Forensic investigators use simple techniques such as DNA sampling and fingerprints to present in cases. Another way to identify a person is using the bacteria that we leave behind on everything we touch. Noah Fierer, a microbial ecologist at the University of Colorado, says that if you look at bacteria at the species level we can distinguish one bacteria from another. Bacteria are unique and may establish a new way of identification.
He experimented with skin associated bacteria to see if it was possible. Fierer used swabs to collect bacteria on the finger tips of three people and also swabbed keyboards these people used. He then sequenced a part of the bacteria's DNA. Fierer and his colleagues found that they could match the genetic material on the keyboard with the bacteria on the person's skin.
This process may help in courtroom decisions. As of now, it is not ready to be used because there may be other factors. Fierer is now researching the effects of our diet, environment, and family on our skin. If these factors show bacterial patterns, it may show important information forensic investigators could use in the future.
Source: Talkington, Megan. "Your Bacterial Fingerprint". Discover August 2010: 19-19
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