Postmortem stability of DNA

Bär, W.; Krätzer, A.; Mächler, M.; Schmid, Werner

doi:10.1016/0379-0738(88)90118-1

Cited by 180 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Bar et al [45] showed that the length of amplifiable DNA fragments from human tissues (blood, muscle and spleen) decreased exponentially during the 20 days after a person's death, and Campos et al [46] showed a rapid decrease in DNA content in cow bone after burial. Moreover, Adler et al [26] showed a weak exponential correlation between DNA preservation and age, on the basis of 37 ancient human samples (mainly teeth).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The half-life of DNA in bone: measuring decay kinetics in 158 dated fossils

et al. 2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Claims of extreme survival of DNA have emphasized the need for reliable models of DNA degradation through time. By analysing mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from 158 radiocarbon-dated bones of the extinct New Zealand moa, we confirm empirically a long-hypothesized exponential decay relationship. The average DNA half-life within this geographically constrained fossil assemblage was estimated to be 521 years for a 242 bp mtDNA sequence, corresponding to a per nucleotide fragmentation rate (k) of 5.50 Â 10 -6 per year. With an effective burial temperature of 13.18C, the rate is almost 400 times slower than predicted from published kinetic data of in vitro DNA depurination at pH 5. Although best described by an exponential model (R 2 ¼ 0.39), considerable sample-to-sample variance in DNA preservation could not be accounted for by geologic age. This variation likely derives from differences in taphonomy and bone diagenesis, which have confounded previous, less spatially constrained attempts to study DNA decay kinetics. Lastly, by calculating DNA fragmentation rates on Illumina HiSeq data, we show that nuclear DNA has degraded at least twice as fast as mtDNA. These results provide a baseline for predicting long-term DNA survival in bone.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The half-life of DNA in bone: measuring decay kinetics in 158 dated fossils

et al. 2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In living trees, cambium and to a lesser extent sapwood should yield suitable DNA. Difficulties may then be expected, as it is suspected that once a tree is cut, the quantity and quality of DNA that can be retrieved will quickly diminish and DNA is likely to be degraded into smaller fragments (Bär et al 1988;Lindhal 1993;Cano 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Novel perspectives in wood certification and forensics: dry wood as a source of DNA

Deguilloux

Pémonge

Petit

2002

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

142

159

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The importance of wood for human societies can hardly be understated. If dry wood were amenable to molecular genetic investigations, this could lead to major applications in wood forensics, certification, archaeology and palaeobotany. To evaluate the potential of wood for molecular genetic investigations, we have attempted to isolate and amplify, by PCR, DNA fragments of increasing size corresponding to all three plant genomes from different regions of 10 oak logs. Stringent procedures to avoid contamination with external DNA were used in order to demonstrate the authenticity of the fragments amplified. This authenticity was further confirmed by demonstrating genetic uniformity within each log using both nuclear and chloroplast microsatellites. For most wood samples DNA was degraded, and the sequences that gave the best results were those of small size and present in high copy number (chloroplast, mitochondrial, or repeated nuclear sequences). Both storage conditions and storage duration play a role in DNA conservation. Overall, this work demonstrates that molecular markers from all three plant genomes can be used for genetic analysis on dry oak wood, but outlines some limitations and the need for further evaluation of the potential of wood for DNA analysis.

show abstract

“…Alternatively, the lower DNA yield average in blood samples could be due to the considerable number of samples which contained thickened or extremely coagulated blood (40%). Although blood clots have been found to be rich in DNA [25] due to their high white blood cell content, the poor absorption of these samples onto the FTA cards, as observed in this study, may result in a decrease in nucleic acid capture on the card matrix and thus result in lower yields. DNA quality was assessed using 260/280 nm absorbance ratios.…”

Section: Methods Ofmentioning

confidence: 69%

Efficiency of Buccal DNA Sampling Device in the Mortuary

2015

J Forensic investig

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Identification of forensic DNA samples by short tandem repeat (STR) profiling is currently an essential component of criminal investigations and can aid in linking perpetrators to crimes as well as identifying missing individuals or unidentified remains. In South Africa, recent amendments to legislation have allowed for the mandatory acquisition of reference DNA samples from certain offenders in order to populate the new National Forensic DNA Database. A novel method for the collection of buccal samples, the EasiCollect device, has been proposed to facilitate the collection of these DNA samples, replacing blood collecting devices as the standard method of DNA collection. Subsequently, this device has been introduced into South African state mortuaries to assist in the identification of deceased individuals. In order to ascertain if this device is suitable for use in the postmortem setting, an investigation was performed to compare the main methodology currently utilised within South African mortuaries, namely femoral blood transferred to 'Fast Technology for Analysis of nucleic acids' (FTA) cards, and buccal cells obtained using the EasiCollect device. DNA yields and STR genotyping results were compared between the two collection methods in thirty deceased individuals. Buccal samples provided a significantly greater DNA yield than blood samples, while no significant difference was observed between the qualities of the sample types as measured by the 260/280 nm ratio. Full STR profiles were obtained from all blood and buccal samples, with amplification efficiency showing limited DNA degradation and PCR inhibition in these samples, and only 3% of samples giving potentially disputable results. Numerous issues surrounding the collection of blood samples, however, indicated that this method is not optimal for use in the mortuary, with the EasiCollect device providing a more practical and robust method for the collection of DNA samples in the mortuary.

show abstract

Postmortem stability of DNA

Cited by 180 publications

References 14 publications

The half-life of DNA in bone: measuring decay kinetics in 158 dated fossils

The half-life of DNA in bone: measuring decay kinetics in 158 dated fossils

Novel perspectives in wood certification and forensics: dry wood as a source of DNA

Efficiency of Buccal DNA Sampling Device in the Mortuary

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About