Genetic mugshot recreates faces from nothing but DNA

www.newscientist.com ^ | 20 March 2014 | by Peter Aldhous

[Red Badger]

A MURDER has been committed, and all the cops have to go on is a trace of DNA left at the scene. It doesn't match any profile in databases of known criminals, and the trail goes cold. But what if the police could issue a wanted poster based on a realistic "photofit" likeness built from that DNA?

Not if, but when, claim researchers who have developed a method for determining how our genes influence facial shape. One day, the technique may even allow us to gaze into the faces of extinct human-like species that interbred with our own ancestors.

It's already possible to make some inferences about the appearance of crime suspects from their DNA alone, including their racial ancestry and some shades of hair colour. And in 2012, a team led by Manfred Kayser of Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, identified five genetic variants with detectable effects on facial shape. It was a start, but still a long way from reliable genetic photofits.

To take the idea a step further, a team led by population geneticist Mark Shriver of Pennsylvania State University and imaging specialist Peter Claes of the Catholic University of Leuven (KUL) in Belgium used a stereoscopic camera to capture 3D images of almost 600 volunteers from populations with mixed European and West African ancestry. Because people from Europe and Africa tend to have differently shaped faces, studying people with mixed ancestry increased the chances of finding genetic variants affecting facial structure.

[Red Badger]

To get a sense of the method's current power, New Scientist asked Claes and Shriver to predict the appearance of a young woman based on a scan of her DNA performed by the Californian company 23andMe. You can judge for yourself how closely their prediction resembles former New Scientist reporter Sara Reardon in the photos below.

[Red Badger]

More:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2014/03/20/scientists-reconstruct-faces-from-dna-samples/?utm_campaign=forbestwittersf&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

[E. Pluribus Unum]

From the title I thought they were actually calculating appearance from the genes, but they are photographing people with various genes and morphing the photos based on the genes.

Pretty impressive though.

[Red Badger]

Will complicate a lot of trials, I bet.....................

[E. Pluribus Unum]

It could replace the artists who draw mug shots from witness descriptions.

Provided they spit somewhere handy.

[SandRat]

How long before we see Abby do the same on NCIS to help Gibbs and Ducky?

[E. Pluribus Unum]

I think I saw her do that last week.

[PapaBear3625]

Interesting. Having DNA evidence works best when you have the suspect’s DNA already on file. But if you can reconstruct the perp’s appearance, then you can do a facial recognition match against mugshots (or the database of drivers license photos), find likely matches, and get a warrant to get some DNA.

[Fester Chugabrew]

Guilty . . . I think.

[Average Al]

will this work with dogs dumping in my yard? ;-)

[Calvin Locke]

In “Elvis Has Left the Building”, one FBI agent begins a facial reconstruction off a lipstick smudge, iirc.

[Red Badger]

No, but a motion sensor attached to the lawn sprinkler will.................

[afraidfortherepublic]

Ping

[ConservativeMan55]

bttt

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks afraidfortherepublic, and Red Badger for posting the topic.

[null and void]

Nut-job Conspiracy Theory Ping!

To get onto The Nut-job Conspiracy Theory Ping List you must threaten to report me to the Mods if I don't add you to the list...

[Nifster]

but will they make me look better?

[bgill]

Doubtful they can determine age, weight, scars or hair style and color dye.