Validation studies of the ParaDNA® Intelligence System with artificial evidence items

Min Li; Ruiyang Tao; Wei Zhou; Yanan Li; Meng Meng; Yilun Zhang; Linsheng Yu; Liqin Chen; Yingnan Bian; Chengtao Li

doi:10.1080/20961790.2019.1665159

Validation studies of the ParaDNA^® Intelligence System with artificial evidence items

Forensic Sci Res. 2019 Dec 6;6(1):84-91. doi: 10.1080/20961790.2019.1665159.

Authors

Min Li^{1

2}, Ruiyang Tao^{1

2}, Wei Zhou³, Yanan Li^{2

4}, Meng Meng^{2

5}, Yilun Zhang^{2

6}, Linsheng Yu⁷, Liqin Chen⁸, Yingnan Bian^{2

9}, Chengtao Li^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Forensic Medicine, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
² Shanghai Key Laboratory of Forensic Medicine, Shanghai Forensic Service Platform, Academy of Forensic Sciences, Ministry of Justice, P.R. China, Shanghai, China.
³ The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA.
⁴ Department of Forensic Medical, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot, China.
⁵ Department of Histology and Embryology, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
⁶ School of Basic Medicine, Baotou Medical College, Baotou, China.
⁷ Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Basic Medical Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
⁸ School of Basic Medicine, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot, China.
⁹ Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, Key Laboratory of Laboratory Medicine, Ministry of Education, China, School of Laboratory Medicine and Life Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China.

Abstract

Short tandem repeat (STR) profiling is one of the mostly used systems for forensic applications. In certain circumstances, STR profiling is time-consuming and costly, which potentially leads to delays in criminal investigations. LGC (Laboratory of the Government Chemist, UK) Forensics has developed a robust STR profiling platform called the ParaDNA^® Intelligence Test System which can provide early tactical intelligence and aid investigators in making informed decisions on sample prioritization for detection. Here, we validated the ParaDNA intelligence test for its application in forensic cases using a range of mock evidence items following guidelines set by the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods (SWGDAM). Specifically, we tested the sensitivity and accuracy of the ParaDNA intelligence test, as well as the success rates for detecting mock samples and for use in case scenarios. Our findings demonstrate that the ParaDNA intelligence test generates useful DNA profiles, especially for samples such as blood, saliva, and semen that contain ample DNA, indicating the benefits of including ParaDNA as a prior step in forensic STR profiling pipelines.

Keywords: Forensic sciences; HyBeaconTM probes; ParaDNA® Test Intelligence System; forensic genetics; melt curve analysis; rapid DNA.

Grants and funding

This study was supported by grants from National Key R&D Program of China [grant number 2016YFC0800703], the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number 81601651 and 81625013], the Ministry of Finance of China [grant number GY2016D1, GY2018G-9, KF1813], and the Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Fund [grant number 16DZ1205500, 16DZ2290900, 17DZ2273200], and the funders had no role in study design, data analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.