title: DNA methylation: the future of crime scene investigation?
abstract: Proper detection and subsequent analysis of biological evidence is crucial for crime scene reconstruction. The number of different criminal acts is increasing rapidly. Therefore, forensic geneticists are constantly on the battlefield, trying hard to find solutions how to solve them. One of the essential defensive lines in the fight against the invasion of crime is relying on DNA methylation. In this review, the role of DNA methylation in body fluid identification and other DNA methylation applications are discussed. Among other applications of DNA methylation, age determination of the donor of biological evidence, analysis of the parent-of-origin specific DNA methylation markers at imprinted loci for parentage testing and personal identification, differentiation between monozygotic twins due to their different DNA methylation patterns, artificial DNA detection and analyses of DNA methylation patterns in the promoter regions of circadian clock genes are the most important ones. Nevertheless, there are still a lot of open chapters in DNA methylation research that need to be closed before its final implementation in routine forensic casework.
authors: Forensic Science Centre "Ivan Vučetić", General Police Directorate, Ministry of Interior, Zagreb, Croatia. bgrskovic@mup.hr
authors: Branka
authors: B
authors: Gršković
authors: Dario
authors: D
authors: Zrnec
authors: Sanja
authors: S
authors: Vicković
authors: Maja
authors: M
authors: Popović
authors: Gordan
authors: G
authors: Mršić
mesh_terms: D001826:Body Fluids / Q000737:chemistry; D019175:DNA Methylation; D057890:Epigenomics; D053803:Forensic Genetics; D005819:Genetic Markers; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2009 Sep;3(4):227-32
references: 19647707
references: Nucleic Acids Res. 2001 Jul 1;29(13):E65-5
references: 11433041
references: Int J Legal Med. 2013 Jan;127(1):35-43
references: 22653424
references: Dig Dis. 2011;29(2):130-5
references: 21734376
references: Forensic Sci Int. 2005 Nov 25;154(2-3):122-7
references: 16182958
references: Genomics. 2007 Mar;89(3):326-37
references: 17188838
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2013 Jan;7(1):136-42
references: 22944353
references: Nat Rev Genet. 2002 Jun;3(6):415-28
references: 12042769
references: J Cell Physiol. 2007 Nov;213(2):384-90
references: 17708532
references: Carcinogenesis. 2005 Jul;26(7):1241-6
references: 15790588
references: Hum Mol Genet. 2001 Apr;10(7):687-92
references: 11257100
references: Cytogenet Cell Genet. 1975;14(1):9-25
references: 1093816
references: BMB Rep. 2012 Oct;45(10):545-53
references: 23101507
references: Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2009 May;16(5):564-71
references: 19377480
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2012 May;6(3):306-9
references: 21737370
references: Electrophoresis. 2012 Jul;33(12):1736-45
references: 22740462
references: Science. 2001 Aug 10;293(5532):1074-80
references: 11498575
references: Heredity (Edinb). 2010 Jul;105(1):4-13
references: 20461105
references: PLoS Genet. 2009 Aug;5(8):e1000602
references: 19680444
references: Aging (Albany NY). 2011 Oct;3(10):1018-27
references: 22067257
references: Nat Genet. 1999 Feb;21(2):163-7
references: 9988266
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2008 Sep;2(4):286-91
references: 19083838
references: Nat Genet. 2005 Aug;37(8):853-62
references: 16007088
references: Nucleic Acids Res. 1982 Apr 24;10(8):2709-21
references: 7079182
references: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2002 Mar 19;99(6):3740-5
references: 11891299
references: Trends Genet. 2000 Apr;16(4):168-74
references: 10729832
references: Trends Cell Biol. 2010 Oct;20(10):609-17
references: 20810283
references: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1992 Mar 1;89(5):1827-31
references: 1542678
references: Science. 1975 Jan 24;187(4173):226-32
