Rapid Microchip Electrophoretic Separation of Novel Transcriptomic Body Fluid Markers for Forensic Fluid Profiling.

Area of Science:

• Forensic Science
• Biotechnology
• Analytical Chemistry

Background:

• Crime scene investigations rely on presumptive serological testing for body fluid identification.
• Current methods can be time-consuming and lack definitive specificity.
• Automated, sensitive, and specific methods are needed for efficient evidence analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a microfluidic platform for rapid body fluid profiling.
• To enhance the specificity and sensitivity of forensic body fluid identification.
• To automate the process of electrophoretic separation for transcriptomic analysis.

Main Methods:

• Development of a centrifugal microfluidic disc for automated electrophoretic separation.
• Utilized a published mRNA panel for fluorescent electrophoretic separation.
• Performed on-disc detection and sizing of amplicons for body fluid discrimination.

Main Results:

• The microfluidic approach achieved comparable performance to a commercial 'gold standard' instrument.
• Successfully discriminated between five distinct body fluids in under 10 minutes.
• Demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity in body fluid identification.

Conclusions:

• The microfluidic platform offers a faster and simpler method for forensic body fluid identification.
• This technology enables sensitive and specific analysis of transcriptomic panels.
• The automated system expedites critical contextualization of crime scene evidence.