They discover an unknown property of jellyfish that will help solve crimes

2024-03-08 16:27:42
Despite the rapid action of the police after a crime, the truth is that it can take days to view and process a suspect’s fingerprints. However, in joint work, scientists from Shanghai Normal University and the University of Bath have discovered a protein extracted from jellyfish that can do this job in just a few seconds. As revealed by the ‘Journal of the American Chemical Society’ in the study ‘Probes based on De Novo green fluorescent protein chromophores to capture latent fingerprints using a portable system’, thanks to the joint work of both universities, a fluorescent aerosol has been developed non-toxic and water-soluble which makes forensic investigations safer, easier and faster to perform. «The fingerprints that are formed during the development of an embryo are unique to a particular individual. For example, even identical twins have different fingerprints. Therefore, the unique pattern of fingerprints has been widely used in forensic science to identify individuals since the late 19th century,” they revealed in the study. In that sense, the new spray will be essential to detect latent fingerprints (LFP), which are those that cannot be seen with the naked eye and are formed by the sweat or oil that remains on an object after from contact with fingers. «Collecting LFP at crime scenes is an important and widely used operation in forensic science for the identification of people. However, due to its invisible nature, the search for LFP is a major challenge for forensic investigations,” the researchers stated. Related News standard No Fried egg jellyfish arrive in Spain: what to do and how to act if you are stung by an ABC The Mar Menor is filled with these invertebrates, whose sting is not toxic «Until now, chemical staining methods have prevailed in research forensics at the crime scene due to the low cost of staining reagents. However, “traditional forensic methods for detecting fingerprints use toxic powders that can damage DNA evidence or petrochemical solvents that harm the environment,” they add. In this sense, as revealed by the researchers, the new formulation has low toxicity and allows rapid visualization of fingerprints at the crime scene. The spray will reveal fingerprints in seconds To assist in criminal work, scientists created two different colored dyes, called LFP-Yellow and LFP-Red, that selectively bind to the negatively charged molecules found in fingerprints, fixing the fingerprints. dye molecules into place and emitting a fluorescent glow that can be seen under blue light. “Having two different colors available means the spray can be used on different colored surfaces. We hope to produce more colors in the future,” revealed Professor Tony James, a researcher in Bath’s chemistry department and one of the lead authors of the study. The dyes were created thanks to a fluorescent protein found in jellyfish, called green fluorescent protein, which is widely used by researchers to visualize biologically compatible evidence and not interfere with subsequent DNA analysis. Additionally, the fine mist prevents splashes that could damage prints, is less messy than dust, and works quickly even on rough surfaces where fingerprints are harder to capture. “This system is safer, more sustainable and works faster than existing technologies and can even be used on fingerprints that are a week old,” James confessed. “We hope that this technology can really improve the detection of evidence at crime scenes. We are now collaborating with some companies to make our dyes available for sale. “More work is still being done,” concluded Professor Chusen Huang, principal investigator of the study at Shanghai University.
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