Patent ID: 8271201

Claim:
A computer-implemented method of identifying an unknown biological specimen as hypothetically related to a family pedigree comprising at least a missing person and relationships to at least two family members having genotype information for use in a system comprising a processor, a memory connected to the processor, an input for receiving a DNA profile and an output device, the computer-implemented method comprising: (a) comparing, via the computer processor, at least two test DNA profiles obtained from a set of unknown biological specimens to the family pedigree, said family pedigree stored in said memory and said genotype information obtained from biological specimens of said at least two family members, the DNA profile comprising at least one DNA marker; (b) excluding a biological specimen not compatible with the family pedigree; (c) using an algorithm, via the computer processor, to calculate a pedigree likelihood ratio using an adaptation of an Elston Stewart algorithm that a specified genetic relationship exists between at least one unknown biological specimen and said at least two members of the family pedigree; (d) producing a resultant set of unknown biological specimens rank-ordered according to the pedigree likelihood ratio for the family pedigree via the output device; and (e) identifying an unknown biological specimen from the rank-ordered set with a high pedigree likelihood ratio as likely corresponding to said missing person in the family pedigree.