Fundamentals of forensic DNA typing / John M. Butler.

Based on author's Forensic DNA typing : biology & technology behind STR markers. c2001.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Overview and history of DNA typing -- Basics of DNA biology and genetics -- Historical methods -- Sample collection, storage, and characterization -- DNA extraction -- DNA quantitation -- DNA amplification (the polymerase chain reaction) -- Short tandem repeat markers -- Fundamentals of DNA separation and detection -- STR genotyping and data interpretation -- Statistical interpretation : evaluating the strength of forensic DNA evidence -- DNA databases -- Quality assurance -- Forensic challenges : degraded DNA, mixtures, and LCN -- Additional loci and nonhuman DNA testing -- Lineage markers : Y chromosome and mtDNA testing -- Applications of DNA typing -- Future trends.

Fundamentals of Forensic DNA Typing is written with a broad viewpoint. It examines the methods of current forensic DNA typing, focusing on short tandem repeats (STRs). It encompasses current forensic DNA analysis methods, as well as biology, technology and genetic interpretation. This book reviews the methods of forensic DNA testing used in the first two decades since early 1980’s, and it offers perspectives on future trends in this field, including new genetic markers and new technologies. Furthermore, it explains the process of DNA testing from collection of samples through DNA extraction, DNA quantitation, DNA amplification, and statistical interpretation. The book also discusses DNA databases, which play an important role in law enforcement investigations. In addition, there is a discussion about ethical concerns in retaining DNA profiles and the issues involved when people use a database to search for close relatives.
Students of forensic DNA analysis, forensic scientists, and members of the law enforcement and legal professions who want to know more about STR typing will find this book invaluable.