[A comparison of the Bluestar and luminol effectiveness in bloodstain detection]

The objective of the present study was to compare the effectiveness of two chemical agents--Bluestar and luminol--in detection of bloodstains. The experiments were performed to test for bloodstain detection sensitivity, chemical stability and to investigate the effect of both reagents on DNA typing. During this study, the authors prepared serial dilutions (1:2 to 1:10 000 000) of fresh blood, as well as dilutions of 25-year old blood on Whatman 3MM blotting paper. Additional dilutions of fresh blood were spotted on a glass surface. The experiments showed very similar results for both investigated reagents, although the Bluestar solution proved to be more stable (at least 7 days after the preparation) as compared to luminol (stable for not more than 24 hours). Both reagents showed a higher sensitivity for diluted bloodstains on a glass surface than for similar stains on filter paper. The investigators also demonstrated that multiplex amplification of DNA was feasible after Bluestar or luminol treatment, although the detected bloodstains might be too diluted to allow for effective DNA extraction and amplification.