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
 Molecular Tools for Low-Template DNA Analysis
Award Information
Awardee
              General Electric Company
Award #
              2012-DN-BX-K047
Funding Category
              Competitive
Location
                    Niskayuna, NY
Awardee County
              Schenectady
Congressional District
              20
Status
              Closed
Funding First Awarded
              2012
Total funding (to date)
              $511,435
Original Solicitation
              NIJ FY 12 Applied Research and Development in Forensic Science for Criminal Justice Purposes
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2012, $511,435)
DNA profiling by short tandem repeat (STR) analysis is a powerful tool for obtaining genetic information from biological material, to aid in the unambiguous identification of individuals to link persons, places, and objects. While the standard STR analysis methods work very well for relatively abundant and fresh or well preserved samples, it is often difficult to obtain complete genetic profiles from low-template samples (also referred to as low-copy-number samples) that may only have a few cells' worth of genetic material. In addition to the complete loss of genetic loci and the dropout of individual alleles, the profiles obtained from low-template samples suffer from increased stutter peaks, allelic imbalance, and allele drop-in resulting from stochastic effects induced during the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Analysis is especially difficult for low-template samples that have been exposed to environmental factors that affect DNA integrity. GE Global Research is proposing to develop improved tools for examining such limited and/or damaged genetic evidence. Specifically, we propose to adapt two separate, highly sensitive methods for the treatment of low-template samples that would pre-amplify DNA from a few copies to an amount sufficient for quantification and robust profiling in addition to archiving. One method improves upon whole-genome amplification, using the technique of multiple displacement synthesis by Phi29 polymerase. This polymerase has excellent processivity and strand-displacement properties that enable high-fidelity amplification using random hexamer primers. We have made several improvements to the commercially available Genomi- PhiTM DNA amplification kit that include 1) self-cleaning of the reagents to eliminate potential contaminating DNA and 2) optimization of the formulation and hexamer composition to enable rapid, highly sensitive amplification of trace input DNA. The second method is a novel locus-specific isothermal reaction that involves incubation with nucleotide analog-modified primers, the genetically engineered nicking enzyme Endonuclease V, and a strand-displacing polymerase. An advantage of this isothermal method is that the amplification takes place at a lower temperature than conventional PCR, and so the degree of STR stutter peak formation is expected to decrease because of less DNA strand slippage. In addition, because amplification products are not templates for further amplification, the kinetics are linear, which is potentially advantageous for the maintenance of allelic ratios. This method could be adapted to pre-amplify only the desired STR loci from low-template DNA samples, providing a substantially increased probability of extracting a more complete profile. Combined with previously developed integrated methods to repair some of the DNA template lesions and fragmentation (NIJ 2006- DN-BX-K018), which are caused by environmental exposure and sample processing, we expect that this will greatly improve the ability to obtain complete genetic profiles from low template samples to aid in the investigation of felony crimes or for identification and chain-of- custody purposes. The work will be directed toward producing optimized protocols and recommendations for sample-specific use of the technologies. The methods will then be validated using standard forensic workflows and compared with current low-template methodology. ca/ncf



  
Grant-Funded Publications
        
                      Molecular Tools for Low-Template DNA Analysis

  
Date Created: August 28, 2012
    
          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
        
                      NIJ co-sponsorship of the Center for Advanced Research in Forensic Science (CARFS)
                  Optimizing Analytical Parameters for Detection of Chronic and Single Dose Drug Exposure in Forensic Hair Analysis
                  Understanding and Refining Violence Intervention Implementation: St. Louis (MO) as a Crucial Case
 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