Investigation into the presence of human DNA in the various life stages of forensically relevant Calliphorid species

ABSTRACT

This project aimed to investigate if a human DNA profile could be obtained from all life stages of the forensically relevant blowfly species Calliphora augur and Calliphora stygia. Samples taken from adult and juvenile blowflies that had consumed semen were able to generate functional profiles from second and third instar life stages, as well as pupal and casing samples. The results also demonstrated that semen consumption has a detrimental effect on approximately 10% of offspring, in which developmental deformities were observed. The results of this study indicate that the second and third instar, as well as the pupal life stages, would be most pertinent to collect at a crime scene where a sexual assault is suspected, and conventional sources of genetic material are not available. These preliminary findings provide a baseline for further investigations into the presence of human DNA within entomological sources, and their use for human DNA profiling.

KEYWORDS:

• Forensic entomology
• DNA profiling
• Calliphora augur
• Calliphora stygia
• sexual assault
• crime scene investigation

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Natalie Gasz for advice on the maintenance of fly colonies, and Toni Boyko for advice on DNA analysis protocols.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.