Description
The microbiome encompasses the entire community of microorganisms present in the body, each with specific metabolic activities. Every individual possesses a personalized and temporally stable microbiome. In forensic science, the aim is to solve various questions related to a case, such as species, sex, age, identity, and cause of death, among others. Advances in microbiology and genomics offer new opportunities in this field, and studying the microbiome can be useful for estimating the cause of death, postmortem interval, and associating individuals with objects, as well as validating or disproving alibis. The objective of this presentation is to highlight the utility of the microbiome in forensic science, based on relevant articles that describe its main applications, benefits, and potential challenges. The oral microbiome, particularly the salivary microbiome, is the most used for personal identification, ethnicity determination, postmortem interval estimation, and age prediction, making it a valuable tool for future development in forensic science. I will share results from our study demonstrating that analyzing human microbiome sequences can provide relevant forensic information, including geolocation of sample donors. However, it is essential to consider and better understand the factors influencing microbiome variability and to increase the diversity of sequences to enhance the accuracy and applicability of these techniques in forensic science.| Period | 8 Aug 2023 |
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| Event title | XIII Jornadas de la Sociedad Latinoamericana de Genética Forense |
| Event type | Conference |
| Conference number | XIII |
| Organizer | Sociedad Latinoamericana de Genética Forense |
| Location | Santiago, ChileShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |
Tipo de vinculación con el medio
- Repercusiones sociales