Capillary electrophoretic analysis of body fluid specific microRNA markers in order to multiplex with STR kits

MicroRNA (miRNA) are small interfering molecules that have a role in the negative regulation of protein expression. These molecules are thought to be more stable than messenger RNA
due to their short size and relative abundance within the cell.1,2 In addition, miRNA is thought to be immune from the effect of ribonuclease activity. These characteristics, along with its
tissue specific expression, make the molecules a superior candidate for body fluid identification. Current efforts in body fluid identification focus on developing a process where RNA and
DNA are separately analysed, requiring two sets of resources.3,4 This project seeks to enhance STR analysis by incorporating body fluid specific microRNA primers within the STR PCR mix.5
Proof of principle has already been demonstrated by van der Meer et al.5 The aim of this study is to expand the number of body fluid specific markers and to evaluate them in context of
STR analysis