Forensic Sciences Research最新文献

{"title":"Improving Traditional Post Mortem Healthcare—The Cross-Sectional Use of Blood-Based Biomarkers","authors":"I. Šoša","doi":"10.3390/forensicsci3030028","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/forensicsci3030028","url":null,"abstract":"Many tools of clinical medicine, such as clinical chemistry and diagnostic imaging, are prioritized for clinical diagnosis over post mortem diagnosis. Indeed, it is reasonable that the assessment of a patient’s functional status should take priority over the post mortem, cross-sectional use of diagnostic tests and laboratory equipment. In addition, these tools are sometimes expensive, and their use does not always have a reasonable cost–benefit ratio. However, some post mortem observations, such as inflammation, pulmonary edema, or infiltration and cerebral swelling, cannot be explained without using immunohistochemical markers for post mortem diagnosis. Introducing blood-based biomarkers into post mortem care could significantly reduce the rates of inconclusive post mortems and discrepancies in autopsy findings and clinical diagnoses. This is particularly relevant in relation to vascular pathology, considering the significant burden that vascular diseases represent for overall mortality. Expanding traditional autopsies with blood-based (circulating) biomarkers to avoid invasive post mortem examination would have cultural, religious, and potentially economic advantages. All of the target molecules were discussed in the context of the processes they up-regulate or down-regulate, which turned out to be the final cause of death. Ultimately, it is evident that further studies are needed to provide concrete validation for using a combination of markers for each case to reach a post mortem diagnosis with or without clinical records.","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-07-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85356533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prediction of chronological age and its applications in forensic casework: methods, current practices, and future perspectives.","authors":"Mie Rath Refn, Marie-Louise Kampmann, Niels Morling, Jacob Tfelt-Hansen, Claus Børsting, Vania Pereira","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad021","DOIUrl":"10.1093/fsr/owad021","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Estimating an individual's age can be relevant in several areas primarily related to the clinical and forensic fields. In the latter, estimation of an individual's chronological age from biological material left by the perpetrator at a crime scene may provide helpful information for police investigation. Estimation of age is also beneficial in immigration cases, where age can affect the person's protection status under the law, or in disaster victim identification to narrow the list of potential missing persons. In the last decade, research has focused on establishing new approaches for age prediction in the forensic field. From the first forensic age estimations based on morphological inspections of macroscopic changes in bone and teeth, the focus has shifted to molecular methods for age estimation. These methods allow the use of samples from human biological material that does not contain morphological age features and can, in theory, be investigated in traces containing only small amounts of biological material. Molecular methods involving DNA analyses are the primary choice and estimation of DNA methylation levels at specific sites in the genome is the most promising tool. This review aims to provide an overview of the status of forensic age prediction using molecular methods, with particular focus in DNA methylation. The frequent challenges that impact forensic age prediction model development will be addressed, together with the importance of validation efforts within the forensic community.</p>","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"85-97"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445583/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10260842","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Age-at-Death Estimation by Dental Means as a Part of the Skeletal Analysis","authors":"Joe Adserias-Garriga","doi":"10.3390/forensicsci3020027","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/forensicsci3020027","url":null,"abstract":"Age-at-death is one of the most valuable pieces of information in a biological profile, and is an important step in identifying remains. Age-at-death estimation by dental means is performed by forensic odontologists and forensic anthropologists in their daily casework tasks. Both forensic odontologists and forensic anthropologists must be aware of all of the age indicators and of all of the methods that can offer the sufficient scientific robusticity that forensic cases require. Osteological and dental methods of age estimation rely on developmental changes in younger individuals and on degenerative changes in older individuals. Skeletal