Post-Mortem Identification of a Fire Carbonized Body by STR Genotyping

Identification of bodies of unknown identity that are victims of exposure to very high temperatures, resulting from fires, plane crashes, and terrorist attacks, represents one of the most difficult sides of forensic genetics, because of the advanced state of decomposition. The aim of this study was the identification of the carbonized cadaver of a fire victim through STR genotyping.

We used blood samples obtained from the iliac artery during the autopsy examination as biological samples from the unidentified victim. After DNA isolation and quantification, we proceeded to its amplification using the multiplex PCR kit AmpFlSTR Identifiler. The DNA products were separated using an ABI 3500 genetic analyzer. Further analysis of the data was done using Gene Mapper ID-X version 1.4 software.

In this case, it was possible to obtain a complete DNA profile from the biological samples. Due to the fact that the amelogenin gene presented two alleles, X and Y, we concluded that the victim was a man.

We conclude that STR profiling of unidentified bodies (carbonized, decomposed) represents a powerful method of human identification in forensic medicine.