Police Can Identify Suspect's Eye Colour from DNA
By New Scientist,
New Scientist
| 12. 13. 2011
Police with no leads can now predict the eye colour of their suspect from DNA recovered at the crime scene. It's the first time such a tool has been available.
Manfred Kayser at Erasmus University Medical Centre in the Netherlands and colleagues have developed IrisPlex, which can predict with 94 per cent accuracy whether a person has blue or brown eyes from a sample of DNA.
The Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice is expected to approve the kit in the coming weeks, while the UK could use it immediately.
It is the first validated tool to help police home in on a possible suspect by predicting a visible trait, says Kayser. This could be useful in cases where police have DNA from a crime scene, but can't find a match on a DNA database. It is not accurate enough to secure convictions in court, however.
IrisPlex examines six single-letter variations in DNA, known as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), which have been strongly linked to eye colour, and categorises them as blue, brown or "undefined" - an intermediate...
Related Articles
By Annika Inampudi, Science | 08.01.2025
In June, Sara* received a message asking whether she wanted to continue to participate in a massive, multicenter research project led by scientists at Aarhus University in Denmark. The iPsych study, the message said, had sequenced her genetic data from...
The Center for Genetics and Society is delighted to recommend the current edition of GMWatch Review – Number 589. UK-based GMWatch, a long-standing ally, was founded in 1998 by Jonathan Matthews as an independent organization seeking to counter the enormous corporate political power and propaganda of the GMO industry and its supporters. Matthews and Claire Robinson are its directors and managing editors.
CGS works to ensure that social justice, equity, human rights, and democratic governance are front...
By Katherine Drabiak, Journal of Medical Ethics Forum | 08.07.2025
Adapted from Mitochondrial DNA at
National Human Genome Research Institute
Recently, media outlets around the world have been reporting on children born from pronuclear genome transfer (sometimes called “3-parent IVF,” “mitochondrial donation” or “mitochondrial replacement therapy”) at Newcastle Fertility Center...
By Annika Inampudi, Science | 07.10.2025
Before a baby in the United States reaches a few days old, doctors will run biochemical tests on a few drops of their blood to catch certain genetic diseases that need immediate care to prevent brain damage or other serious...
