Forensic Identification of Gender from Fingerprints

• Published in: Analytical chemistry (Washington) Vol. 87; no. 22; pp. 11531 - 11536
• Main Authors: Huynh, Crystal, Brunelle, Erica, Halámková, Lenka, Agudelo, Juliana, Halámek, Jan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 17.11.2015
• Subjects: Amino acids; Amino Acids - analysis; Biochemistry; Computer programs; computer software; Dermatoglyphics; DNA fingerprints; Extraction; Fingerprinting; Fingerprints; Forensic engineering; Forensic sciences; Forensic Sciences - methods; Gender; Humans; Information systems; probability; sex determination analysis; Sex Determination Analysis - methods; Software; sweat
• ISSN: 0003-2700; 1520-6882; 1520-6882
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.5b03323

In the past century, forensic investigators have universally accepted fingerprinting as a reliable identification method, which relies mainly on pictorial comparisons. Despite developments to software systems in order to increase the probability and speed of identification, there has been limited success in the efforts that have been made to move away from the discipline’s absolute dependence on the existence of a prerecorded matching fingerprint. Here, we have revealed that an information-rich latent fingerprint has not been used to its full potential. In our approach, the content present in the sweat left behindnamely the amino acidscan be used to determine physical such as gender of the originator. As a result, we were able to focus on the biochemical content in the fingerprint using a biocatalytic assay, coupled with a specially designed extraction protocol, for determining gender rather than focusing solely on the physical image.