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REFERENCE
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Foreword
Foreword
More often than not in these situations, those who are missing
are dead. The only relief for their families is receiving credible
confirmation of the death and knowing that the remains of their
relative have been or can be treated with dignity, in keeping
with their culture and religious beliefs. The proper recovery and
identification of human remains is thus a fundamental part of
the healing process for families and even whole communities.1
1 This fact was highlighted in a study launched by the ICRC on missing persons and their families. During
2002 and 2003, a series of meetings was held, convening international experts with experience in many
different contexts. Two of the meetings focused on the role of forensic science. This document builds on
the recommendations from these meetings and the experience gained since. See: ICRC, The Missing and
their Families: Documents of Reference, ICRC, Geneva 2004. (Available via: www.icrc.org [Accessed 10
July 2009]).
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
2 ICRC, Operational Best Practices Regarding the Management of Human Remains and Information on the
Dead by Non-specialists, ICRC , Geneva, 2004 (Available via: www.icrc.org [Accessed 10 July 2009]).
3 Morgan, O., Tidball-Binz, M., and van Alphen, D., eds., Management of Dead Bodies after Disasters: A
Field Manual for First Responders, Pan American Health Organization, Washington D.C., 2006. (Available
at: http://www.paho.org/english/dd/ped/deadbodiesfieldmanual.htm [Accessed 10 July 2009]).
4 Prinz, M., et al., DNA Commission of the International Society for Forensic Genetics, “Recommendations
regarding the role of forensic genetics for disaster victim identification,” Forensic Science International:
Genetics, no. 1, 2007, pp. 3-12.
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Foreword
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Table of contents
Table of Contents
Foreword 3
Chapter 6. Ethical and legal issues related to the use of DNA for the
identification of human remains 39
6.1 Protection of personal and genetic information:
commonly accepted principles 40
6.2 Informed consent 43
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 1
1 Introduction to the
forensic identification
of human remains
1 “Armed conflict and other situations of armed violence” covers events during or after:
• International armed conflict and non-international armed conflict as defined in the 1949
Geneva Conventions and their 1977 Additional Protocols; and
• Internal violence meaning internal disturbances (internal strife) and situations requiring a
specifically neutral and independent institution and intermediary, in conformity with the Statutes
of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, article 5(2)(d) and 5(3), adopted by the
25th International Conference of the Red Cross in Geneva in October 1986 and amended by the 26th
International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in Geneva in December 1995.
2 See: Human remains and forensic sciences, Electronic Workshop, 02.2002 - 03.2002; Human remains:
Law, politics and ethics, 23.05.2002 - 24.05.2002 and Human remains: Management of remains and of
information on the dead, 10.07.2002 - 12.07.2002, Workshops: Final report and outcome. (Available via
www.icrc.org [accessed 10 July 2009]).
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 1
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 1
Figure 1 Identifications obtained using visual recognition or other customary means should, where possible,
be supported by comparing ante-mortem and post-mortem data to allow biological profiling and collection of
additional evidence to support the identification. Ideally, identifications should be supported by at least one form
of scientific identification, which greatly reduces the possibility of misidentification. * SNP-based DNA analysis
could also provide scientific identification but is not widely used. See Section 2 for an overview of different DNA
analysis methods. **Scientific identification using odontology normally requires comparison and matching of
unique dental features.
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
5 UNODC, Crime Scene and Physical Evidence Awareness for Non-forensic Personnel, UNODC, New York, 2009
(available via www.unodc.org).
6 See: Human remains and forensic sciences, Electronic Workshop, 02.2002 - 03.2002; Human remains:
Law, politics and ethics, 23.05.2002 - 24.05.2002 and Human remains: Management of remains and of
information on the dead, 10.07.2002 - 12.07.2002, Workshops: Final report and outcome (Available via
www.icrc.org [accessed 10 July 2009]).
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Chapter 2
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 2
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 3
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
1 See Annex A.
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Chapter 3
2 Examples of such software include: the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS), for
fingerprint database searches; the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), M-FISys, MDKAP and DNA-
View for DNA database searches; and INTERPOL DVI’s Plass Data and the ICRC AMD/PMD Database for
ante-mortem and post-mortem database searches.
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
Figure 2 DNA-led identification relies on matches between the DNA profiles generated from human remains and
the relatives of the victims. Matches generated by comparing the databases need to be evaluated using all of the
available familial reference profiles, to allow the statistical significance of a match to be assessed. The possibility of
misidentification will be reduced if the results of the DNA matching can be supported by biological profiling and
other forms of identification.
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Chapter 3
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 3
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 4
4 Technical aspects of
collecting and storing
biological material
1 Wild, S.E., ed., Webster’s New World Law Dictionary, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, 2006.
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
2 The INTERPOL Disaster Victim Identification Guidelines and the International Society for Forensic
Genetics’ DNA Commission recommend that 1 gram of deep muscle tissue be taken (see technical
publications in Annex A).
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Chapter 4
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
The cells within the hard tissues (bones and teeth) are
embedded within a dense bio-mineral matrix and are largely
protected from the effects of putrefaction and decomposition.
