Forensic Biology involves the collection, study, and analysis of biological material on evidence from crime scenes to provide unbiased, scientific reports for a criminal or civil court case to give a better understanding of the crime that occurred. Historically, one of the earliest forensic biologists was Sir Alec Jeffreys in 1985 using DNA fingerprinting or DNA typing to individually identify humans.[1] He targeted variable number tandem repeat (VNTRs) DNA regions using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). Over time technology and new research methods have increased the number and type of targets to be used for identification and moved the forensic biology field into a new era with faster, more specific, sensitive sequencing technologies.
Whereas the forensic biology field started with targeting DNA regions, this field now encompasses a wide range of topics for crime investigation. The NIJ research and development grants have expanded the areas of science every year to cover as many topics as possible for advancement in the field of forensic biology. Future research efforts will continue to push the boundaries and enhance protocols for faster, specific, sensitive measures based in scientific fact.
Select a link below to see a subset of topics, targets, and technologies that have been funded for scientific research by the NIJ.
- Short Tandem Repeats (STRs)
- Y-chromosome
- Mitochondrial DNA
- RNA (mRNA, miRNA, snRNA)
- Proteins
- Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)
- Microhaplotypes
- Microbiome
- Macrohaplotypes
- Disaster Victim Identification
- DNA Transfer Persistence Prevalence and Recovery (TPPR)
- DNA Phenotyping
- Proteomics
- Wildlife testing
- Body Fluid Identification (BFID)
- Mixture Deconvolution & Interpretation
- Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy (FIGG)
- Likelihood Ratios
- Postmortem Interval
- DNA Methylation
- Age & Ancestry Assignment
- Epigenetics
- Multi-omics (lipidomics, metabolomics, genomics, proteomics)
- Population Genetics
- Time Since Deposition
- Massive Parallel Sequencing
- Probabilistic Genotyping
- Rapid DNA
- Kinship analysis
- Gene Expression
- Hybridization Capture
- Mass Spectroscopy
- Bioinformatics
- System Modeling
- Portable Technology
- Cell Capture & Collection
- Differential Extraction
- Single Cell Analysis
- Non-destructive
Each year the NIJ receives applications from dozens of promising research projects across the nation that can advance the forensic biology field in new ways. The applications are verified for all requested information and peer-reviewed and scored by scientific experts across various fields for merit and scientific prowess prior to awarding grants for each fiscal year. Every grant that has been funded by the NIJ has a dissemination plan in place to promote the results and attract more research ideas from newer research laboratories. Two of the main avenues for disseminating research are by publishing in journal articles or presenting at conferences or webinars. Below are statistics showing the growth in grant funding correlating with dissemination materials across various grants by fiscal year.
As shown, many of our awards are presented at various events and published in many different journals. Many of the events are hosted by scientific communities, but numerous research grants have also hosted events attended by scientists across the globe. There has also been software, databases, and research data disseminated for public use via easily accessible sites (e.g., GitHub). Below are short lists of common events and journals that have been utilized across many of the funded awards for dissemination of the research endeavors to the forensic community.
Events —
- International Symposium on Human Identification
- International Society for Forensic Genetics
- NIJ Research Conference
- American Academy of Forensic Sciences
- Regional Forensic Annual Meetings
- Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy
- No-cost Webinars
- Databases
- Software
Journals —
- Forensic Science International-Genetics
- Journal of Forensic Sciences
- International Journal of Legal Medicine
- PLOS One
- Analytical Chemistry
- Genes
- Forensic Science International
- Electrophoresis