ethical and legal implications of dna databases

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Introduction
The concept of DNA testing has expanded throughout the last several decades, and attention needs to be paid to the methods and implications of storing and using the samples. The human genome is a complex structure comprised of billions of base pairs. Only 0.1% of DNA makes up all of the differences in humans’ physical appearance (Pattock, 2011, p.855). Each person has about one hundred trillion cells, all of which contain chromosomes that make up an individual’s genome.
DNA from a Chromosome

In an article concerning Familial DNA Testing, A. Pattock (2011) examines the methods involved in DNA testing. Short Tandem Repeats (STRs), are non-coding genes that have stretches of varying numbers where copies of genetic sequences appear (p.854). STRs are identifiable quantities that can be used as a marker to make the comparison. Each STR forms an allele, which is part of a gene that is formed by a mutation and is found in the same position on a chromosome in every human (p.855). The loci, or fixed position, are the key to using alleles for DNA identification. Although all of the STR alleles put together comprise completely different people, not all of the STRs are unique. Because of this, multiple STR alleles need to be dissected (p.855, 856).
Loci on an Allele

Crime labs in the United States use 13 STR markers that are located over twelve chromosomes (p.856). In addition to the use of STRs, there are also different levels of searching: high, moderate and low stringency (p.858). Each type matches a different number of alleles from the sample to those in the database. High stringency searches match all 13 alleles, while moderate searches are designed case by case (p.858). Low and moderate stringency searches are consid...

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...002-9297/88/4204-0014
Lachter, K. (2009). Science and law: the implications of DNA profiling. Dartmouth.edu. (pp 1-8
). Retrieved from https://www.dartmouth.edu./~cbbc/courses/bio4-1997/KatieLachter.html
Michael, K. (2010). The legal, social and ethical controversy of the collection and storage of fingerprint profiles and DNA samples in forensic science. In K. Michael (Eds.), 2010 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society: Social Implications of Emerging Technologies, 48-60. Retrieved from http://works.bepress.com/kmichael/429/
Mitchener-Nissen, T. (2013). Addressing social resistance in emerging security technologies. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7, (August 2013), 1-4. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00483
Pattock, A. (2011). It’s all relative: Familial DNA testing and the Fourth Amendment. Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology, 12 (22), 851-77.

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