Basic Biology

Research Paper: Basic Biology
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ASSIGNMENT-08
DNA in forensic science.
Analysis of Deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA is very important and significant in the field of forensic science. The science deals with tracing the pedigree or origin of a culprit or the accused based on the evaluation of his or her nucleotide sequence in the DNA. The nucleotides Adenine, thymine, guanine and Cytosine are often conserved at specific sites of the DNA of an individual. This site conservation of various nucleotides helps to identify the identity of a person.
The accused or victim often sheds blood, saliva, pus and semen at the place of crime. These sources are used to isolate the DNA from cells. Certain enzymes called restriction enzymes are used to cut DNA at specific sequences based on the morphology of the DNA. These segments are then matched with either the standard DNA from an accused or a victim by a process called restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). More there is polymorphism less likely is the DNA of an accused or victim. This is the basic principle behind DNA fingerprinting.
Often the DNA found in the sources is very minute which needs to be amplified. This is achieved by polymerase chain reaction. In this technique, the DNA sample is taken and is…