Band shift analysis of three base-pair repeat alleles in the short tandem repeat locus D12S391

Two hundred and sixty UK Caucasian individuals have been typed for the STR locus D12S391. Measurements of absolute band shift, relative to an allelic ladder, allowed fragments differing by one base pair to be consistently distinguished. The intermediate alleles typed from such fragments comprised approximately 5% of the total alleles observed in this study. The existence of intermediate alleles in the D12S391 locus, not included in the allelic ladder, allowed us to assess the efficacy of band shift analysis in detecting intermediate alleles on two different automated fluorescent detection platforms. The results of sequencing a sample of intermediate alleles are also presented.