Simultaneous DNA and RNA profiling in a case of sexual assault in a 3-year-old child: Forensic genetics solves the crime

Abstract

DNA profiling can identify an individual from a sample of biological material but it does not reveal what body fluid or tissue source the DNA profile originated from. In many cases it is important to know from what body fluid or tissue the DNA profile originated in order to provide crucial information necessary to the investigation, especially in cases where the victims are not able to give information about the dynamics of the event. For this purpose messenger RNA (mRNA) analysis has been shown to be a suitable method for the identification of body fluids, resulting in a trend to overcome the conventional approaches. Here we present the first report about case regarding a three-year-old child supposedly victim of a sexual assault with digital penetration. Thanks to the use of the combined DNA profiling and RNA analysis it was possible to demonstrate the sexual assault suffered by the victim.

Keywords: Body fluid identification; Child sexual assault; DNA/RNA profiling.