Developing equine mtDNA profiling for forensic application.
Abstract: Horse mtDNA profiling can be useful in forensic work investigating degraded samples, hair shafts or highly dilute samples. Degraded DNA often does not allow sequencing of fragments longer than 200 nucleotides. In this study we therefore search for the most discriminatory sections within the hypervariable horse mtDNA control region. Among a random sample of 39 horses, 32 different sequences were identified in a stretch of 921 nucleotides. The sequences were assigned to the published mtDNA types A-G, and to a newly labelled minor type H. The random match probability within the analysed samples is 3.61%, and the average pairwise sequence difference is 15 nucleotides. In a "sliding window" analysis of 200-nucleotide sections of the mtDNA control region, we find that the known repetitive central motif divides the mtDNA control region into a highly diverse segment and a markedly less discriminatory segment.
Publication Date: 2010-09-10 PubMed ID: 20830591DOI: 10.1007/s00414-010-0506-9Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
Summary
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The research article discusses a study aimed at developing mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) profiling for forensic applications using horse DNA samples, addressing the challenges posed by degraded or dilute samples.
Objective of the Research
- The study was aimed at developing a mtDNA profiling method for forensic use, particularly for challenging samples such as degraded or dilute DNA samples. The aim was to find the most distinctive sections of horse mtDNA, considering that degraded DNA often prevents sequencing of fragments longer than 200 nucleotides.
Methodology and Findings
- The researchers examined DNA samples from 39 horses in the experiment. They were able to identify 32 different sequences within a 921-nucleotide stretch, demonstrating the potential for differentiation using this technique.
- These sequences were classified under the known horse mtDNA types A-G, while some were identified under a new minor type labelled H.
- The chance of a random match within the analysed samples was found to be 3.61%. This suggests a high degree of uniqueness in the sequences, supporting their utility in forensic applications.
- The average variation between pairs of sequences was 15 nucleotides. This figure enhances the confidence in distinct identification using mtDNA.
Importance of the Central Motif
- The researchers performed a “sliding window” analysis on 200-nucleotide sections of the mtDNA control region. This analysis technique involves moving a fixed-length ‘window’ along the sequence and calculating a statistic for each position.
- They found that the repetitive central motif divides the mtDNA control region into two segments: a highly diverse segment and a less diverse one. This information could be valuable in deciding on the sections to analyze for forensic purposes, optimizing between complexity and discriminative power.
Cite This Article
APA
Gurney SM, Schneider S, Pflugradt R, Barrett E, Forster AC, Brinkmann B, Jansen T, Forster P.
(2010).
Developing equine mtDNA profiling for forensic application.
Int J Legal Med, 124(6), 617-622.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-010-0506-9 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Institute of Forensic Genetics, 48161, Münster, Germany.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Breeding
- DNA Fingerprinting / methods
- DNA, Mitochondrial / analysis
- Forensic Genetics / methods
- Hair / chemistry
- Horses / classification
- Horses / genetics
- Locus Control Region
- Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid
- Species Specificity
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This article includes 16 references
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Citations
This article has been cited 3 times.- Sharif MB, Fitak RR, Wallner B, Orozco-terWengel P, Frewin S, Fremaux M, Mohandesan E. Reconstruction of the Major Maternal and Paternal Lineages in the Feral New Zealand Kaimanawa Horses.. Animals (Basel) 2022 Dec 12;12(24).
- Millard JT, Chuang E, Lucas JS, Nagy EE, Davis GT. Case-Study Investigation of Equine Maternity via PCR-RFLP: A Biochemistry Laboratory Experiment.. J Chem Educ 2013 Nov 12;90(11).
- Achilli A, Olivieri A, Soares P, Lancioni H, Hooshiar Kashani B, Perego UA, Nergadze SG, Carossa V, Santagostino M, Capomaccio S, Felicetti M, Al-Achkar W, Penedo MC, Verini-Supplizi A, Houshmand M, Woodward SR, Semino O, Silvestrelli M, Giulotto E, Pereira L, Bandelt HJ, Torroni A. Mitochondrial genomes from modern horses reveal the major haplogroups that underwent domestication.. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2012 Feb 14;109(7):2449-54.
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