SigSci Blog

Illustration reproduced with minor stylistic changes from the ScienceDirect article titled “Peptide and peptide-based inhibitors of SARS” by Desiree Schütz et. al. which was published under a Creative Commons license. The omicron variant appears to have arisen in Africa, perhaps Botswana, and was first detected by the viral sequencing efforts... MORE

Variability in the amount of DNA deposited by individuals when touching a surface poses a significant hurdle to the evaluation of forensic analysis methods for touch samples. No two human latent fingerprint samples are the same due to the "shedder" status of different individuals as well as other factors including... MORE

For years, investigators have relied on spent shell casings to identify the type of gun used in a crime, but they have believed that those same casings were unlikely to yield DNA that could be used to identify the shooter. It’s time for some new thinking about spent shell casings... MORE

Ensuring the quality of mission response now and into the future Always Ready, Always ThereAn ISO 17025 Accreditation SolutionProgram Highlight: Proficiency TestingProgram Updates: A Smooth Transition In 2006, the National Guard Bureau (NGB) launched an initiative to pursue ISO 17025 accreditation for the Weapons of Mass Destruction‒Civil Support Team (WMD-CST)... MORE

Fentanyl and its analogues present identification challenges for first responders Fentanyl and its analogues are more frequently making their way into common street drugs, adding a new dimension of danger to even incidental exposure to these substances. Fentanyls are increasingly being added to heroin and other illicit drugs because they... MORE

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has an interest in streamlining their acquisition process for new detection technologies. Manufacturers of detection technologies desire to get their products to market as fast as possible while also ensuring that equipment meets the TSA’s detection requirements. External testing (i.e. testing performed by third party... MORE

Signature Science, a private Forensic DNA Laboratory based in Austin, Texas, validated a suite of robotics and associated methods for sexual assault kit processing in 2018 with the goal of increasing throughput while also delivering a more quantitatively robust product to our clients. Our internal assessment led to the selection... MORE

The interpretation of DNA mixtures continues to be a pervasive topic in the field of forensic DNA analysis. With the long awaited publication of the NIST MIX05 MIX13 study, and an increasing number of DNA laboratories turning to probabilistic genotyping, it’s worth stopping for a moment to consider just how the... MORE