A new DNA system employed to analyze modern forensic samples has also been used to establish facial characteristics from centuries old human remains. A study in the journal Investigative Genetics details how the HIrisPlex DNA analysis system was able to reconstruct hair and eye color from teeth up to 800 years old.
According to its Polish and Dutch inventors, the HIrisPlex system examines 24 DNA polymorphisms (naturally occurring variations) which can be used to predict eye and hair color. Although built for modern forensic analysis work, the developers say it is sufficiently robust to successfully work on older and more degraded samples from human remains such as teeth and bones.
“This system can be used to solve historical controversies where color photographs or other records are missing. HIrisPlex was able to confirm that General Wladyslaw Sikorski, who died in a plane crash in 1943, had the blue eyes and blond hair present in portraits painted years after his death. Some of our samples were from unknown inmates of a World War II prison. In these cases HIrisPlex helped to put physical features to the other DNA evidence,” said co-inventor Dr Wojciech Branicki, from the Institute of Forensic Research, Krak�w,
Related:
Discuss this article in our forum
Hair color revealed in DNA
New test estimates age from blood sample
Women: they don’t make ’em like they used to
DNA surname profiling mooted in UK
Comments are closed.