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Published byFrederick Johnson Modified over 8 years ago
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Hair Evidence
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Hairs as physical evidence Valuable because can remain intact for years So strong that they have same tensile strength of steel of same gauge Presence often denotes physical contact
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Morphology (Structure) of Hair Made of keratin -- a protein Consists of: –Root (bulb) –Shaft –Tip http://www.hshairclinic.co.uk/_images/hair_structure.jpg
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Root When pulled from head, some translucent tissue surrounding the hair shaft near the root may be found Called “follicular tag” http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/lab/forensic-science- communications/fsc/jan2004/research/images/fig58.jpg
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Follicular Tags: Can be used for DNA analysis http://hannahc12.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/picture-92.png
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Hair Shaft Structure: Cuticle, Cortex and Medulla 3 sections to a hair shaft –Medulla (interior) –Cortex (main section) –Cuticle (exterior) http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xvklWrDLexk/S8txNTzoVbI/AAAAAAAACAg/ Kbk03aJ5u64/s320/hair-cross-section.gif
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Cuticle: scale structure covering the exterior of hair Formed from overlapping scales that always point towards the tip end Useful in species identification 3 basic patterns: –Coronal –Spinous –Imbricate Coronal Spinous Imbricate
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Cuticle: scale structure covering the exterior of hair Coronal: crown-like pattern; like stacked cups –Rodent Spinous: triangular, petal-like scales –Cat Imbricate: flattened scales with narrpw margins –Human Coronal Spinous Imbricate
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Hair Cortex Main body of hair shaft Embedded with pigment granules that give hair color Can be used to compare hairs of different persons http://www.ecobyte.com.au/a_Basic_Hair_struc_Xsec.jpg
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Hair Medulla Cellular column running through the center of the hair Can be continuous, interrupted or fragmented http://intro.chem.okstate.edu/chemsource/Forensic/forechem11.gif
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Hair Medulla Presence and appearance varies among individuals Most human hairs have no or fragmented medulla Asian hairs may have continuous medulla. http://www.bfro.net/images/whatis/figures/Fig.%203%20with%20capt ion.jpg
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Shape of the medulla Shape varies by species Humans: medulla is nearly cylindrical Animals: –Cat: bead-like –Deer: spherical cells http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/c/l/clv14/sci101/images/standardhair%20copy.jpg
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Medullary Index Varies by species Calculation: Width of Medulla = MI Width of Cortex
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Hair Comparison Matching color, length and diameter Can use microscope to distinguish animal hair from human hair Animals: distinguish using scale structure, medullary index and shape Humans: –distinguish by looking at presence or absence of medulla. –Distribution, shape and color intensity of pigment granules in cortex
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Hair and DNA Mitochondrial DNA can be extracted from the hair shaft –Inherited only from mother The root contains nuclear DNA –Only present if hair is forcibly removed
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