What are some of the DNA technologies used in forensic investigations?
Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) RFLP is a technique for analyzing the variable lengths of DNA fragments that result from digesting a DNA sample with a special kind of enzyme. This enzyme, a restriction endonuclease, cuts DNA at a specific sequence pattern know as a restriction endonuclease recognition site. The presence or absence of certain recognition sites in a DNA sample generates variable lengths of DNA fragments, which are separated using gel electrophoresis. They are then hybridized with DNA probes that bind to a complementary DNA sequence in the sample. RFLP is one of the original applications of DNA analysis to forensic investigation. With the development of newer, more efficient DNA-analysis techniques, RFLP is not used as much as it once was because it requires relatively large amounts of DNA. In addition, samples degraded by environmental factors, such as dirt or mold, do not work well with RFLP. PCR Analysis PCR (polymerase chain reaction) is used to make m
