“We have discovered the secret of life” were historic words of the noble laureate Francis Crick when he elucidated the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) structure with his co-worker James Watson. The discovery of DNA structure opened up new avenues of research in the area of biology, medicine and many others. DNA- also termed as the molecule of inheritance — contains the complete set of information of human development from the single fertilized egg. With the advancement of DNA studies, many medical complications were understood to cure relevant diseases by interfering at a genomic level.
The DNA study enables scientists to understand the inherited diseases such as sickle-cell anaemia which is caused by a single gene mutation that affects haemoglobin, an oxygen-carrying molecule in the blood. The red blood cells develop abnormally in a bend crescent shape to clog the blood vessels causing improper oxygen circulation in the blood. The sickle-cell anaemia patients suffer pain, are prone to infections and have short lives compared to a normal lifespan.
Understanding the diseases at the genetic level has enabled us to cure the inherited diseases via gene therapy by introducing the healthy genes in place of missing or defective ones.
Furthermore, the emergence of genetically modified (GM) crops exerts marvellous impacts in the food sector. Working at the DNA level, enables researchers to improve crop production and nutritional contents via the insertion of modified genes into plants.
The technologically advanced countries are augmenting GM crops to fulfil their nutritional needs. Moreover, many new ways to benefit human life are underway via study at DNA level such as delaying the ageing process and immunization with DNA based vaccines against various infectious diseases etc.
The application of DNA testing during crime investigations has aided in nabbing criminals and reducing the crime rate across the world
Nowadays, DNA profiling has become an essential component of modern crime investigations. The emergence of DNA fingerprinting technique from last three decades has revolutionized the forensic realm. It does not only assist to investigate crimes, identify the criminals, and exculpate the wrong suspects, but also helps in the identification of victims of crimes, disasters, and wars.
From the crime site, the collection and analyses of different biological samples including blood, hair, skin, or body fluids in the case of sexual assault are the most reliable physical pieces of evidence in a criminal investigation trail. The advent of DNA testing also enables to identify the individuals and blood relatives. A few years ago, a genetic analysis of skeletal remains, obtained from Leicester, England established overwhelming the evidence that remains belong to King Richard III, which is supposed to be his last residing place.
The integration of DNA test with modern technological tools makes it expedient in crime investigations, especially in sexual assaults cases. The matching of DNA fingerprinting of samples collected from the crime scenes with the list of suspects help to identify the wrongdoer. Recently, a tragic incident of sexual assault and murder of a little innocent girl in a city of Pakistan has grasped much public attention. Protests erupted across the country and demanded rapid justice for the affected family. The case was investigated on a fast track in a highly professional way included the DNA testing of hundreds of people to nab down the culprit. The arrested person also confessed other similar types of rape-murder cases of minor girls.
The case proceeded in a special anti-terrorism court (ATC) court and concluded within a few days on the basis of scientific evidence along with many witnesses against the guilty person. The serial killer of rape-cum-murder case was sentenced to four times death penalties, life imprisonment, and other punishments including a seven-year jail term and millions of fines. Thus, a horrific rape-murder case leads to swift justice on the basis of DNA forensic evidence.
The DNA testing being scientific evidence proves to be much beneficial in crime investigations, however, this valuable technique is costly, and therefore, it is essential for law enforcement departments and investigating agencies to narrow down the list of suspects to make it viable for every crime investigation. The applications of DNA testing exert its powerful impact during crime investigations to nab culprits to reduce crime rate which leads to a healthy and prosperous society. In a crime-free environment, we can nurture, educate, and grow our children without any fear and make them successful in such a competitive world.
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Published in Daily Times, May 15th 2018.