Forensic Serology

Forensic Science
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The Composition of Blood
• A complex mixture of cells, enzymes, proteins,
and inorganic substances
• It mainly consists of
– Erythrocytes = red blood cells (rbc)
– Leukocytes = white blood cells (wbc)
– Platelets = clotting factors
– Plasma = the liquid part

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The Composition of Blood (continued)
• Antigens, usually proteins, are located on
surface of rbc’s and are responsible for blood
types
• Antibodies recognize and bind to specific
antigens
• There is a specific antibody for every antigen
that will react to form clumps; this is known as
agglutination

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A-B-O Blood System
Blood Type Antigens on Red Blood Cells Antibodies in Serum
A A anti-B
B B anti-A
AB A and B Neither anti-A nor B
O Neither A nor B Both anti-A and B

Type A agglutinates with anti-A, B agglutinates with anti-

B, AB agglutinates with both anti-A and anti-B, and O will
not agglutinate with either serum

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Blood Donors and Recipients
BLOOD TYPE DONATES TO RECEIVES FROM
A A, AB A, O
B B, AB B, O
AB AB A, B, BA, O
O A, B, AB, O O

Type AB blood is known as the universal recipient and

Type O, which is the most common among humans, is
known as the universal donor
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RH Factor
• Rh (Rhesus) factor is another important blood antigen
• It is a protein that some people carry, sometimes referred to
as the D antigen
• People with the D antigen are said to be Rh positive (+) and
those without are Rh negative (-)
• Important to the compatibility of donors and recipients
• An Rh+ person can receive Rh+ or Rh- blood, but an Rh-
person can only receive Rh-
• The blood is Rh+ if it agglutinates with anti-D or Rh- if it does
not

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Genetics of Blood
• Blood types are determined by looking at 2
inherited genes (one from each parent)
• There are 3 alleles for blood types: A, B, and
O, with 6 possible combinations
BLOOD TYPE ALLELE COMBINATIONS
A AA, AO
B BB, BO
AB AB
O OO
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Punnet Square for Blood
• A Punnet square can be used to determine the
blood types of offspring from specific parent
genotypes

• Example: what are the possible blood types

for the offspring belonging to a Type AB
female and a Type O male?
Answer: Type A and Type B
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The Forensics of Blood
• Investigators must answer 3 questions:
– Is it blood?

– Is it human or animal blood?

– Whose blood is it?

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Is It Blood?
• Presumptive (color) tests
– Kastle-Meyer – turns bright pink; used for visible
stains
– Luminol – glows a luminescent blue; used for
invisible stains

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Is It Human or Animal Blood?
• Precipitin test
– Human blood is injected into an animal (usually a
rabbit)
– Antibodies neutralize the invading human blood to
form human antiserum
– The questioned bloodstain is layered on top of the
antiserum in a capillary tube
– A band is formed at the interface of the two liquids
*Other commonly encountered animal blood can be tested this way
as well to have a supply of antisera from different organisms

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Whose Blood Is It?
• A DNA analysis must be performed to
determine exactly who the blood belongs to

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Characterization of Blood Evidence

CLASS CHARACTERISTICS INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS

• What species does it • DNA analysis
belong to?
• What blood type is it?
• What is the Rh factor?
• Does the evidence have
diseases present?

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Bloodstain Pattern Analysis
• Important factors of blood spatter
– Appearance
– Distribution
– Location

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Bloodstain Pattern Analysis
(continued)

Sources of bloodstains include

Passive (dripping)
Transfer

Projected

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Bloodstain Pattern Analysis
(continued)

• Surface texture can change the appearance of a blood drop

• The direction of travel can be determined when blood strikes
a surface because the pointed end of each drop faces its
direction of travel
• The angle of impact is determined by measuring the width
and the length of the drop, dividing the width by the length,
then finding the inverse sin
– The drop will be circular at right angles to the surface
– As the angle decreases, the drop elongates

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Bloodstain Pattern Analysis
(continued)

• The origin of spatter

– Draw straight lines through the long axis of
several bloodstains
– The intersection is called the area of
convergence

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Other Body Fluids: Saliva
• Consists of
– Water
– Mucin, for swallowing
– Amylase, for digestion
– Buccal cells; cheek cells
• A good source of DNA

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Other Body Fluids: Saliva (continued)
• It is particularly associated with sexual
assaults and bite marks
• Test for Saliva
– Mix starch, iodine, and the sample of presumed
saliva
– Starch turns dark blue or purple in the presence of
iodine
– However, amylase breaks down starch
– If the sample is saliva, the color will fade
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Other Body Fluids: Semen
• Consists of
– Water
– Spermatozoa
– Enzymes
– Inorganic salts

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Other Body Fluids: Semen (continued)
PRESUMPTIVE TEST
• Semen fluoresces under UV
light
• Acid phosphatase, an
enzyme secreted by the
prostate gland, turns purple
to indicate semen is present
CONFIRMATORY TEST
• Microscopic examination
may reveal spermatozoa
• DNA typing must be done to
individualize the sample

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Other Body Fluids: Urine
• Most often, urine is used in the identification
of the presence of specific drugs in the body
• EMIT (Enzyme-Multiplied Immunoassay
Technique) reveals how antibodies bind to
specific drugs that may be present in urine

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Resources
• 0135158494, Saferstein, Richard. Forensic Science:
An Introduction. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall,
2011.
• 0536522820, Saferstein, Richard. Criminalistics: An
Introduction to Forensic Science. 8th ed. Upper Saddle
River, NJ; Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004.
• Do an Internet search for the following: The Case of
Dr. Samuel Sheppard by Fred McGunagle

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