Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, 164 College Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3E2, Canada.
Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, University of Toronto, 160 College Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3E1, Canada.
Adv Sci (Weinh). 2024 Nov;11(41):e2405712. doi: 10.1002/advs.202405712. Epub 2024 Sep 4.
Forensic case samples collected in sexual assaults typically contain DNA from multiple sources, which complicates short-tandem repeat (STR) profiling. These samples are typically sent to a laboratory to separate the DNA from sperm and non-sperm sources prior to analysis. Here, the automation and miniaturization of these steps using digital microfluidics (DMF) is reported, which may eventually enable processing sexual assault samples outside of the laboratory, at the point of need. When applied to vaginal swab samples collected up to 12 h post-coitus (PC), the new method identifies single-source (male) STR profiles. When applied to samples collected 24-72 h PC, the method identifies mixed STR profiles, suggesting room for improvement and/or potential for data deconvolution. In sum, an automated, miniaturized sample pre-processing method for separating the DNA contained in sexual assault samples is demonstrated. This type of automated processing using DMF, especially when combined with Rapid DNA Analysis, has the potential to be used for processing of sexual assault samples in hospitals, police offices, and other locations outside of the laboratory.
在性侵犯案件中收集的法医样本通常包含来自多个来源的 DNA，这使得短串联重复序列（STR）分析变得复杂。这些样本通常被送到实验室，在分析之前将 DNA 与精子和非精子来源分离。本文报告了使用数字微流控（DMF）对这些步骤进行自动化和微型化，这最终可能使性侵犯样本在实验室外、在需要的地点进行处理。当应用于性交后 12 小时内采集的阴道拭子样本时，新方法可识别单源（男性）STR 图谱。当应用于性交后 24-72 小时采集的样本时，该方法可识别混合 STR 图谱，表明仍有改进空间和/或数据解卷积的可能性。总之，本文展示了一种用于分离性侵犯样本中所含 DNA 的自动化、微型化样本预处理方法。这种使用 DMF 的自动化处理方法，尤其是与 Rapid DNA Analysis 结合使用，有可能用于医院、警察局和实验室外的其他地点处理性侵犯样本。
