Human identification through DNA analysis of teeth using powder-free method - A case study

Change is the universal law of nature, and human bodies after death cannot be an exception for a long time. In forensic science, the tissue from the hardest part of the human body is the only hope to establish the identity, and maternity/paternity of unidentified dead bodies. In this case, a foreign national on a tourist visa to one of the Himalayan states went missing when passing through a dense forest. His relatives could not trace him despite the best efforts of the search team, because of inaccessible hilly terrain. Later on, shepherds while grazing their livestock in the forest area accidentally came across the fragmented remains of a human skeleton. They informed the villagers, and then the police. Teeth collected during the autopsy and blood samples of the putative son, and wife of the missing foreign national on FTA (Flinders Technology Associates) cards were sent to DNA Division, State Forensic Science Laboratory, Junga, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh to establish the identity. DNA profiles obtained from the blood samples of the putative son, wife of missing foreign national, and teeth showed a complete, and concordant match, which established the identity of the skeleton. Moreover, the probability of paternity (>99.99%) between unidentified deceased person and the putative son also assessed the identity of the deceased. Hence, human teeth from unidentified dead bodies can establish the identity of unidentified deceased persons.