Human identification via advanced forensic mass spectrometry of blood
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Human identification through advanced forensic mass spectrometry of blood and fingermarks
IRAS ID
238732
Contact name
Cameron Heaton
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Sheffield Hallam University
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 8 months, 1 days
Research summary
Blood is often encountered at the scene of high profile crimes and can be a valuable source of chemical and biological intelligence. When trying to identify a suspect from evidence retrieved from a crime scene, any additional information you are able to gain can assist in identification. Blood contains a multitude of substances that can help with identification including proteins, peptides and haemoglobin variants. Variants occur due to mutations in the amino acid chain, usually due to variations in genetics.
This PhD programme aims to develop faster analytical methods to provide intelligence on age of the individual and haemoglobin variants from blood samples.
Using Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionisation - Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-MS) which involves firing a laser at the sample to fragment ions for detection, means minimal sample preparation is needed.
Haemoglobin variants will then be characterised based on their mutations, which, if detected at a crime scene, could narrow down a pool of suspects to only the ones which possessed a particular variation.
In addition, peptide biomarkers will be detected in the blood by MALDI-MS analysis and may allow us to predict the age of an individual from only a blood sample.
This study hopes to increase the efficiency of investigations by providing additional rapid results to complement current forensic methodology.
REC name
London - Westminster Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/LO/1138
Date of REC Opinion
4 Jul 2018
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion