Foren-STR: a comprehensive tool for rapid calculation of forensic parameters from autosomal STR data

Area of Science:

• Forensic Genetics
• Population Genetics
• Bioinformatics

Background:

• Accurate population data analysis is crucial for forensic genetics.
• Existing tools for forensic population parameters can be time-consuming and have a steep learning curve.
• Forensic laboratories face high workloads, necessitating efficient analytical methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a comprehensive and user-friendly web-based tool for rapid calculation of forensic parameters and population genetic statistics.
• To provide an alternative to existing, potentially time-consuming, software for analyzing autosomal Short Tandem Repeats (STR) databases.
• To aid forensic geneticists in ensuring the quality of estimations for paternity and identification cases.

Main Methods:

• Development of a web application using R.
• Implementation of calculations for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HW), probability of match (PM), power of discrimination (PD), and power of exclusion (PE).
• Inclusion of features for multi-population analysis, heatmap visualization of population substructure, and calculation of genetic distances (e.g., F_st).

Main Results:

• The developed tool provides quick estimations of key forensic parameters and population genetic statistics.
• Results obtained from the tool are comparable to those from established software.
• The application offers a user-friendly interface for analyzing autosomal STR databases.

Conclusions:

• The new web tool offers an efficient and accessible alternative for forensic genetic analysis.
• It simplifies the assessment of population substructure and genetic parameters.
• This tool can help alleviate the workload in forensic laboratories by providing rapid, reliable data.