Lee Jee Won, Choung Chong Min, Jung Ju Yeon, Lee Hwan Young, Lim Si-Keun
Forensic DNA Division, National Forensic Service, Wonju 26460, Republic of Korea.
Department of Forensic Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea.
Leg Med (Tokyo). 2018 Mar;31:74-77. doi: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2018.01.005. Epub 2018 Feb 1.
Previously, an age-predictive method based on DNA-methylation patterns in semen was developed, using three CpG sites (cg06304190 in the TTC7B gene, cg12837463, and cg06979108 in the NOX4 gene). Before considering the routine use of a new method in forensics, validation studies such as concordance and sensitivity tests are essential for obtaining expanded and more reliable forensic information. Here, we evaluated a previously described age-predictive method for semen for routine forensic use. Concordance testing showed a high correlation between the predicted and chronological age, with a mean absolute deviation from the chronological age of 4.8 years. Sensitivity testing suggested that age prediction with reliable accuracy and consistency was possible with >5 ng of bisulfite-converted DNA. We also confirmed the applicability of the age-predictive method in forensic casework, using forensic samples. Thus, the proposed method could serve as a very valuable forensics tool for accurate age prediction with semen samples.
此前，基于精液中DNA甲基化模式开发了一种年龄预测方法，该方法使用了三个CpG位点（TTC7B基因中的cg06304190、NOX4基因中的cg12837463和cg06979108）。在考虑将新方法常规用于法医学之前，诸如一致性和敏感性测试等验证研究对于获取更广泛、更可靠的法医信息至关重要。在此，我们评估了一种先前描述的用于精液的年龄预测方法，以用于常规法医工作。一致性测试表明预测年龄与实际年龄之间存在高度相关性，与实际年龄的平均绝对偏差为4.8年。敏感性测试表明，使用>5 ng的亚硫酸氢盐转化DNA能够以可靠的准确性和一致性进行年龄预测。我们还使用法医样本证实了年龄预测方法在法医案件工作中的适用性。因此，所提出的方法可作为一种非常有价值的法医工具，用于通过精液样本准确预测年龄。
