New DNA test predicts hair, eye and now skin color

Photo Credit: Science Daily

An international team of scientists has created a new DNA tool that is able to predict skin pigment color as well as hair and eye color from a DNA sample of low quantity and low quality, as might be found at a crime scene or in archeological remains.

Previous DNA tests have had accuracy predicting hair and eye color. The new web tool, the HIrisPlex-S DNA test system, can profile skin pigment to 5 color types: very pale, pale, intermediate, dark, and dark to black. The testing cannot be used to identify race or ethnicity, but more shades of color similar to color swatches.

The tool could be helpful to law enforcement forensics because it’s designed to be used when standard forensic profiling isn’t helpful — when there’s no reference DNA to use for comparison. Eyewitness accounts usually mention hair and skin color. Being able to test hair and skin color from DNA will allow law enforcement to be more objective about witness descriptions.

The team was led by scientists from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) School of Science and Erasmus MC University Medical Center Rotterdam, Netherlands. The team is currently offering use of the tool online, free of charge.



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Science Daily, May 14, 2018


How Accurately Can Scientists Reconstruct A Person’s Face From DNA?

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