Welcome
Jessi Sim | GI Technical Support & Training Manager
Dear Scientists,
It’s hard to believe that a year has gone since we were all asked to hunker down due to the pandemic. When we kicked off Profiles in DNA last March, we could not have imagined how our lives would change. But one thing remained steadfast, the excellent work done by forensic scientists from all over the world.
Thankfully, there is now some light at the end of the tunnel! Scientists from across the global worked quickly together to better understand COVID-19 and to develop accurate tests and effective vaccines. At the time of publication, there are three different vaccines on the market and major vaccination campaigns unlike anything seen before have begun in many countries…With Spring 2021 comes hope for an lessening of the pandemic and anticipation for a return to “normal” in the coming months.
In this issue you will find an interesting interview with the very first Spectrum Compact CE System user, Dr. Melanie Weissenberger from the Institute of Legal Medicine in Heidelberg, Germany. She shares her first experiences with this new CE instrument. Additionally, you can read a great article, written by Daniela de Oliveira Francisco from the Institute of Legal Medicine of São Paulo (FMUSP) who explains the advantages of the Casework Direct Kit for touch DNA samples analysis. We also have insight from Caitlin McCaughan and Dr. Susan Greenspoon from the Virginia Department of Forensic Sciences, about their experience doing a mini-validation to screen new kits and techniques.
We also get a chance to hear from our Director, Sharon Sheridan, who’s been with Promega for 8 years as our fearless leader, and she reveals details on what it’s like “herding cats” every day with the Promega team.
And as always, we have the latest information on upcoming meetings. And please feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you thought of this issue (jessi.sim@promega.com).
Enjoy reading and stay well!
Jessi Sim