An Update from the Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Science

Robyn Ragsdale, Chair of OSAC’s Biology Scientific Area Committee and Beth Ordeman, Chair of OSAC’s Human Forensic Biology Subcommittee

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NEW: Human Forensic DNA Analysis Process Map Now Available!

The Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Science’s Human Forensic Biology Subcommittee, with contributions from the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods (SWGDAM), has developed a Human Forensic DNA Analysis Process Map that captures details about the various procedures, methods and decision points most frequently encountered in human forensic biology/DNA analysis.

Overview of the Human Forensic DNA Analysis Process Map

This process map, which captures the diverse practices of multiple laboratories from a national perspective, provides a visual description of the various steps of the casework process currently performed by DNA analysts. It can benefit the human forensic biology/DNA discipline by providing a behind-the-scenes perspective into the various components and decision points in the DNA analysis process.

Read more and access the Human Forensic DNA Process Map on the OSAC website.

Three New DNA Standards Added to the OSAC Registry

OSAC added the following three DNA standards to the Registry on April 5, 2022:

  • ANSI/ASB Standard 130, Standard for Training in Forensic DNA Amplification Methods for Subsequent Capillary Electrophoresis Sequencing, First Edition, 2021. Initially drafted by OSAC’s Human Forensic Biology Subcommittee and finalized by ASB’s DNA Consensus Body, this standard provides the general requirements for a forensic DNA laboratory's training program in forensic DNA amplification methods for subsequent capillary electrophoresis (CE) sequencing. This standard applies to forensic human and wildlife mitochondrial DNA amplification, and wildlife nuclear DNA amplification.
  • ANSI/ASB Standard 131, Standard for Training in Forensic DNA Sequencing Using Capillary Electrophoresis, First Edition, 2021. Initially drafted by OSAC’s Human Forensic Biology Subcommittee and finalized by ASB’s DNA Consensus Body, this standard provides the general requirements for a forensic DNA laboratory's training program in forensic DNA sequencing using capillary electrophoresis. This standard applies to forensic human and wildlife mitochondrial DNA capillary electrophoresis sequencing, and wildlife nuclear DNA capillary electrophoresis sequencing.
  • ANSI/ASB Standard 140, Standard for Training in Forensic Human Mitochondrial DNA Analysis, Interpretation, Comparison, Statistical Evaluation, and Reporting, First Edition, 2021. Initially drafted by OSAC’s Human Forensic Biology Subcommittee and finalized by ASB’s DNA Consensus Body, this standard provides the requirements for a forensic DNA laboratory's training program in forensic human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis, interpretation, comparison, statistical evaluation, and reporting.

The OSAC Registry contains a total of 13 DNA standards (11 SDO published and two OSAC Proposed). If your organization has implemented any of the standards on the Registry, complete the OSAC Registry Implementation Declaration Form on the OSAC website and let us know!

Want to help strengthen forensic science through standards? Provide your expertise and input on DNA standards open for comment at standards developing organizations (SDOs) and under consideration for the Registry.