Carrying out common DNA donor analysis using DBLR™ on two or five-cell mini-mixture subsamples for improved...

Area of Science:

• Forensic Science
• Genetics
• Computational Biology

Background:

• Probabilistic genotyping systems analyze complex DNA mixtures but are limited by data quality.
• High contributor numbers or trace amounts reduce information in DNA profiles.
• Cell subsampling offers improved genotype resolution for complex DNA mixtures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the efficacy of common DNA donor analysis combined with cell subsampling for complex mixture deconvolution.
• To develop a template for optimizing common donor analysis in forensic DNA profiling.

Main Methods:

• Utilized direct cell subsampling on complex DNA mixtures.
• Applied statistical analysis software (DBLR™) to analyze subsampled profiles.
• Tested and assumed common DNA donor profiles within the analysis.

Main Results:

• Successfully recovered single-source profiles of uploadable quality from five out of six contributors in an equally proportioned mixture.
• Demonstrated that assuming a common DNA donor further improves genotype resolution.

Conclusions:

• Common DNA donor analysis, when combined with cell subsampling, significantly enhances the ability to resolve genotypes in complex DNA mixtures.
• The study provides a framework for effective common donor analysis in forensic casework.