references: 1111098
references: Neurosci Lett. 2008 Apr 25;435(3):229-33
references: 18358604
references: Nature. 2006 Jun 29;441(7097):1061-7
references: 16810240
references: Nucleic Acids Res. 2007;35(18):e119
references: 17855397
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2010 Feb;4(2):95-103
references: 20129467
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2010 Jul;4(4):244-56
references: 20457026
references: Genomics. 2007 Sep;90(3):314-23
references: 17582736
references: Cell. 2007 Feb 23;128(4):683-92
references: 17320506
references: Adv Exp Med Biol. 2003;544:197-204
references: 14713229
references: J Cancer Res Clin Oncol. 2005 Nov;131(11):733-40
references: 16075282
references: Nat Rev Genet. 2007 Apr;8(4):253-62
references: 17363974
references: Leg Med (Tokyo). 2006 May;8(3):139-43
references: 16516529
references: Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2008 Nov 28;376(4):658-64
references: 18805397
references: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2005 Jul 26;102(30):10604-9
references: 16009939
references: J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2011 Jan;12(1):1-11
references: 21194180
references: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1993 Dec 15;90(24):11995-9
references: 7505451
references: Lab Invest. 2005 Sep;85(9):1172-80
references: 16025148
references: N Engl J Med. 2003 Nov 20;349(21):2042-54
references: 14627790
references: Cell. 1999 Nov 24;99(5):451-4
references: 10589672
references: Cancer Res. 2009 Nov 1;69(21):8447-54
references: 19861541
references: PLoS Biol. 2008 Jan;6(1):e22
references: 18232738
references: Leg Med (Tokyo). 2011 Jul;13(4):205-9
references: 21596611
references: Nucleic Acids Res. 2008 Dec;36(22):e150
references: 18984622
references: Science. 2001 Feb 16;291(5507):1304-51
references: 11181995
references: Int J Legal Med. 2012 Jan;126(1):55-62
references: 21626087
references: Regen Med. 2010 Jul;5(4):531-44
references: 20632857
references: J Forensic Sci. 2003 Nov;48(6):1275-9
references: 14640270
references: Prog Drug Res. 2011;67:25-49
references: 21141723
references: Forensic Sci Int. 2009 Jul 1;188(1-3):1-17
references: 19328638
references: Trends Genet. 1997 Aug;13(8):293-5
references: 9260513
references: Virchows Arch. 2009 Apr;454(4):467-74
references: 19296127
references: J Mol Biol. 1987 Jul 20;196(2):261-82
references: 3656447
references: Nucleic Acids Res. 1993 Oct 25;21(21):4886-92
references: 8177735
references: Genes (Basel). 2010 Jun 04;1(1):85-101
references: 24710012
references: Nat Genet. 2007 Apr;39(4):457-66
references: 17334365
references: Nature. 2001 Feb 15;409(6822):860-921
references: 11237011
references: Genome Res. 2008 Sep;18(9):1518-29
references: 18577705
references: Genomics. 2009 Feb;93(2):130-9
references: 18952162
references: Mol Carcinog. 2008 Dec;47(12):925-33
references: 18444243
references: Int J Legal Med. 2010 May;124(3):217-26
references: 20145944
references: Nat Rev Cardiol. 2010 Sep;7(9):510-9
references: 20603647
references: Adv Clin Chem. 2010;52:145-67
references: 21275343
references: Nat Rev Genet. 2008 Jun;9(6):465-76
references: 18463664
references: Cell. 1992 Jun 12;69(6):905-14
references: 1606614
references: Methods Mol Biol. 2009;507:371-81
references: 18987828
references: PLoS One. 2011;6(10):e25590
references: 21991322
references: Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol. 2004;69:113-8
references: 16117639
references: Nat Genet. 2006 Dec;38(12):1378-85
references: 17072317
references: Nucleic Acids Res. 1994 Aug 11;22(15):2990-7
references: 8065911
references: Trends Genet. 2002 Jun;18(6):275-7
references: 12044346
references: Genes Dev. 2002 Jan 1;16(1):6-21
references: 11782440
references: J Cell Biochem. 1982;20(4):331-6
references: 7183678
references: Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2011 Nov;5(5):517-24
references: 21196138
references: Annu Rev Genet. 1983;17:155-90
references: 6364959