How DNA Evidence Can Be Falsified
An Israeli company, called Nucleix, has shown that it’s possible to fake DNA evidence at a crime scene, a possibility that has been cited as a concern for those who make their genome sequence public. Nucleix, based in Tel Aviv, has also developed a test that can distinguish between real and fake DNA evidence, i.e. DNA that has been shed from a person, and synthesized DNA that has replicated from a small DNA sample or generated anew from an individual’s genome sequence.
According to a report in The New York Times,
The scientists fabricated blood and saliva samples containing DNA from a person other than the donor of the blood and saliva. They also showed that if they had access to a DNA profile in a database, they could construct a sample of DNA to match that profile without obtaining any tissue from that person.
… The authors of the paper took blood from a woman and centrifuged it to remove the white cells, which contain DNA. To the remaining red cells they added DNA that had been amplified from a man’s hair.
Since red cells do not contain DNA, all of the genetic material in the blood sample was from the man. The authors sent it to a leading American forensics laboratory, which analyzed it as if it were a normal sample of a man’s blood.
The new test can distinguish between real and fake DNA evidence by anaylzing patterns of DNA methylation, a chemical modification that alters the shape of DNA molecules. According to a press release from the company,
…in vivo-generated DNA contains loci that are completely and consistently methylated and other loci that are unmethylated, differing from in vitro-synthesized DNA, which is completely unmethylated. Nucleix’s novel proprietary assay can identify and differentiate between real and all potential types of fake DNA through methylation analysis of a set of genomic loci. Results of the company’s research demonstrated both the current risk in sample integrity and the success of Nucleix’s new approach to DNA source verification.
Keep Reading
Most Popular

Toronto wants to kill the smart city forever
The city wants to get right what Sidewalk Labs got so wrong.

Saudi Arabia plans to spend $1 billion a year discovering treatments to slow aging
The oil kingdom fears that its population is aging at an accelerated rate and hopes to test drugs to reverse the problem. First up might be the diabetes drug metformin.

Yann LeCun has a bold new vision for the future of AI
One of the godfathers of deep learning pulls together old ideas to sketch out a fresh path for AI, but raises as many questions as he answers.

The dark secret behind those cute AI-generated animal images
Google Brain has revealed its own image-making AI, called Imagen. But don't expect to see anything that isn't wholesome.
Stay connected

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.