methods based on developmental changes are highly reliable, while methods based on degenerative or post-formation changes show higher variability. From all skeletal methods, those relying on tooth formation and development are the most accurate to assess an individual’s age. Dental methods of age estimation can be implemented in the skeletal analysis of juvenile and adult remains, representing an additional indicator of age. The aim of this review paper is to provide a practical reference for applying dental age estimation to human remains as a part of skeletal analysis.","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88791114","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Accuracy comparison of tooth volume and mesiodistal diameter measurements for sex dimorphism based on cone-beam computed tomography: a study for the northern Chinese population.","authors":"Wenqing Bu,&nbsp;Lingling Ji,&nbsp;Mengqi Han,&nbsp;Zixuan Wu,&nbsp;Badr Sultan,&nbsp;Teng Chen,&nbsp;Yu Tang,&nbsp;Yucheng Guo,&nbsp;Fei Wang","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sex estimation based on teeth could help to narrow the scope for individual identification. According to the different teeth morphology among both genders, we plan to establish a sex estimation method for the northern Chinese population through mesiodistal diameter and teeth volume measurements and compare the accuracy of the two methods. In this study, measurements were taken from cone-beam computed tomography images collected from 142 males and 140 females aged 21-59 years. The mesiodistal diameter and volume of the left canines and the first molars in both upper and lower jaws were measured and analyzed for suitable coefficients. We selected 80% samples as the training set to set up the logistic regression formulas and 20% as the test set to obtain accuracy. The accuracy of sex estimation by mesiodistal diameter can reach 87.50%, and the volume is up to 78.57%. The measurement of mesiodistal diameter is less time-consuming. This work established and tested a method to estimate sex for the northern Chinese population. Results showed that sex estimation based on the mesiodistal diameter of teeth has higher accuracy than the method based on teeth volume.</p>","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"133-139"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445665/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10260847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sequence-based mutation patterns at 41 Y chromosomal STRs in 2 548 father-son pairs.","authors":"Ze Liu,&nbsp;Guannan Long,&nbsp;Yubo Lang,&nbsp;Dahua Liu,&nbsp;Biao Zhang,&nbsp;Shaobo Yu,&nbsp;Fei Guo","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad016","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;A total of 2 548 unrelated healthy father-son pairs from a Northern Han Chinese population were genotyped at 41 Y chromosomal short tandem repeat (Y-STRs) including DYS19, DYS388, DYS389I, DYS389II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS437, DYS438, DYS439, DYS444, DYS447, DYS448, DYS449, DYS456, DYS458, DYS460, DYS481, DYS518, DYS522, DYS549, DYS533, DYS557, DYS570, DYS576, DYS593, DYS596, DYS627, DYS635, DYS643, DYS645, Y-GATA-H4, DYF387S1a/b, DYF404S1a/b, DYS385a/b, and DYS527a/b. In 2 548 father samples, 2 387 unique haplotypes were detected with the haplotype diversity and discrimination capacity values of 0.999 956 608 and 0.96 741 007. The average gene diversity (GD) value was 0.6934 with a range from 0.1051 at DYS645 to 0.9657 at DYS385a/b. When comparing alleles at 24 overlapped Y-STRs between the ForenSeq™ deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) Signature Prep Kit on the MiSeq FGx® Forensic Genomics System and the Goldeneye® DNA ID Y Plus Kit on the Applied Biosystems™ 3730 DNA Analyzer from 308 father samples in mutational pairs, 258 alleles were detected by massively parallel sequencing (MPS) typing including 156 length-based alleles that could be obtained by capillary electrophoresis (CE) typing, 95 repeat region (RR) variant alleles and seven flanking region variant alleles. Hereof, we found 16 novel RR variant alleles and firstly identified two SNPs (rs2016239814 at DYS19 and rs2089968964 at DYS448) and one 4-bp deletion (rs2053269960 at DYS439) that had been validated by the Database of Short Genetic Variation. Sanger sequencing or MPS was employed to confirm 356 mutations from 104 468 allele transfers generated from CE, where 96.63% resulted in one-step mutations, 2.25% in two-step, and 1.12% in multi-step, and the overall ratio of repeat gains &lt;i&gt;versus&lt;/i&gt; losses was balanced (173 gains &lt;i&gt;vs.