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OSAC RESEARCH NEEDS ASSESSMENT FORM

Title of research need: Verifying the accuracy of sequences in public databases for forensic taxonomic 

identification of diverse biological materials

Describe

the need:

In human forensic DNA analysis, curated reference databases have been developed for use 

in statistical analyses and comparisons. Databases meeting the standards expected by law 

enforcement and the criminal justice system for human DNA analyses do not exist for most 

non-human biological materials encountered in forensic casework, including but not 

limited to plants, fungi, and terrestrial and marine vertebrates and invertebrates. While 

some forensic laboratories have developed in-house reference databases for the taxa and 

associated loci commonly encountered in their casework, most practitioners also utilize 

DNA sequences contained in public sequence databases. Unfortunately, it has been well 

documented that public sequence databases such as GenBank contain erroneous data, 

therefore it is imperative that the accuracy of sequences in such databases be verified prior 

to use in taxonomic identification. 

Keyword(s): GenBank, wildlife, accuracy, nucleotide sequences, public databases

Submitting subcommittee(s): Wildlife Forensic Biology Date Approved: 10/7/2022

Background Information:

1. Does this research need address a gap(s) in a current or planned standard? (ex.: Field identification system 

for on scene opioid detection and confirmation)

This research need dovetails with an existing draft standard on the use of GenBank for taxonomic 

assignment. However, that standard does not discuss verification of the accuracy of the data included in 

such public sequence databases. 

2. Are you aware of any ongoing research that may address this research need that has not yet been published 

(e.g., research presented in conference proceedings, studies that you or a colleague have participated in but 

have yet to be published)?

No. We are not aware of any extensive studies that focus on assessing the accuracy of public sequences for 

taxonomic identification of diverse non-human biological taxa encountered in forensic casework. 

3. Key bibliographic references relating to this research need: (ex.: Toll, L., Standifer, K. M., Massotte, D., eds. 

(2019). Current Topics in Opioid Research. Lausanne: Frontiers Media SA. doi: 10.3389/978-2-88963-180-3)

[1] Meiklejohn KA, Damaso N, Robertson JM. (2019). Assessment of BOLD and GenBank – their accuracy and 

reliability for the identification of biological materials. PLoS ONE. 14(6): e0217084
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[2] Nilsson RH, Ryberg M, Kristiansson E, et al. (2006). Taxonomic reliability in DNA sequences in public 

sequence databases: a fungal perspective. PLoS ONE. 1(1):e59.

[3] Ashelford KE, Chuzhanova NA, Fry JC et al. (2005). At least 1 in 20 16S rRNA sequence records currently 

held in public repositories is estimated to contain substantial anomalies. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71:7724-

7736.

[4] Bridge PD, Roberts PJ, Spooner BM et al. (2003). On the unreliability of published DNA sequences. New 

Phytol. 160:43-48.

[5] Vilgalys R. (2003). Taxonomic misidentification in public DNA databases. New Phytol. 160:4-5.

4. Review the annual operational/research needs published by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) at 

https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/forensic-science-research-and-development-technology-working-groupoperational#latest? Is your research need identified by NIJ?

No. 

5. In what ways would the research results improve current laboratory capabilities?

The ability to characterize the accuracy of sequences in public databases for a group of species and the 

informative locus sequenced for species identification (e.g., rbcL for plants, COI for insects, Cytb for 

vertebrates, etc.) would be highly valuable, and provide guidance to examiners as to whether such data 

should be used in casework. 

6. In what ways would the research results improve understanding of the scientific basis for the 

subcommittee(s)?

The accuracy and associated potential error rates with using public sequence databases for taxonomic 

identification of species encountered in wildlife forensics is not known. Such information would provide 

valuable guidance for the broader wildlife forensics community when incorporating such data into the 

analysis. 

7. In what ways would the research results improve services to the criminal justice system?

The ability to provide objective and scientifically sound taxonomic identifications for questioned biological 

materials encountered in casework could potentially a) allow determination of whether a violation has 

occurred, or b) based on the group of species present, predict the origin of a sample or provide 

discriminatory information for sample-to-sample comparisons. Such applications could be used to ensure 

violators are prosecuted, generate investigative leads, or provide valuable information for intelligence 

purposes. 
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8. Status assessment (I, II, III, or IV): II

Major gap in 

current 

knowledge

Minor gap in 

current 

knowledge

No or limited

current research is 

being conducted I III

Existing current 

research is being 

conducted II IV

This research need has been identified by one or more subcommittees of OSAC and is being provided as an 

informational resource to the community.