposes
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2016, $443,598)
As submitted by the proposer:

Detection and identification of body fluids plays a crucial role in criminal investigation, as it provides information on source of the DNA as well as corroborative evidence regarding the crime committed, scene, and/or association with persons of interest. Historically, casework methods in serology have been chemical, immunological, catalytic, spectroscopic, and/or microscopic in nature. However, most of these methods are presumptive, with few absolutely robust confirmatory exceptions. More importantly, these methods can only be used to identify a single biological fluid, and thus elimination of the presence of other biological fluids and mixtures in forensic samples can be problematic. In recent years several new molecular-based methods (mRNA, miRNA, DNA methylation etc.) have been proposed; although promising, these methods require high quality human DNA or RNA. We instead propose utilization of the known, unique microbial signatures found in these biological fluids. The Human microbiome project reports that the average human harbors 10-100 trillion microbes in or on the body; thus, more than 90% of the cells in or on the human body are of non-human origin. Herein, we propose to utilize these non-human origin cells (specifically bacteria) to develop a single molecular test for the identification of the most forensically relevant human body fluids that could be easily added into a high-throughput sequencing (HTS) forensic panel. We will perform 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) high-throughput sequencing on 1400 body fluid samples (200 samples each from venous blood, saliva, semen, vaginal and menstrual secretions, urine and fecal matter) from donors of various ages, ethnicities and genders. Sequence data will be analyzed and statistical analyses of datasets will be used to identify stable core bacteria associated with each biological fluid. After successful identification of the characteristic bacterial signatures for each biological fluid, we will validate the analysis method using 350 blinded body fluid samples in order to show proof of effective identification and to assess potential error. Evaluation of degraded and compromised samples, as well as a panel of mixed body fluid samples will be used to evaluate robustness of the method. Upon successful completion of the research, we will develop and publish a standard operating procedure for collection, preservation, analysis, and interpretation of results. We will be able to provide an economic assessment of associated costs of using these techniques if they were to be integrated into a forensic high-throughput analysis panel.

Note:  This project contains a research and/or development component, as defined in applicable law.

ca/ncf



  
Grant-Funded Publications
        
                      A bacterial signature-based method for the identification of seven forensically relevant human body fluids
                  A Eukaryotic Community Succession Based Method for Postmortem Interval (PMI) Estimation of Decomposing Porcine Remains
                  Forensic Body Fluid Identification Using Microbiome Signature Attribution
                  An Accurate Bacterial DNA Quantification Assay for HTS Library Preparation of Human Biological Samples

  
Date Created: September 13, 2016
    
          Side navigation
  

        

  
  
              Current Funding
    
      
            
            
            
      Forthcoming Funding
    
      
            
            
            
      Expired Funding
    
      
            
            
            
      Awards: Listing of Funded Projects
    
      
            
            
            
      Guidance for Applicants and Awardees
    
      
            
            
            
      Fellowship & Student Programs
    
      
            
            
            
      Travel Scholarships
    
      
            
            
            
      NIJ Challenge ProgramSimilar Awards
        
                      Internal Affairs Complaint Investigations: A Multi-Site Comparison
                  Evaluation of the Luxon Ion Source for Rapid Screening in Forensic Laboratories
                  Mitigating demographic bias in forensic speaker identification
 Top

      National Institute of Justice

        
        
                        About NIJ
                    About NIJ
      
    
                  How NIJ Is Organized
      
    
                  NIJ Director
      
    
                  Research Disclaimer
      
    
                  Funding & Awards
                    Funding & Awards Home
      
    
                  Awards Listing
      
    
                  Current Funding
      
    
                  Guidance for Applicants and Awardees
      
    
                  Resources
                    Events
      
    
                  Podcasts
      
    
                  Publications
      
    
                  Topics
      
    
                  Multimedia
      
    
                  Reuse Policy
      
    
                  Contacts
                    Contact NIJ
      
    
                  Staff Directory
      
    
                  Submit a FOIA Request
      
    
                  File a Civil Rights ComplaintFacebook
          
                      X
          
                      YouTube
  

      810 7th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20531
      
              Secondary Footer link menu
            Accessibility
              Plain Language
              Privacy Policy
              Legal Policies and Disclaimer
              No FEAR Act
              Freedom of Information Act
              USA.gov
              Justice.gov