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© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

This study describes an optimized DNA extraction protocol targeting ultrashort DNA molecules from single rootless hairs. It was applied to the oldest samples available to us: locks of hairs that were found in relics associated with the Romanov family. Published mitochondrial DNA genome sequences of Tsar Nicholas II and his wife, Tsarina Alexandra, made these samples ideal to assess this DNA extraction protocol and evaluate the types of genetic information that can be recovered by sequencing ultrashort fragments. Using this method, the mtGenome of the Tsarina’s lineage was identified in hairs that were concealed in a pendant made by Karl Fabergé for Alexandra Feodorovna Romanov. In addition, to determine if the lock originated from more than one individual, two hairs from the locket were extracted independently and converted into Illumina libraries for shotgun sequencing on a NextSeq 500 platform. From these data, autosomal SNPs were analyzed to assess relatedness. The results indicated that the two hairs came from a single individual. Genetic testing of hairs that were found in the second artifact, a framed photograph of Louise of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark and maternal grandmother of Tsar Nicholas II, revealed that the hair belonged to a woman who shared Tsar Nicholas’ maternal lineage, including the well-known point heteroplasmy at position 16169.

Details

Title
Improved DNA Extraction and Illumina Sequencing of DNA Recovered from Aged Rootless Hair Shafts Found in Relics Associated with the Romanov Family
Author
Loreille, Odile 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Tillmar, Andreas 2 ; Brandhagen, Michael D 1 ; Otterstatter, Linda 3 ; Irwin, Jodi A 1 

 Federal Bureau of Investigation Laboratory, DNA Support Unit, Quantico, VA 22135, USA; [email protected] (M.D.B.); [email protected] (J.A.I.) 
 Department of Forensic Genetics and Forensic Toxicology, National Board of Forensic Medicine, SE-587 58 Linkoping, Sweden; [email protected]; Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Linköping University, SE-582 25 Linkoping, Sweden 
 Federal Bureau of Investigation Laboratory, Trace Evidence Unit, Quantico, VA 22135, USA; [email protected] 
First page
202
Publication year
2022
Publication date
2022
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
20734425
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2632738647
Copyright
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.