Forensic Lab

Minutiae (ridge characteristics)

the ridge endings, bifurcations, enclosures and other ridge details, which must match in two fingerprints in order for their common origin to be established

an average fingerprint has about .... individual ridge characteristics

150

Loop

ridgelines that enter from one side if the pattern and curve around to exit from the same side of the pattern

Whorl

ridge patterns that are generally rounded or circular in shape and have two deltas

Arch

ridgelines that enter the print from one side and flow out the other side

how much of the population has loops?

60-65%

how much of the population has whorls?

30-35%

how much of the population has arches?

5%

Hair can be identified by looking at the....

medulla

Medulla

cellular column running through the central canal of the hair

Nucleic acids

polymers made of monomers called nucleotides
-Two types = DNA and RNA

Nucleotides

composed of 3 parts: a five-carbon sugar (pentose), a nitrogen-containing (nitrogenous) base and a phosphate group

Pyrimidine

cytosine, thymine, uracil

Purine

adenine, guanine

sugar in DNA is ....

deoxyribose

sugar in RNA is ...

ribose

Polymerase Chain Reaction

technique to copy or multiple DNA strands
- denaturing -> annealing -> extension

DNA polymerase

responsible for forming new copies of DNA, in the form of nucleic acid molecules

Gel electrophoresis

technique used to separate charged molecules like DNA, according to size

Gel is made out of?

agarose

is DNA negatively charged?

yes

Antigen

a substance that makes your body's immune system react

Rh factor

protein on red blood cells to indicate whether blood of two different people is compatible when mixed - such as blood of a mother and her baby at birth

Universal donor

O-

Universal recipient

AB+

most common blood type in the US

O-

least common blood type in the US

AB-