A powerful new version of DBLR, an investigative application for rapidly calculating likelihood ratios (LRs) in DNA evidence, is being launched today.
Developed by the same team that created STRmix– sophisticated forensic software used to resolve mixed DNA profiles previously thought to be too complex to interpret – the new version of DBLR contains features which allow forensic analysts to determine whether there is a common donor between DNA samples and test any conceivable kinship relationship.
DBLR (which stands for database likelihood ratios) typically is used in conjunction with STRmix. Capable of calculating millions of LRs in a matter of seconds, DBLR enables users to visualize the value of DNA mixture evidence, undertake mixture-to-mixture comparisons, and achieve superfast database searches.
Likelihood ratios are used to assess the strength of DNA evidence and how likely it is that DNA found at a crime scene belongs to specific individuals.
“The Common Donor function in the new version of DBLR™ allows users to combine multiple evidence profiles in a single calculation,” says Maarten Kruijver, DBLR’s developer. “This enables us to better resolve the genotype of a contributor who appears in multiple samples and search a database to identify possible matches.”
Kruijver continues, “The new Kinship feature is also very exciting. Forensic analysts can build any pedigree imaginable and calculate likelihoods for the different propositions. Both of these features significantly advance DBLR™ as a tool for generating vital intelligence information from DNA profiling evidence.”
DBLR also provides increased accessibility since it can run on a user’s PC without the need for high-speed computing. Other improvements in the updated version of DBLR include:
- Enhanced ability to view simulations when visualizing the value of evidence;
- Expansion of the underpinning maths that allow users to search for common contributors between mixed DNA profiles (mix-to-mix);
- Visualization of mix-to-mix likelihood ratios using a heat map;
- Easier loading of input files, as well as password protection of the application.
To date, STRmix, key part of the total workflow incorporating DBLR™, has been used to interpret DNA evidence in more than 220,000 cases worldwide. That number includes numerous U.S. court cases and more than 80 successful admissibility hearings.
Republished courtesy of STRmix.