Utilizing Encryption Keys Derived from Immunoaffinity Interactions as a Basis for Potential Security Enhancements.

Bioaffinity interactions allow antibodies and antigens to bind and were shown to successfully produce cryptographic keys for encryption in this research. This straightforward immune-system-based construct has shown that data obtained from immunoassay interactions may be utilized to create symmetrical key ciphers. The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), the current standard method to encrypt and decrypt data, was implemented to show that biomolecules from immune systems can be applied to cryptography for security enhancements.

From Spectra to Signatures: Detecting Fentanyl in Human Nails with ATR-FTIR and Machine Learning.

Human nails have recently become a sample of interest for toxicological purposes. Multiple studies have proven the ability to detect various analytes within the keratin matrix of the nail. The analyte of interest in this study is fentanyl, a highly dangerous and abused drug in recent decades.

Evaluation of Fentanyl Exposure Effects on Butyrylcholinesterase Activity as a Tool for Future On-Site Detection Methods.

The prominence of fentanyl and fentanyl analogues or Fentanyl Related Substances (FRS) has driven a nationwide crisis of opioid overdoses, which significantly presents an issue for public health and safety. Originally developed for medical purposes, fentanyl and FRS have become critical contributors to opioid overdose deaths due to their distribution, availability, and potency. This study examined toxicodynamic properties between butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and fentanyl analogues via Ellman's assay.

Who Shot the Bullet? Projectile Composition Characterization as an Evolutionary Method for Enhancement of Ballistics Evidence Analysis.

Toolmark and Firearm examiners' opinions have fallen under scrutiny as inadmissible ballistics evidence has led to the possibility of wrongful convictions and cold cases that could have been solved with the presence of a physical bullet, casing, and/or weapon at the crime scene. This research provides a solution for subjective-based conclusions and the absence of physical evidence altogether. Analysis of bullet material using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) has distinguished bullet composition between manufacturers from a surface scratch.

Metabolite monitoring concept for the biometric identification of individuals from the skin surface.

This study aims at proof of concept that constant monitoring of the concentrations of metabolites in three individuals' sweat over time can differentiate one from another at any given time, providing investigators and analysts with increased ability and means to individualize this bountiful biological sample. A technique was developed to collect and extract authentic sweat samples from three female volunteers for the analysis of lactate, urea, and L-alanine levels. These samples were collected 21 times over a 40-day period and quantified using a series of bioaffinity-based enzymatic assays with UV-vis spectrophotometric detection.

Implantable bioelectrochemistry: 70 years across "Cyborg" organisms and logically operated bioelectronics.

Professor Evgeny Katz (Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Science, Clarkson University, USA) was born on 11 August 1952, and he turned 70 years old last summer. This special collection entitled Implanted Enzymatic Fuel Cells and Biosensors: Fundamentals to Applications is dedicated to Evgeny on this landmark occasion. This brief preface gives some personal insights into Evgeny's career beyond the scientific perspective.

Determination of Time since Deposition of Fingerprints via Colorimetric Assays.

Past investigations involving fingerprints have revolved heavily around the image of the fingerprint-including the minutiae, scarring, and other distinguishing features-to visually find a match to its originator. Recently, it has been proven that the biochemical composition can be used to determine originator attributes, such as sex, via chemical and enzymatic cascades. While this provides pertinent information about the originator's identity, it is not the only piece of information that can be provided.

Recent Advances in Noninvasive Biosensors for Forensics, Biometrics, and Cybersecurity.

Recently, biosensors have been used in an increasing number of different fields and disciplines due to their wide applicability, reproducibility, and selectivity. Three large disciplines in which this has become relevant has been the forensic, biometric, and cybersecurity fields. The call for novel noninvasive biosensors for these three applications has been a focus of research in these fields.

Noninvasive Concept for Optical Ethanol Sensing on the Skin Surface with Camera-Based Quantification.

Law enforcement and the general public do not yet have adequate means of assessing and preventing drunk driving. Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is unable to be determined on-site, as it typically requires the use of complex chromatographic methods. Breathalyzers have been well established in law enforcement for correlating breath alcohol concentrations (BrAC) to BAC estimations, as they involve portable equipment with rapid analysis times.

