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Forensic Serology and DNA Analysis Time Line

384

Sen-en-Roku, treatise on mixing blood of parties in a paternity dispute.
1663

Hume II, used bloodstains to corroborate a crime or supply additional evidence.
1247

R. Hooke first to describe cells [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1800

Karl Friedrich Burdach, coins term "Biology", study of human morphology, physiology and psychology [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1828

French Royal Academy of Medicine show record of French experts working on blood stain detection [Ref. 22, p. 22].

1840

Quetelet, Belgian statistician, considered the father of modern statistics, stated no two human being were exactly the same size [Ref. 12, p. 41].
1850ca

Teichman Test, forms hematin crystals, when suspect area dissolved in sodium chloride and acetic acid [Ref. 29, p. 23].
1862

Van Deen's, Day's or "Antozone" test, blood, in presence of peroxide, turned guaiacum blue [Ref. 7, p. 18].
1863

Schönbein (Ger.) found enzyme in hemoglobin which causes foaming upon reaction with hydrogen peroxide. Very sensitive technique to confirm the presence of blood even when it had been washed away [Ref. 29, p. 23].

Gregor Mendel discovers hereditary traits, later called "genes" [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1864

Ernst Felix Emmanuel Hioppe-Seyler crystallizes the hemoglobin protein [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1866

Ernst Heinrich Häckel theorizes that hereditary information transmitted by nucleus of the cell [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1871

Miescher isolates "nuclein" from white blood cells, later known as nucleic acid or DNA [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1878

Carl de Laval invents the first centrifuge [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1900

Landsteiner blood differences between persons, the four blood groups [Ref. 2, p. 11], first human polymorphism [Ref. 7, p. 21].

Merck, benzidine-hydrogen peroxide test, identify peroxidase in blood cells [Ref. 4, p. 12].

DeVries, Correns and Tschermak-Seysenegg verify Mendel's principles, beginning of modern genetics [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1901

Dr. Paul Uhlenhuth, Precipitin Test, protein used to distinguish human from animal blood [Ref. 2, p. 11].
1900ca

O. and R. Adler, benzidine test, coloring the solution blue in the presence of trace amounts of blood [Ref. 29, p. 23].

1912

Takayama test, identification of pyridine-hemochromogen crystals, common pre-screening tests for blood [Ref. 7, p. 19].
1916

Lattes, first reported criminal case where blood groups were differentiated [Ref. 7, p. 22].
1925

Theodor Svedberg invents the ultracentrifuge [Ref. 6, p. 22].

80% of human population secrete their blood groups through their body fluids [Ref. 1, p. 364].
1927

Landsteiner and Levine discover MN system for distinguishing blood samples (second human polymorphism) [Ref. 7, p. 22].

1928

Cuboni, A and B agglutinogens present in blood and other body fluids, saliva, tears, nasal discharge, urine, semen [Ref. 12, p. 234].

1929

Hooker and Boyd, blood groups cannot confirm paternity of a father, but can establish innocence [Ref. 12, p. 238].
1930

Frank Holzer, absorption-inhibition for Landsteiner's ABO typing system, based on the blood absorption of antiserum [Ref. 4, p. 105].

1931

Pierre Medinger, leuco malachite test for blood, most sensitive and specific at the time [Ref. 12, p. 226].

1935

Alexander Weiner, forensic use of absorption-inhibition test to identify blood groups on dried blood [Ref. 7, p. 22].
1937

Walter Specht, chemiluminescence by reagent luminol, glows in dark when in contact with latent blood evidence [Ref. 29, p. 84].
1938

"The term 'molecular biology' is coined" [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1940

Landsteiner and Weiner identify the Rh blood group system (human polymorphism) [Ref. 7, p. 23].

1944

Avery, MacLeod and McCarty, study bacterial transformation [Ref. 6, p. 22], show DNA is primary source of genetic [Ref. 7, p. 33].
1949

Barr and Bertram, distinguish cell nuclei of male and female body cells [Ref. 1, p. 368].
1952

Hershey and Chase bacteriophage research show DNA alone carries all genetic information [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1953

Watson and Crick describe the molecular structure of DNA [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1956

Arthur Kornberg discovers polymerase I, leads to a better explanation of DNA replication [Ref. 6, p. 22].
1971

Culliford refined the 1965 introduction of electrophoretic separation of Isoenzymes and proteins to forensic biology in The Examination and Typing of Bloodstains in the Crime Laboratory [Ref. 6, p. 24].

1975

E. M. Southern transfers DNA to a solid support (Southern Blot) for analysis of genetic markers or DNA probes in forensic biology [Ref. 7, p. 37].
1978

Wraxall and Storolow, Bloodstain Analysis System (BAS) or the "multisystem" method, simultaneous identification of different markers (PGM, EsD, GloI, ACP1, AK, ADA, Gc and Hp, using one of three separate electrophoretic protocols [Ref. 7, p. 25-26].
1980

Variable number tandem repeat (VNTR), by Wyman and White, type of RFLP (see 1985) used in forensic DNA analysis [Ref. 7, p. 8].
1983

Kerry Mullis, creates the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), method for cloning DNA fragments [Ref. 6, p. 24].
1984

Dr. Alec Jeffreys, FRS, Lister Institute of Leicester University, England, discovers within the DNA molecule a sequence of information that when visualized on x-ray film is non-repeating between individuals [Ref. 1, p. 139-140]. Cellmark Diagnostics acquired the rights [Ref. 1, p. 139-140] and it is believed that they coined the phrase, 'DNA Fingerprinting'.
1985

Botstein, White, Skolnick, and Davis develop Restrictive Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP), first DNA test on forensic evidence [Ref. 7, p. 39].
1987

Robert Mellas first person convicted due to DNA Fingerprinting [Ref. 1, p. 333].

E.T. Blake, application of PCR to typing DQ alleles for genetic testing of forensic evidence [Ref. 7, p. 43].

Jeffreys, DNA profiling to identify Colin Pitchfork, murderer of two girls and also exonerates an innocent suspect.

New York v. Castro, first challenge to DNA analysis of forensic evidence. Court accepted science of RFLP but excluded test results due to lack of precise methodologies, leading to SWGDAM and validated SOPs [Ref. 7, p. 49].
1991

Jeffreys develops Digital DNA Profiling, between 50 and 70 figures replacing the ambiguous 'bar-code' profile [Ref. 1, p. 142].

British Home Office sets up a national DNA database based on collected blood samples [Ref. 1, p. 402].

1996

Nat. Res. Coun., The Evaluation of Forensic DNA Evidence, initiates consensus on DNA genetic testing by VNTR markers [Ref. 7, p. 40-41].

References

[1]. Lane, Brian, The Encyclopedia of Forensic Science, Headline Book Publishing PLC, 1992.
[2]. Richardson, J. R., Modern Scientific Evidence, The W. H. Anderson Company, USA 1961.
[4]. Hall, J. C., Inside the Crime Lab, Prentice-Hall Inc., 1974.
[6]. Das, R. C., "Landmark Discoveries in Biotechnology," American Biotechnology Laboratory, March 2001, p. 22.
[7]. Gerber, S.M. and Saferstein, R., Eds., More Chemistry and Crime: From Marsh Arsenic Test to DNA Profile, American Chemical Society, Wash., D.C., 1997.
[12]. Söderman, H. and O'Connell, J. J., Modern Criminal Investigation, Funk & Wagnalls Co., 1935.
[22]. Kind, S. and Overman, M., Science Against Crime, Doubleday & Co., 1972.
[29]. Thorwald, J., Crime and Science, Harcourt, Brace and World, 1966.