Esterase D (ESD, EC 3.1.1.1) polymorphism in hemolysates and bloodstains. I. Usefulness of selected methods of ESD phenotyping.

The usefulness of several electrophoretic methods including Phast IEF was compared in analysis of ESD polymorphism in hemolysates and bloodstains. The most satisfactory results were obtained with the use of PAGE IEF. The technique permits unequivocal interpretation of the enzyme polymorphism in dried bloodstains as well as in fresh material. The use of the procedure described in this paper considerably increased the limits of ESD phenotype detectability. Phast IEF was shown to be reliable technique in ESD phenotyping. The advantages of this approach are reproducibility and short duration of analysis. The application of minigel IEF to ageing bloodstains may be limited by slightly decreased sensitivity and resolution when compared to standard gel IEF.