[wellylug] DNA skills highlighted

[Jeremy Naylor]

Stuff


    DNA skills highlighted

17 January 2005

By REUBEN SCHWARZ

*New Zealand's expertise in forensic DNA technology has come into the 
spotlight following the Asian tsunami.*

Environmental Science and Research's $250,000 gift last week of forensic 
DNA software to Thailand comes on the heels of a long association with 
the tsunami-battered nation. 

The Crown Research Institute's technology will help identify victims of 
the Boxing Day disaster, linking with Thailand's existing forensic 
system for recording criminals' DNA, installed by ESR last year. 

The package is split into two parts. The first creates a database from 
the DNA profiles taken from specific tsunami victims. The second matches 
these to samples from family members, or personal effects such as 
toothbrushes and combs, to identify casualties. 

ESR will also upgrade Thailand's existing package used in its criminal 
database, installed by ESR last year. The package barcodes samples, 
automatically generates and stores DNA profiles, and matches them 
against the national database. 

New Zealand government aid agency NZAID is meeting the cost of the 
donation up to $250,000. This will cover the software, installation, 
training and salaries for two ESR employees to travel to Thailand to set 
up the system.

The software package is part of the $10 million in aid donated by the 
New Zealand Government. 

ESR also helped Malaysia set up a DNA lab last year. New Zealand is 
among the world leaders in forensic DNA technology, opening just the 
second forensic DNA database in the world in 1996. The first was in 
England. 

ESR general manager of forensics Wayne Chisnall says the donation 
follows a two-year association between the institute and Thailand's 
Central Institute of Forensic Science.

"New Zealand has been doing DNA forensic work for 15 years. The Thais 
have been doing it for two years. Because of that, we thought we could 
offer them some help," he says. 

"We're providing the Thais with a package that enables them to do their 
own work."

Mr Chisnall says the project isn't meant to identify Kiwis or other 
foreign victims, but to help the Thais identify victims of all 
nationalities. 

"The package is for the Thais. The ante-mortem samples are the 
responsibility of individual countries. Just how those profiles are 
going to be matched to the database in Thailand, I don't know yet."

The software runs on a Microsoft SQL 2000 database. 

# Kiwis can donate to World Vision's tsunami relief effort on their 
mobile, thanks to a service developed by mobile applications developer 
The Hyperfactory. Telecom and Vodafone subscribers can make a $3 
donation to the relief effort by texting DONATE to short code 883. The 
service logged 5500 texts in 24 hours when it opened mid last week.

More at: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3158550a28,00.html

Thanks,

-- 
Jeremy Naylor
p: +64 21 374 689
e: jeremy.naylor at r2.co.nz
w: http://www.r2.co.nz/~jeremy
w: http://e-living.wellington.net.nz


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