Patent ID: 8871471

Claim:
A method for STR typing comprising: a) amplifying a nucleic acid from a sample with an oligonucleotide primer pair comprising a forward and a reverse primer, each between 13 and 40 nucleobases in length, wherein said forward primer is configured to hybridize within a first conserved region of said nucleic acid and said reverse primer is configured to hybridize within a second conserved region of said nucleic acid, wherein said first and said second conserved regions flank a variable nucleic acid region comprising a STR locus, wherein said amplifying generates at least one amplification product that is between about 45 and about 200 nucleotides in length; b) determining the molecular mass of at least one strand of said at least one amplification product by mass spectrometry; and c) comparing said molecular mass to a molecular mass database comprising a plurality of molecular masses of a plurality of STR-identifying amplification products indexed to said oligonucleotide primer pair and to a reference allele corresponding to said STR locus, wherein a match between said determined molecular mass and a molecular mass comprised in said molecular mass database identifies an STR allele in said sample wherein if no match is identified further comprising: d) calculating the base composition of said at least one strand of said at least one amplification product using said determined molecular mass, wherein said calculated base composition identifies a previously unknown allele of said STR locus; and e) indexing said calculated base composition to said oligonucleotide primer pair, said previously unknown allele, said determined molecular mass and said sample in a database.