Developing Next-Generation Sequencing multiplexes for Birds of Prey: A pilot study for non-human forensics

大多数法医活动侧重于人类DNA，但动物和植物DNA分析也可以通过连接地点或提供物种或个人一级的识别来做出贡献，例如在野生动物和生态犯罪的背景下。自20世纪90年代以来，个体水平的分析一直基于毛细管电泳确定的STR基因座的长度差异，而传统的mtDNA桑格测序则确定了祖先和物种水平的鉴定。然而，在过去的十年中，并行测序（MPS）已经彻底改变了生物学，允许对整个基因组进行具有成本效益的表征;这也是法医分析的下一个创新。Illumina开发了一种人类法医MPS试剂盒，可以同时检测多个常染色体和Y特异性STR、mtDNA和SNP。这种多靶点方法在最大限度地提高识别率和效率的同时保护了生物材料。同样的方法可以应用于动物和植物法医证据，允许使用共同的平台，生物信息学管道和最终报告程序进行人类和非人类测试。本研究将探索适用于猛禽（猛禽）的方法。非法下毒仍然是对这些鸟类的威胁，从野外偷取它们转售给鹰猎贸易是一项有利可图的生意。

Most forensic activity focuses on human DNA however analysis of animal and plant DNA can also contribute by linking locations, or providing species- or individual-level identification, for example in the context of wildlife- and eco-crime. Since the 1990s, individual-level analyses have been based on length differences at STR loci as ascertained by capillary electrophoresis, whilst traditional Sanger sequencing of mtDNA has determined ancestry and species-level identification. However over the last decade, massively-parallel sequencing (MPS) has revolutionised biology allowing cost-effective characterisation of whole genomes; this holds great promise as the next innovation in forensic analysis too. Illumina has developed a human forensic MPS kit that allows simultaneous testing of multiple autosomal and Y-specific STRs, mtDNA and SNPs. This multi-target approach conserves biological material whilst maximizing discrimination and efficiency. This same approach could be applied to animal and plant forensic evidence allowing both human and non-human tests to be performed using a common platform, bioinformatics pipeline, and ultimately reporting procedure. This studentship will explore the approach as applied to birds of prey (raptors). Illegal poisoning remains a threat to these birds and their theft from the wild for resale to the falconry trade is a lucrative business.