A DNA sketch?
US criminologists have learned how to make a sketch based on DNA
The United States is on the verge of a real revolution in criminology. Scientists are mastering the technology of reconstructing a person's appearance using a genetic map.
In the near future, detectives will be able to restore a person's appearance down to physiognomic features and skin color using exclusively DNA tests, writes The Daily Mail newspaper with reference to Professor Mark Shriver from the University of Pennsylvania. In fact, another revolution in criminology has already taken place. The new method works and already helps to solve violent serial crimes.
At the moment, criminologists are learning to make special genetic maps, which at the molecular level allow reconstructing the degree of pigmentation of a person's skin, as well as his facial features.
This revolutionary method has already been tested and recognized as effective. Thanks to the new technology, it was possible to create a kind of sketch of serial killer Derek Todd Lee, who was eventually identified and captured. The maniac has seven female deaths on his account.
It is noteworthy that the data obtained contradicted the testimony according to which the offender was light-skinned. However, the experts insisted on searching for an African-American and were not mistaken. The correct orientation led to the arrest of the maniac, who was convicted in 2004.
This success prompted Professor Shriver not to stop there and continue his research. Now scientists already know how ethnic origin is displayed in facial features. The so-called key points where the genetic influence is most clearly manifested have also been identified. These are, for example, the corners of the mouth and the tip of the nose.
Now a special computer program is able to reconstruct a person's appearance from a fragment of his gene chain. According to Professor Shriver, the facial features of any person can be restored by 500 points, extracting the necessary information from the same number of corresponding genes. Last weekend, the expert spoke about his successes at the conference of the American Association of Scientific Achievements in Chicago.
Even the surname is "registered" in the genes
British scientists are also not far behind their overseas colleagues. In the fall of 2008, experts at the University of Leicester said they had found a genetic link between namesakes that would allow the victims to be identified by DNA samples alone. At the same time, this pattern was revealed only in relation to men.
The new technology is based on the analysis of the Y chromosome, which is transmitted from father to son in the same way as the surname. 2.5 thousand men took part in the verification of the new methodology. The study showed that in 24% of cases, scientists can determine a person's surname by his genetic code. And if we are talking about the bearer of a rare surname, then the probability of correct identification increases to almost 50% and higher.
For example, it was possible to determine the bearer of the Attenborough and Swindlehurst surnames in 70 percent of cases, since the genetic map of their Y chromosomes coincided and people with these surnames most likely have a common ancestor.
On the contrary, the surname Smith, derived from the ancient profession of a blacksmith, is very common. Smiths may have different ancestors, and therefore in this case the innovative technique is unlikely to work.
The study showed that the bearers of the surnames Revis, Wordsworth and Jefferson have several different ancestors, but their genetic maps are different.
It is noteworthy that the discovery made is also valuable for genealogy, since from now on it will be easier to establish common ancestors for modern people based on a DNA test.
"The found relationship existing between the Y-chromosome and the surname that a person carries can be used in criminology," says the author of the sensational study, Dr. Turi King. In her opinion, if there is a large database, it will be quite possible to establish a person's surname based on a DNA sample.
However, King makes a reservation that the origin of many surnames is difficult to establish, and the practice of adoptions could further confuse the situation. Nevertheless, there are very ancient generic names that were formed about 700 years ago.
It is noteworthy that it was scientists at the University of Leicester who developed in 1984 a method of genetic analysis, which in our time allows us to solve crimes committed even decades ago.
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17.02.2009