www.fob.usp.br/revista or www.scielo.br/jaos T ABSTRACT J Appl Oral Sci. 2007;15(3):156-61 USE OF DNA TECHNOLOGY IN FORENSIC DENTISTRY Ricardo Henrique Alves da SILVA 1 , Arsenio SALES-PERES 2 , Rogério Nogueira de OLIVEIRA 3 , Fernando Toledo de OLIVEIRA 4 , Sílvia Helena de Carvalho SALES-PERES 2 1- DDS, MSc, PhD student, Dental School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil, Assistant Professor, Health Sciences Institute, Paulista University (Unip), Bauru, SP, Brazil 2- DDS, MSc, PhD, Assistant Professor, Bauru School of Dentistry, University of São Paulo (USP), Bauru, SP, Brazil 3- DDS, MSc, PhD, Assistant Professor, Dental School, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil 4- DDS, MSc, Assistant Professor, Paulista University (Unip), Bauru, SP, Brazil Corresponding address: Ricardo Henrique Alves da Silva - Rua Minas Gerais, 12-67, Parque Paulistano, Bauru, SP, Brasil - Phone: 55 14 9115-3383 - e-mail: ricardohenrique@usp.br Received: May 30, 2006 - Modification: September 11, 2006 - Accepted: December 11, 2006 he established importance of Forensic Dentistry for human identification, mainly when there is little remaining material to perform such identification (e.g., in fires, explosions, decomposing bodies or skeletonized bodies), has led dentists working with forensic investigation to become more familiar with the new molecular biology techniques. The currently available DNA tests have high reliability and are accepted as legal proofs in courts. This article presents a literature review referring to the main studies on Forensic Dentistry that involve the use of DNA for human identification, and makes an overview of the evolution of this technology in the last years, highlighting the importance of molecular biology in forensic sciences. Uniterms: Forensic dentistry; Human identification; DNA. INTRODUCTION The discipline of Forensic Dentistry has only been introduced to the curriculum of the Brazilian Dental Schools after issuing of Decree no. 19852, amended in 1931 9 . Since then, this specialty has continued to evolve, showing a remarkable scientific and professional maturity lately. Forensic Anthropology, which is one of the competences of Forensic Dentistry, is one of the best examples of this development, having passed through stages of simple observation to the recent sophisticated laboratory tests, including genetic examinations. This way, Forensic Dentistry is the specialty with the goal of investigating psychological, physical, chemical and biological phenomena that can reach human beings (alive, dead or body fragments), comprehending aspects of human identification; criminal, civil, labor and administrative forensic investigation; forensic tanatology; legal documents; forensic traumatology; image (x-ray, tomography) examinations; saliva analysis; and other aspects involving a multidisciplinary team 3 . Human identification is one of the major fields of study and research in forensic science because it deals with the human body and aims at establishing human identity. The revolution caused in 1953 by Watson and Crick 43 (1953), who discovered the double-helix structure of DNA, which is responsible for the genetic inheritance of human beings, led to important changes in nearly all fields of science. This discovery was the basis for the development of techniques that allow characterizing each person’s individuality based on the DNA sequence. Three decades later, Jeffreys, et al. 15 (1985) created radioactive molecular probes that could recognize highly variable regions of DNA and thus determine the specific patterns of each individual, which were named DNA fingerprints. The currently performed DNA profile tests are totally reliable, being accepted as legal proofs in courts, such as for investigation of paternity and human identification 26 . Several biological materials may be employed for isolation of DNA and accomplishment of laboratory tests for human identification, including bone tissue, hair bulb, biopsy sample, saliva, blood and other body tissues. It is possible to obtain DNA from virtually all human body tissues, only with variations in the quantity and quality of the DNA extracted from each tissue. The established importance of Forensic Dentistry for human identification, mainly when there is little remaining material to perform such identification (e.g. in fires, explosions, decomposing bodies or skeletonized bodies), has led dentists working with forensic investigation to become more familiar with the new molecular biology technologies. Therefore, this article presents a literature review referring to the recent Brazilian works and some international studies on Forensic Dentistry that used DNA analysis for human identification, and makes an overview 156