ISSN: 0022-1198
CODEN: JFSCA
Page Count: 11

AmpFℓSTR® Profiler Plus™ and AmpFℓSTR® COfiler™ Analysis of Tissues Stored in GenoFix™, a New Tissue Preservation Solution for Mass Disaster DNA Identification
Frégeau, CJ
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, National DNA Data Bank, Ontario

McLean, D
Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre, Ontario

Chaim Birnboim, H
Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre, Ontario

Vanstone, H
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, National DNA Data Bank, Ontario

Maroun, JA
Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre, Ontario

Fourney, RM
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, National DNA Data Bank, Ontario

Borys, S
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, National DNA Data Bank, Ontario

(Received 5 July 2000; accepted 17 October 2000)

Abstract

A preliminary study was conducted to assess the capability of a new alcohol-based tissue fixative, GenoFix™, to preserve DNA from biopsy tissues stored at room temperature and/or -20°C in a freezer, for subsequent short tandem repeat (STR) DNA typing analysis. Fresh human smooth muscle samples were stored at room temperature in GenoFix™ for one month and up to one year and seven months before being processed using the megaplex STR systems, AmpFℓSTR® Profiler Plus™ and AmpFℓSTR® COfiler™. Alternatively, muscle tissues in GenoFix™ were placed at -20°C in a freezer for up to 3 ½ years following two to three months in the fixative at room temperature. DNA analysis was also carried out on tissues stored in GenoFix™ for one month at room temperature and subsequently paraffin-embedded and stored at room temperature for four years. The AmpFℓSTR® Profiler Plus™ and AmpFℓSTR® COfiler™ STR profiles produced, using DNA extracted from all fixed tissue samples, were of very good quality. The fluorescent signals were well balanced across the nine STR loci or six loci comprised in the megaplexes surveyed and profiles showed no differences with those observed for the control blood of the respective donor patients. Continuous exposure to GenoFix™ at room temperature (up to one year and seven months) did not compromise the STR typing analysis of the fixed tissues. No adverse effects were noted on the STR typeability of tissues fixed with GenoFix™ and stored at -20°C in a freezer for up to 3 ½ years. STR profiles generated from the paraffin-embedded tissues fixed in GenoFix™ were of excellent quality. This preliminary study suggests that GenoFix™ can be used to store tissue samples at room temperature for up to one year and seven months or at -20°C in a freezer for longer storage (up to 3 ½ years). This new and odorless tissue fixative promotes tissue and DNA preservation in a very effective manner and as such may prove useful in criminal investigations or mass disaster identifications carried out in remote locations and in which a small or large number of tissue samples are collected for further analyses.

Keywords:
forensic science, short tandem repeat (STR), multiplex, fluorescence, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), sequencer, DNA analysis, AmpFℓSTR® Profiler Plus™, AmpFℓSTR® COfiler™, tissue preservation, GenoFix™, paraffin-embedded tissue, fixative, room temperature, disaster identification, major crime scene

Paper ID: JFS15119J
DOI: 10.1520/JFS15119J
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