Identification of Human Bone Remains by Autosomal STRs and Mitochondrial DNA SNPs

Advanced extraction and purification techniques were found to be essential tools for obtaining sufficient DNA from bones. However, in case of short tandem repeats (STRs) typing failure especially with old skeletal remains, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis is the ultimate solution for individual and species identification. Thirty six bone samples were collected from human remains. DNA was extracted using the organic method after special sample preparations and quantified using a Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was done using Identifier Plus PCR Amplification Kit and amplified products were typed using a Genetic Analyzer for autosomal STR typing. Samples with DNA concentration above 0.04 ng were efficient in obtaining their complete STR profiles. MtDNA control region was also amplified and sequenced. MtDNA was more efficient than autosomal STR profiling in discriminating among human bone samples especially those which have low and/or degraded DNA content.