ENZYME TYPING OF HUMAN HAIR ROOTS

• NCJ Number: 47277
• Journal: Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 23 Issue: 2 Dated: (APRIL 1978) Pages: 356-360
• Author(s): J TWIBELL; P H WHITEHEAD
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 5 pages
• Corporate Author: American Soc for Testing and Materials
• Sale Source: Great Britain Home Office Central Research Establishment
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THE POSSIBILITY OF DETECTING GENETICALLY DETERMINED ISOENZYMES IN HAIR ROOTS AFTER ELECTROPHORESIS WAS INVESTIGATED AS A MEANS FOR CHARACTERIZING HUMAN HAIR.

Abstract

THE ENZYMES CHOSEN FOR STUDY WERE PHOSPHOGLUCOMUTASE (PMG), ACID PHOSPHATASE, ADENOSINE DEAMINASE, ADENYLATE KINASE, AND ESTERASE D. HAIR ROOTS WERE REMOVED BY BRUSHING AND BY PLUCKING. BRUSHED HAIR ROOTS WERE FROZEN AND THAWED TWICE FOR PERIODS OF UP TO 2 WEEKS BEFORE USE IN AN ATTEMPT TO ENHANCE PROTEIN SOLUBILITY PRIOR TO ELECTROPHORESIS. PLUCKED HAIRS WERE STORED AT ROOM TEMPERATURES OR IN HOT DRY AND HOT MOIST CONDITIONS FOR UP TO 6 WEEKS PRIOR TO THE FREEZING AND THAWING PROCEDURES. ALTHOUGH ALL FIVE ENZYMES WERE FOUND IN PLUCKED HAIR ROOTS WITH WHOLE OR PARTIAL OUTER ROOT SHEATHS, ONLY PGM WAS PRESENT IN SUFFICIENT QUANTITIES FOR ANALYSIS. STARCH-GEL ELECTROPHORESIS OF SINGLE PLUCKED HAIR ROOTS PRODUCED ISOENZYME PATTERNS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PGM TYPE OBTAINED WITH RED CELL LYSATES FROM THE SAME INDIVIDUALS. IN ALL, 71 ROOTS FROM 34 INDIVIDUALS WERE SUCCESSFULLY GROUPED. IN FIVE SAMPLES NO PGM ACTIVITY WAS PRESENT DESPITE THE FACT THAT FRAGMENTS OF SHEATH WERE PRESENT. PGM TYPING OF BRUSHED HAIR WAS LARGELY UNSUCCESSFUL: ONLY 2 OF 68 HAIR ROOTS HAD SUFFICIENT ACTIVITY TO ENNABLE TYPING AND A FURTHER 2 SHOWED SLIGHT ACTIVITY INSUFFICIENT FOR TYPING. IT WAS POSSIBLE TO IDENTIFY PGM TYPES IN PLUCKED HAIR ROOTS STORED FOR UP TO 6 WEEKS UNDER DRY ROOM TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS. DETERIORATION OF ACTIVITY WAS MORE RAPID UNDER DRY HOT CONDITIONS, AND STORAGE IN CHAMBER ALMOST COMPLETELY ELIMINATED PGM ACTIVITY AFTER 2 DAYS. ANALYSIS OF PGM TYPES MAY FIND APPLICATION IN THE ANALYSIS OF HAIR SAMPLES FROM CERTAIN VIOLENT CRIMES WHEN HAIR HAS BEEN FORCIBLY REMOVED FROM THE SCALP. GROUPING OF SINGLE HAIR ROOTS COULD BE USED TO DETERMINE THE IDENTITY OF INDIVIDUAL HAIRS IN A MIXED SAMPLE. REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (JAP)