This brief report on the internal validation process for the Identifiler® Plus Kit provides the background motivation for the various studies and comparison studies that were performed, materials and methods used, results and discussions, conclusions, and references cited.
This document summarizes the internal validation process of the AmpFℓSTR® Identifiler® Plus PCR Amplification Kit, which was performed at the Boston Police Department (BPD) Crime Laboratory. Amplification is an important step in forensic DNA analysis, and the amplification kit that practitioners use can affect the quantity and quality of obtained results. The authors describe the various validation studies which were performed on the Identifiler® Plus PCR Amplification Kit, which include: sensitivity; mixture; precision; concordance; reproducibility; and a contamination study. Comparison studies, including a Touch DNA Study and a Degraded Sample Study, between the Identifiler® kit currently being used, against the Identifiler® Plus kit, to determine if the Identifiler® Plus kit should be implemented for forensic casework. The Identifiler® Plus kit produced reliable, reproducible, and robust results throughout various validation studies. Identifiler® Plus also demonstrated an overall greater sensitivity and an improved performance on degraded samples as compared to the Identifiler® amplification kit currently in use. The authors conclude that the Identifiler® Plus was successfully validated for use at the BPD, it was more sensitive and demonstrated improved performance on degraded samples compared to the current kit, and Identifiler® Plus will be implemented for use at the BPD Crime Laboratory for forensic casework.