DNA Matching : Comparing personal barcodes

DNA Matching involves proving that a suspect's DNA matches a sample left at the scene of a crime. This type of biometrics technology requires two things:

1. Creating a DNA profile using basic molecular biology protocols
2. Crunching numbers and applying the principles of population genetics to prove a match mathematically

DNA : Your Own Personal Barcode?

Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes containing the DNA blueprint that encodes all the materials needed to make up your body as well as the instructions for how to run it. One member of each chromosomal pair comes from your mother, and the other is contributed by your father.

Every cell in your body contains a copy of this DNA. While the majority of DNA doesn't differ from human to human, some 3 million base pairs of DNA (about 0.10 percent of your entire genome) vary from person to person.

The key to DNA matching evidence lies in comparing the DNA left at the scene of a crime with a suspect's DNA in these chromosomal regions that do differ.