DNA Tool Transforms Forensics by Predicting Age, Physical Appearance
The VISAGE (Visible Attributes through Genomics) consortium—spanning over a dozen research centers throughout Europe—has engineered a forensic instrument that delivers unprecedented precision in suspect identification. Among the contributing institutions were Poland's Jagiellonian University and the Central Forensic Laboratory of the Police in Warsaw.
Dr. Ewelina Pospiech, now a professor at Poland's Pomeranian Medical University and formerly with Jagiellonian University, participated in the research effort. She characterized the achievement as a "major success for Poland," a broadcaster reported.
"The tool it generated is currently being tested and validated worldwide. This is truly a significant achievement," she said.
According to Pospiech: "The project aimed to develop methods that would allow it to predict various human characteristics with high accuracy, such as appearance, biogeographical origin and age based on DNA."
The technology harnesses DNA methylation—a biochemical modification where methyl compounds attach to genetic material, modifying gene expression patterns that shift as humans age.
While comparable methodologies have existed since 2011, Pospiech explained to a Polish state news agency that conventional approaches frequently fail when confronted with degraded or minute biological evidence commonly encountered at crime scenes.
Through sophisticated laboratory protocols and computational modeling, the VISAGE initiative has achieved a dramatic leap in accuracy. The system now calculates chronological age with an error margin of just three years or less.
"The more precisely the age of the person from whom the sample originates can be determined, the more the pool of suspects is narrowed," Pospiech said.
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