&lt;/i&gt; 183 losses). In 308 father-son pairs, 268 pairs occurred mutations at a single locus, 33 pairs at two loci, six pairs at three loci, and one pair at four loci. The average Y-STR mutation rate at 41 Y-STRs was ⁓3.4 × 10&lt;sup&gt;-3&lt;/sup&gt; (95% confidence intervals: 3.1 × 10&lt;sup&gt;-3&lt;/sup&gt;-3.8 × 10&lt;sup&gt;-3&lt;/sup&gt;). The mutation rates at DYS576 and DYS627 were higher than 1 × 10&lt;sup&gt;-2&lt;/sup&gt; in Northern Han Chinese, whilst the mutation rates at DYF387S1a/b, DYF404S1a/b, DYS449, DYS518, and DYS570 were lower than initially defined. In this study, the classical molecular factors (the longer STR region, the more complex motif and the order father) were confirmed to drive Y-STR mutation rates increased, but the length of repeat unit did not conform to the convention. Lastly, the interactive graphical and installable StatsY was developed to facilitate forensic scientists to automatically calculate allele and haplotype frequencies, forensic parameters, and mutation rates at Y-STRs.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Key points: &lt;/strong&gt;308 of 2 548 father-son pairs from Northern Han Chinese occurred at least one mutation(s) across 41 Y-STRs.Sanger sequencing or MPS was employed to ","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"152-162"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445670/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10260844","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Understanding the challenges of disaster victim identification: perspectives of Australian forensic practitioners.","authors":"Natasa Adamovic,&nbsp;Loene M Howes,&nbsp;Rob White,&nbsp;Roberta Julian","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad020","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad020","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Disaster victim identification (DVI) is an important process in the aftermath of disasters to provide answers for the families and communities of victims. Australian forensic practitioners contribute to such processes internationally under difficult post-disaster circumstances. The aim of the study was to better understand the challenges experienced by forensic practitioners in international DVI operations. Participants (<i>N</i> = 20) included DNA analysts, fingerprint examiners, forensic odontologists, forensic pathologists, and mortuary technicians who had experience in DVI operations. Participants were interviewed about their experiences and perceptions of the challenges of DVI. The findings provide valuable insights into the types of DVI operations in which Australian forensic practitioners have been involved internationally. Thematic analysis of interview data resulted in five main themes: the post-disaster work environment; DVI management and processes; political and financial influences; teamwork in intercultural and interdisciplinary contexts; and confronting the emotional realities of DVI work. The analysis highlights the interrelated challenges associated with DVI operations in international contexts. Practitioners also provided suggestions for improvement, which generally aligned with the themes and reflected an ethos of learning and continuous improvement in DVI. Further research on education and training and capacity-development initiatives is warranted.</p>","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"107-115"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445580/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10260846","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"When the antidote for cyanide poisonings becomes a nightmare: an alarming outbreak of suicides using kits containing sodium nitrite.","authors":"Ricardo Jorge Dinis-Oliveira,&nbsp;Carlos Durão","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad015","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad015","url":null,"abstract":"Dear editor, It was in 1936 that Lancet first published three cases of intoxication by nitrites [1]. The authors mentioned that poisoning by sodium nitrite was rare, and they were not able to trace any other record of fatal poisoning in the UK. Then, in 1939, three fatal cases due to sodium nitrite poisonings were reported in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) [2]. That reality was maintained rare and virtually unheard of until very recently [3, 4]. Indeed, as forensic experts, we are very alarmed at how easily is being advertised and purchased this suicide means in different countries that ended in several series of fatal events [5–7]. In other words, more fatal cases of intoxication by sodium nitrite were published in the last 2 years than before. The toxicovigilance data justify urgent and restrictive regulations for the use of sodium nitrite, but perhaps the market around this substance restraints further measures to be undertaken. Indeed, since sodium nitrite has several industrial applications, accidental exposure to contaminated water and food but especially intentional ingestion has been associated with severe toxicity and deaths. Moreover, since routine tests for this substance are rarely available in different clinical and forensic settings, several other cases are certainly being missed. The tip of the iceberg as we unfortunately anticipated is becoming reality [7]. However, how