Dna Fingerprinting
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For my biotechnology I have selected “DNA Fingerprinting” which is the way to identify the genetic information in a persons cell. DNA is called “fingerprint” because it is very unlikely that two individuals will have the exact DNA match, as it is the same with the physical fingerprint.
DNA Technology or “fingerprinting” is used for various purposes, for example it is commonly used to identify parental relationship. Also it is an essential tools when used for solving crimes and determining if someone was involved in a crime or not. Besides these common uses, It is very helpful when used to identify badly decomposed bodies.
DNA Fingerprinting is done by taking a sample of blood, hair and from a swab passed on the inside of the mouth. There are some factors that might affect the results of this test. These are some like the sample size, the smaller the sample the more probability that it is contaminated with other DNA. Also having a blood transfusion in the past three months will affect or render the invalid.
I guess that the benefits of this biotechnology is that that many medical issues have been solved or helped to the point in when doing an organ transplant or any other procedure that involves DNA matching, it helped these procedures happen with less flaws than when DNA fingerprinting was not available.
My only concern is that as “Connie Kornecky” commented on my post is that on one site it says that twins do not have identical DNA and on another site it says that they do and even their fingerprints are identical. I completely disagree that they do have identical DNA and fingerprints. There must be at least a variant that can tell them apart. As a prior State Police Officer, I think that if all law enforcement around the world is 100% confident that fingerprinting call tell one from another, than this means it had to be confirmed and re-confirmed before it was put to use.
Reference:
WebMD, Health Wise (2011).
“DNA Fingerprinting”
Healthwise Staff, Health Wise (2011).
“DNA Fingerprinting in a Criminal Investigation”