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                            Funding & Awards
 Implementation of epigenetics into forensic science: Development of a PCR based multiplex for the simultaneous analysis of age and body fluid identification
Award Information
Awardee
              FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY
Award #
              2017-NE-BX-0001
Funding Category
              Competitive Discretionary
Location
                    MIAMI, FL
Congressional District
              26
Status
              Closed
Funding First Awarded
              2017
Total funding (to date)
              $368,512
Original Solicitation
              NIJ FY17 Research and Development in Forensic Science for Criminal Justice Purposes
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2017, $368,512)
As submitted by the proposer:
Recent work on epigenetic methylation for age-based correlations has determined that these markers are cell type specific. Thus, in order to determine a suspects age using epigenetics, one must first determine the body fluid type left at the crime scene.
It is the goal of this proposal to develop an epigenetic multiplex for the simultaneous and trace determination of a suspects age and body fluid type that includes semen, vaginal epithelia, saliva and blood.
This project will involve over 120 subjects who will donate blood, saliva, vaginal epithelia or semen. Subjects will also contribute data on their biological age.
First, the researchers will identify and combine a set of body fluid specific age markers into a multiplex for the simultaneous determination of body fluid type and suspects age. Second, the researchers will test these markers by analyzing them using a massively parallel sequencer in a manner similar to that used for existing forensic kits. This kit will be validated using SWGDAM guidelines.
The importance of this research should be self-evident to any forensic scientist. Firstly, the determination of tissue type can be critical when levels are too low for conventional serology, or in child abuse where innocent transfer of DNA from skin or sweat from an abuser might be expected to be present on the child, but the presence of semen would not. Secondly, the determination of age is critical as an investigative lead for suspects who are not present in a database.
Once the methylation status is defined in each DNA fragment amplified by the multiplex assay, a software package will be developed to define the cell type and age along with the relative uncertainty in the estimate. The researchers will utilize an approach based on machine learning. The output of the program will define the body fluid type of the DNA recovered from the crime scene, define if a mixture is present, and provide the age of the suspects.
Note: This project contains a research and/or development component, as defined in applicable law, and complies with Part 200 Uniform Requirements - 2 CFR  200.210(a)(14).
ca/ncf



  
Grant-Funded Publications
        
                      Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and the gut microbiome: An ecological perspective
                  High-resolution melt analysis for the detection of skin/sweat via DNA methylation
                  Development of DNA methylation markers for sperm, saliva and blood identification using pyrosequencing and qPCR/HRM
                  Inferring directional relationships in microbial communities using signed Bayesian networks
                  So you think you can PLS-DA?
                  The gut microbiome and neuropsychiatric disorders: implications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
                  Applications of epigenetic methylation in body fluid identification, age determination and phenotyping
                  Development of a Body Fluid Identification Multiplex via DNA Methylation Analysis
                  Dynamic Interaction Network Inference From Longitudinal Microbiome Data
                  Large Scale Microbiome Profiling in the Cloud
                  MATria: a unified centrality algorithm
                  Constructing Lightweight and Flexible Pipelines Using Plugin-Based Microbiome Analysis (PluMA)

  
Date Created: September 29, 2017
    
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