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
                            Library & Multimedia
 Skin Microbe Colonies Used for Human Identification
NCJ Number
              254322

Date Published

November 2019
Length
              1 page
Annotation
              The research described in this article was funded by National Institute of Justice grant 2015-NE-BX-K006 awarded to the University of North Texas Health Science Center and is based on the grantee report "Human Microbiome Species and Genes for Human Identification" by Bruce Budowle (NCJ 252942).
Abstract
              Humans transfer trace signatures of unique colonies of microbes on our skin to objects we touch. The tiny size of that signature make it difficult for investigators to identify an individual. Research now has made that identification more likely. Geneticist Bruce Budowle, director of the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification, realized that not only does human skin have a large number of bacterial cells on its surface, but that those cells would be transferred to an object when it is handled. Efforts to sequence human DNA from touch samples face the challenge of amplifying and analyzing highly dilute concentrations, but including an analysis of DNA from the bacterial cells could provide much more information from a single sample. Budowle's research team developed methods for identifying a core set of skin organisms consisting of ten species of bacteria, one fungus species, and one bacteria-attacking virus. Their methods combined the best features of current approaches used to identify microbial communities, which, for bacteria, have traditionally been based on either sequencing the single gene "16S," or entire genomes. They developed primers for 286 lineage-informative genomic sites, used them to amplify sample DNA, and then sequenced the products on a next-generation sequencing platform.
      
  
          Additional Details
Grant Number(s)
        2015-NE-BX-K006


  
  
        
  Agencies
        NIJ


  
  
        
  Award
        Human Microbiome Species and Genes for Human Identification
    
  
  
Date Published: November 1, 2019
    
          Downloads
        
                      Grantee Report (PDF)
                  HTML

Side navigation
  

        

  
  
              NIJ Journal
    
      
            
            
            
      Podcasts
    
      
            
            
            
      Publications Listing
    
      
            
            
            
      Multimedia Listing
    
      
            
            
            
      Rated Practices on CrimeSolutions
    
      
            
            
            
      Rated Programs on CrimeSolutions
    
      
            
            
            
      Software & Databases
    
      
            
            
            
      Datasets
    
      
            
            
            
      PatentsRelated Topics
        
                Degraded DNA samples
        DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)
        DNA typing
        Forensic laboratories
        Forensic sciences



  
Similar Publications
        
                      Research and Evaluation on School Safety: The Structure, Services, and Products of State School Safety Centers
                  Importance of culture in measuring tribal crime seriousness: scoping review of crime seriousness indices
                  Identifying COVID-19 Policies and Practice that Juvenile Justice Systems Should Maintain Long-Term: Listening Session 1: Juvenile Justice Crime Analysts
 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