Taking NIJ Funded Research to the Next Level: Commercialization of the first universal tool for forensic body fluid traces

The ability to identify body fluid traces at crime scenes, and preserve any DNA present, is critically important in forensic science. Identification can be difficult because many of the current techniques are specific to one body fluid, and typical biochemical methods are destructive. Within the Lednev Laboratory, to develop a universal, confirmatory, nondestructive, approach that can be used to identify body fluids, the specificity of Raman spectroscopy was combined with the analytical power of statistical modeling. This research was supported with over a decade of grant funding from the National Institute of Justice leading to the development of this novel technology. All six forensically relevant body fluids (blood, semen, saliva, sweat, urine, and vaginal fluid) can be successfully identified using a single method. This technique is reliable and nondestructive, offering substantial advantages over the current techniques used to identify body fluids. Additionally, this method allows for phenotypic analysis of body fluids. Further development of this technology is still in progress and the ability to determine the time since deposition of bloodstains will be discussed. The ultimate goal of applied research is to bring this novel technology to the market. We approach this goal through the start-up company SupreMEtric LLC. SupreMEtric’s mission is to streamline the forensic analysis of biological stains by creating a universal nondestructive method for the identification of all main body fluids. This presentation will discuss the process from researching the problem in an academic laboratory to commercialization process of this technology. Additionally, this presentation will highlight the values and potential of SupreMEtric’s product for potential users including forensic biologists and serologists in both public, federal, and private laboratories. The goal of this presentation is to facilitate discussions of our technology and consider areas of improvement.