Symmetric-Key Encryption Based on Bioaffinity Interactions.

The research presented here shows a bridge between biochemistry and cryptography. Enzyme-based assays were used in a new methodology linked to ciphers and cipher systems. Three separate enzyme assays, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) (E.

Fluorescence of 1,2-Indanedione with Amino Acids Present in the Fingerprint Residue: Application in Gender Determination.

1,2-indanedione is used for latent fingerprint visualization on porous surfaces. In this paper, fluorescence spectra of 1,2-indanedione after reacting with 21 individual amino acids present in latent fingerprints residue were measured in water-methanol solutions. The fluorescence intensity depends on the amino acid used, while the fluorescence peak does not change much.

Fingerprint Analysis: Moving Toward Multiattribute Determination via Individual Markers.

Forensic science will be forever revolutionized if law enforcement can identify personal attributes of a person of interest solely from a fingerprint. For the past 2 years, the goal of our group has been to establish a way to identify originator attributes, specifically biological sex, from a single analyte. To date, an enzymatic assay and two chemical assays have been developed for the analysis of multiple analytes.

Bioaffinity-based assay for the sensitive detection and discrimination of sweat aimed at forensic applications.

Sweat is a well-known piece of biological evidence that is actually used much less than expected. Biological samples are important because their components can often provide some type of information about a person-of-interest. Sweat, in particular, is important because of its DNA content which can be extracted and analyzed to provide information that can be imperative to a criminal investigation.

Coomassie Brilliant Blue G-250 Dye: An Application for Forensic Fingerprint Analysis.

The Bradford reagent, comprised of the Coomassie Brilliant Blue G-250 dye, methanol, and phosphoric acid, has been traditionally used for quantifying proteins. Use of this reagent in the Bradford assay relies on the binding of the Coomassie Blue G-250 dye to proteins. However, the ability of the dye to react with a small group of amino acids (arginine, histidine, lysine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan) makes it a viable chemical assay for fingerprint analysis in order to identify the biological sex of the fingerprint originator.

Ages at a Crime Scene: Simultaneous Estimation of the Time since Deposition and Age of Its Originator.

Blood is a major contributor of evidence in investigations involving violent crimes because of the unique composition of proteins and low molecular weight compounds present in the circulatory system, which often serve as biomarkers in clinical diagnostics. It was recently shown that biomarkers present in blood can also identify characteristics of the originator, such as ethnicity and biological sex. A biocatalytic assay for on-site forensic investigations was developed to simultaneously identify the age range of the blood sample originator and the time since deposition (TSD) of the blood spot.

New Horizons for Ninhydrin: Colorimetric Determination of Gender from Fingerprints.

In the past century, forensic investigators have universally accepted fingerprinting as a reliable identification method via pictorial comparison. One of the most traditional detection methods uses ninhydrin, a chemical that reacts with amino acids in the fingerprint content to produce the blue-purple color known as Ruhemann's purple. It has recently been demonstrated that the amino acid content in fingerprints can be used to differentiate between male and female fingerprints.

Forensic Identification of Gender from Fingerprints.

In the past century, forensic investigators have universally accepted fingerprinting as a reliable identification method, which relies mainly on pictorial comparisons. Despite developments to software systems in order to increase the probability and speed of identification, there has been limited success in the efforts that have been made to move away from the discipline's absolute dependence on the existence of a prerecorded matching fingerprint. Here, we have revealed that an information-rich latent fingerprint has not been used to its full potential.

Forensic determination of blood sample age using a bioaffinity-based assay.

A bioaffinity-driven cascade assay was developed to determine the time elapsed from the point a blood sample was left at a crime scene to the point of discovery. Two blood markers, creatine kinase (CK) and alanine transaminase (ALT), were utilized to determine the age of the blood spot based on their natural denaturation processes. The analysis with the proposed bioassay was performed in human serum samples, which underwent the aging process under environmental conditions that could be expected at crime scenes.