The use of genetics for the resolution of legal conflicts has recently been gaining a higher profile, largely as a result of scientific and technological advancements and the substantial broadening of applications. The theoretical framework underlying forensic genetics is the same irrespective of the materials and technology involved, however a great divide still exists in the manner and processes related to human and non-human analyses.
This advanced handbook intends to overcome the historical barriers between the scientific fields of legal medicine, biodiversity and conservation, and food analysis by presenting a unifying, global perspective on the implications of genetic analyses on forensic affairs. This global perspective is presented in three parts: modes of inheritance and reproduction and taxonomic implications; current technological approaches and future perspectives; and a comprehensive systematization of the types of applications and organisms. Finally, a critical revision of the current investigative/expert systems and future perspectives is undertaken.
This book provides a collection of international research, thereby constituting a reference platform for the forensic community and an advanced textbook for graduate students. It encompasses the theoretical bases of the field, and presents in the context of both perspectives of forensic action — probative and investigative — a comprehensive coverage of the current applications and technological state of the art.
Sample Chapter(s)
Foreword 54 KB)
Chapter 1: Definition and Purpose (95 KB)
Contents:
- Definition and Purpose (Antonio Amorim and Bruce Budowle)
- Mendelian Genetics, Modes of Transmission and Genomics (Antonio Amorim)
- Evolutionary and Population Genetics in Forensic Science (Qasim Ayub, Marc Haber and Chris Tyler-Smith)
- Probability and Likelihood (Amke Caliebe and Michael Krawczak)
- Kinship (Manuel García-Magariños and Thore Egeland)
- Assessing Sampling Error in DNA Evidence (James M Curran)
- Thoughts on Estimating Ancestry (Kenneth K Kidd)
- DNA Mixtures (Torben Tvedebrink)
- Types of Genomes, Sequences and Genetic Markers (Repeats, SNPs, Indels, Haplotypes) (Vânia Pereira and Leonor Gusmão)
- X Chromosome (Nádia Pinto)
- Past, Present and Future of Forensic DNA Databases (C P (Kees) van der Beek)
- The Y-Chromosome Haplotype Reference Database (YHRD) — Publicly Available Reference and Research Datasets for the Forensic Interpretation of Y-Chromosome STR Profiles (Lutz Roewer)
- The Next State-of-the-Art Forensic Genetics Technology: Massively Parallel Sequencing (Bruce Budowle, Jennifer D Churchill and Jonathan L King)
- Massively Parallel Mitochondrial DNA Sequencing in Forensic Genetics: Principles and Opportunities (Jodi A Irwin, Rebecca S Just and Walther Parson)
- DNA and Missing Persons Identification: Practice, Progress and Perspectives (Thomas J Parsons and René L M Huel)
- Molecular Autopsy (Antti Sajantila and Bruce Budowle)
- Predicting Human Appearance from DNA for Forensic Investigations (Susan Walsh and Manfred Kayser)
- Wildlife Forensic Science (Adrian Linacre and Sherryn A Ciavaglia)
- The Application of Forensic Animal DNA Analysis in Criminal and Civil Investigations (Robert Oldt, Jillian Ng and Sree Kanthaswamy)
- Applications of DNA-Based Methods in Food Forensics (Ricardo Araújo, Filipe Pereira and Barbara van Asch)
- Forensic Botany (Kayla Baylor and Heather Miller Coyle)
- Genetic and Genomic Methods of Microbial Taxonomic Assignment (Marc W Allard, Mark Wilson and Eric W Brown)
- Molecular Epidemiology and Evolution Concepts in Microbial Forensics (Fernando González-Candelas)
- Quality Assurance, Recommendations and Standards (Ingo Bastisch)
Readership: Forensic scientists and advanced graduate students in the field.
"The book is a thoroughly recommended read, written by world-renowned leaders in their respective fields. It will find a place in the library of any institute that is interested in forensic genetics. The scope is complete. It is a complete text as it literally covers every area of interest, including emerging fields such as ‘molecular autopsy’ and ‘microbial forensics’ as well as summarising the development over the past decade of national DNA databases and forensic phenotyping. Many other topics as diverse as forensic botany and quality assurance are covered. The editors and authors are to be congratulated in putting such a fine piece of work together. This will be of great benefit to the community in promoting understanding across the wide range of topics described."
Professor Peter Gill
University of Oslo
"This handbook is a comprehensive guide to the field, and covers from the fundamentals in which this discipline is grounded to the most cutting-edge applications. It has an acceptable learning curve; newcomers to the field will find it an easy introduction, while seasoned practitioners can use it to keep updated."
Professor Francesc Calafell
Insitut de Biologia Evolutiva, Spain
"Every chapter is written by different authors and focuses on a specific issue, all of which are explained very clearly and in detail. As a result, the structure of the book makes it extremely handy when checking or looking up the particular information one is interested in. The book is especially useful for teaching and/or further learning since there is an extensive bibliography in each chapter. Putting all this information together is an absolutely remarkable accomplishment on the part of the editors since there are no other books that are as comprehensive in this branch of genetics. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and I not only recommend it to forensic DNA experts in general but it is definitely a must-read for forensic DNA caseworkers as well."
Lourdes Prieto Solla
International Society for Forensic Genetics
Professor Antonio Amorim was born in 1952, Porto, Portugal. He attained his Biology degree from the University of Porto in 1974, followed by his Anthropology PhD in 1983. He has been a full Professor since 1993. His current research activities include formal and population genetics, pure and applied, to forensics (human and non-human, paternity and kinship expertise) and to diagnosis of genetic diseases.
Professor Antonio is currently the coordinator of GABBA (Graduate Program in Areas of Basic and Applied Biology) and the MSc Program in Forensic Genetics at the University of Porto. He is the member of the Editorial Board of: The Scientific World Journal, Frontiers in Genetics and Peer J. He is also the national contact point of EUROFORGEN-NoE (European Forensic Genetics Network of Excellence).
He was previously the coordinator of the PhD Program in Biology (FCUP). Former member of the Editorial Board of Forensic Science International. Former president for both the Portuguese Society of Human Genetics and GHEP-ISFG (Spanish and Portuguese Working Group of the International Society of Forensic Genetics).