title: A silica-based mitochondrial DNA extraction method applied to forensic hair shafts and teeth.
abstract: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the applicability of a nonorganic DNA extraction method for use in the analysis of environmentally compromised forensic hair shaft and tooth samples. The condition of the samples included cases of water decomposition, severe incineration, and varying stages of putrefaction. Enzymatic amplification and manual sequencing of the first segment of the mitochondrial hypervariable region were performed successfully on each of the 20 autopsied individuals. The results indicate that the silica-based extraction method produces mtDNA suitable for genetic identification from forensic samples including hair shafts and teeth.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville 37996-0720, USA. lorif@utkux.utcc.utk.edu
authors.forename: L E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.forename: W F
authors.initials: WF
authors.lastname: McCormick
authors.forename: K J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Matteson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001344:Autopsy; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005260:Female; D005554:Forensic Medicine / Q000379:methods*; D006197:Hair / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012822:Silicon Dioxide; D014070:Tooth / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D012822:Silicon Dioxide