Augenstein, Seth. "Can DNA Testing Determine Age?" Forensic Magazine. Forensicmag, 10 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
This article presents an event that brings humanity a step closer to solving crimes faster. DNA forensic technology is continuously exploring the human genome, which allows scientists to determine gender, race, hair and eye color, and now age. For the first time, age is being determined by blood and tooth samples. This technique can be used in future investigations to determine the perpetrator. The margin of error for blood samples is 3.75 years and 4.86 for teeth. The prediction error is smallest for younger children and larger for individual as they increase in age. One of the authors, Bram Bekaert, said that this is probably due to the effect of the environment on the epigenome. “The longer people live, the longer their epigenome is influenced by the environment, and consequently the larger our prediction error will become.” The amount of genetic material needed to make a prediction is decreasing while knowledge on this topic is increasing.
This article is significant to humanity because it will allow investigators to determine the criminal faster and with less genetic material. In the very near future, fewer criminals will be roaming the streets and the information on this topic will increase in capacity. The more tests scientists do using this technique, the smaller the prediction error will become. “This paper reports the highest prediction accuracy we’ve seen for estimating age from biological samples, and we are excited about the possibilities this could bring to the field of DNA phenotyping, namely informing the age we assign to our Snapshot composite images,” stated the Parabon CEO, Steven Armentrout.
This article was strong in stating the affects on society from the acquirement of this DNA testing. Also, the explanations about the prediction errors were well expressed and left the reader wondering if it will ever be perfect. Nevertheless, the article did struggle with presenting the background of DNA testing thoroughly and efficiently, it just explained what this new technology can do for criminal cases and the government. This article could improve the quality of the information and its relevance to the main idea. Overall, I was pleased with this article and enjoyed reading it.
Posted for S. Dubbini
2 comments:
I found this review to be very interesting by Ian Baxter, the choice of article caught my eye when I first looked at it. The first thing I found enjoyable about this review was the question that it left the reader with. After explaining the story it made the viewer must think to himself can we rely on DNA analysis as a precise way of solving a crime? I found that to be a very fascinating way to end the story. Another thing I thought was well projected in this review is how this related to everyday life, and how Ian used the example of having someone placed in prison for something that was unrelated to them. This is important because DNA analysis is one, if not the most commonly used method in crime laboratories today. Lastly I thought that Ian did a good job of incorporating his thoughts into the review, he had various strong points that swayed my opinion on DNA analysis today. Although the review was phenomenal, I did think that their were a few things Ian could have done better. I thought in the story it was unclear as to the process of DNA analysis, and how they performed the analysis on the body. Another thing is that although you had great ideas towards the article, I thought you could’ve gone into further details on your view of the article. One thing that I learned from the review is that you can never fully rely on one technique for solving a crime. You must go further into the evidence before making any accusations, if you do not do so the wrong person could end up in prison.
Sophia did a great job of reviewing and clearly summarizing the article. She was able to lead the reader from the broad, introductory sentence to her explanation of how DNA forensic technology has the ability to determine race and gender. This ultimately guided the reader to the point of the article, “Can DNA Testing Determine Age?”, in which it was discovered that the human genome can now determine age through blood and tooth samples. Sophia also consistently supports the claims that she has made. This includes when she explains why the prediction error margin (3.75 years for blood and 4.86 for teeth) increases as the age of an individual increases, as well as decreases if the individual is a younger child. Lastly, the inclusion of direct quotes from the author, as well as the Parabon CEO, among her review also helped backing up her statements. Author Bram Bekaert stated that “The longer people live, the longer their epigenome is influenced by the environment, and consequently the larger our prediction error will become.”, which greatly improves the reader’s understanding to why the prediction error increases or decreases depending how old or young an individual is. Overall, Sophia’s review was solid and fair to the article itself.
However, if it were possible, it would have been helpful to describe how and why age is determined specifically by blood and tooth samples. Also, along with some slight grammar issues and the inclusion of what Parabon is, examples of how the epigenome is influenced by the environment to alter the determination of an individual’s age would make the review stronger as a whole.
I was most definitely impressed by the extent of today’s DNA forensic technology. The ability to determine the age of a person through only blood or teeth samples with a small margin of error is a feat probably not thought possible decades ago. Also, with this new capability, as Sophia mentioned, criminal suspects and victims can be determined at a more efficient rate.
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