The hard tissues can therefore act as a source of DNA.4 It is
advisable to take hard tissue samples from human remains to
maximize the possibility of obtaining a DNA profile. In many
cases, where there has been a delay in recovering the human
remains, skeletal elements are often all that is available for
sampling. There are a number of technical points to bear in
mind when collecting hard tissues:
• recovery of skeletal remains should take place using
appropriate archaeological and anthropological
techniques. Incomplete recovery and commingling of
remains will, in many cases, lead to complications with
DNA analysis and possibly lost opportunities to identify
individuals, as well as to the misidentification of some
human remains;
• in most cases, teeth are the best source of DNA. Ideally two
teeth, without any evidence of dental work or decay, such
as cavities, should be taken for analysis in the following
order of preference: molar, pre-molar, canine, incisor;
• teeth that have characteristics that could assist with an
identification, for example, front teeth that could be
compared to a photograph of the missing person, should
not be taken. If there are no alternatives, the characteristics
of the teeth should be fully documented, including with
photographs, prior to extraction;
• most methods of DNA extraction from hard tissues
use approximately 100 mg of material; however, some
published methods use up to 10 grams.5 Some knowledge
of the extraction process to be employed by the laboratory
would help to direct the sampling procedure;
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Chapter 4
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
6 See Annex B.
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Chapter 4
7 See Annex C.
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
8 FTA® paper is supplied in various formats by Whatman®. Details of products can be found at:
http://www.whatman.com [Accessed 10 July 2009].
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Chapter 4
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
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Chapter 5
1 International Organization for Standardization, ISO/IEC 17025:2005(E), “ General requirements for the
competence of testing and calibration laboratories,” Geneva, 2005.
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
38
Chapter 6
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
3 See: ICRC,“The Missing: Action to resolve the problem of people unaccounted for as a result of
armed conflict or internal violence and to assist their families, The legal protection of personal data
and human remains,” Geneva, 2003. (Available at: http://www.icrc.org/Web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/
htmlall/5CALLJ/$File/ICRC_TheMissing_072002_EN_1.pdf [accessed 10 July 2009]).
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Chapter 6
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
42
Chapter 6
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
Prinz, M. et al., DNA commission of the International Society for Forensic Genetics,
“Recommendations regarding the role of forensic genetics for disaster victim identification,”
Forensic Science International: Genetics, March 2007, Vol.1, No.1, pp. 3-12.
Budowle, B., Bieber, F.R., Eisenberg, A.J., “Forensic aspects of mass disasters: strategic
considerations for DNA-based human identification,” Legal Medicine, July 2005, Vol.7, No.4,
pp. 230-243.
International Criminal Police Organization, Disaster Victim Identification Guide, 2009. Available
at: http://www.interpol.int/Public/DisasterVictim/Guide.asp [Accessed 10 July 2009].
National Institute of Justice, Mass Fatality Incidents: A Guide for Human Forensic Identification,
2005. Available at: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/pubs-sum/199758.htm [Accessed 10 July
2009].
National Institute of Justice, Lessons Learned from 9/11: DNA Identification in Mass Fatality
Incidents, 2006. Available at: http://www.massfatality.dna.gov [Accessed 10 July 2009].
AABB Guidelines for Mass Fatality DNA Identification Operations (2009). Available at:
http://www.aabb.org
Graham, E.A.M., Turk, E.E., Rutty, G.N. , “Room temperature DNA preservation of soft tissue for
rapid DNA extraction: An addition to the disaster victim identification investigators toolkit?”
Forensic Science International: Genetics, January 2008, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 29-34.
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annex A
Edson, S.M. et al., “Naming the Dead: Confronting the realities of rapid identification of
degraded skeletal remains,” Forensic Science Review, Vol.16, No.1, 2004, pp. 64-89.
Loreille, O.M. et al., “High efficiency DNA extraction from bone by total demineralization,”
Forensic Science International: Genetics, June 2007, Vol.1, No.2, pp. 191-195.
Davoren, J. et al., “Highly effective DNA extraction method for nuclear short tandem repeat
testing of skeletal remains from mass graves,” Croatian Medical Journal, August 2007, Vol.48,
No.4, pp. 478-485.
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Missing people, dna analysis and identification of human remains
Table 1 The average probability of identity, *given a 10% prior probability of identity (i.e. prior to DNA analysis,
there is a 10% probability that the deceased is related to the family that is being tested). The results were reached
using 15 STR loci, contained in the Identifiler PCR Amplification Kit (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA, USA).
Data from: Brenner, C.H., “Reuniting El Salvador families.” Available at: http://dna-view.com/ProBusqueda.htm
[Accessed 10 July 2009].
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annex c
Based on the form provided in Lessons Learned from 9/11: DNA Identifications in Mass Fatality
Incidents, published by the National Institute of Justice, USA. Available at: www.DNA.gov
[Accessed 10 July 2009]. Donors are invited to circle their place on the family tree to minimize
errors in recording their relationship to the missing individual.
Father of Father of
Spouse 1 Spouse 2
Spouse 1 MISSING INDIVIDUAL Spouse 2
Mother of Mother of
Spouse 1 Spouse 2
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MISSION
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is an
impartial, neutral and independent organization whose
exclusively humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and
dignity of victims of armed conflict and other situations of
violence and to provide them with assistance.
The ICRC also endeavours to prevent suffering by promoting and
strengthening humanitarian law and universal humanitarian
principles.
Established in 1863, the ICRC is at the origin of the Geneva
Conventions and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent
Movement. It directs and coordinates the international activities
conducted by the Movement in armed conflicts and other
situations of violence.
REFERENCE