people were aware of this possible means of suicide? Who is advertising? What kind of websites and services are helping the “exit”? We tried to obtain some answers, which were compiled here to alert clinical and forensic practitioners and toxicologists to this new trend of poisoning: (i) the networks supporting euthanasia provide receipts, step-by-step instructions, and recommendations on how to use exit suicide kits containing sodium nitrite. Some websites demonstrate a high number of views. For instance, the Sanctioned Suicide website drew over 10 million page views in September 2022 and as of March 2023, the forum has over 30 000 members; (ii) sodium nitrite also gained attractiveness through online pro-suicide forums probably due to efficacy and easy access; (iii) sodium nitrite is advertised as a peaceful suicide means due to its mechanism of toxicity; and (iv) this food additive for meat curing can be easily purchased with a high level of purity (98%–99%) via different online vendors and consumer marketplaces. For instance, Amazon, already in 2022 and 2023, has been accused in multiple lawsuits of selling “suicide kits” to vulnerable teens and young adults. The taboo cannot be further ignored. Nevertheless, since the food industry uses sodium nitrite for legitimate and legal applications, it will be a major challenge to restrict and find real solutions for sodium nitrite worldwide access. UK has deemed sodium nitrite a “reportable substance”, meaning that retailers must report suspicious purchases of the compound by individuals to local au","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"170-171"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445679/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10069713","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Hidden lesions: a case of burnt remains.","authors":"Negahnaz Moghaddam,&nbsp;Lorenzo Campana,&nbsp;Claudine Abegg,&nbsp;Raquel Vilarino,&nbsp;Christelle Voland,&nbsp;Fabrice Dedouit,&nbsp;Pia Genet,&nbsp;Tony Fracasso","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad019","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad019","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>One of the many challenging cases that forensic pathologists, anthropologists, and forensic imaging experts have to face are burnt human remains. Perpetrators frequently attempt to hide/destroy evidence and make the body unidentifiable by exposing it to fire. We present a case of a partially burnt body found in an apartment after an explosion. First, multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) images and the following autopsy revealed several lesions on the cranium. Forensic anthropologists were involved in order to specify the aetiology of the lesions observed on the cranium. Through an interdisciplinary approach bringing together MDCT scans, 3D surface scans, and anthropological analysis, it was possible to answer the questions raised during the autopsy. Analyses demonstrated that there were signs of blunt force trauma on the cranium vault that the perpetrator likely attempted to hide by exposing the body to fire. This case demonstrates the importance of close collaboration between forensic anthropologists, imaging experts, and forensic pathologists. This multidisciplinary approach allows for a better, more complete reconstitution of forensic cases.</p><p><strong>Key points: </strong>The analyses of burnt human remains are one of the many challenging tasks that forensic pathologists and anthropologists have to face.We present an occurrence of a partially burnt body after an explosion and forensic anthropologists were asked whether the nature of the lesions observed on the cranium could be further specified.Anthropological analyses of the skull were consistent with the radiological and autopsy report. It was possible to reconstruct the various lesions on the dry bone.The case demonstrates the importance of an interdisciplinary approach and the close collaboration between forensic anthropologists, imaging experts, and forensic pathologists.</p>","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"163-169"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445669/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10314465","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Work-related stress amongst legal medical doctors: the need for systematic psychological support. An Italian perspective.","authors":"Sara Sablone,&nbsp;Matthew Groicher,&nbsp;Tamara Patrizia Fanco,&nbsp;Roberta Risola,&nbsp;Grazia M Violante,&nbsp;Mara Bellino,&nbsp;Valeria Lagona,&nbsp;Ignazio Grattagliano","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad018","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Legal medical doctors (LMDs) expertise encompasses a wide range of responsibilities. Work-related stress amongst LMDs is an extremely relevant factor, which affects the quality of LMDs life and work. Whilst it is a better-known problem abroad, this issue is poorly debated in Italy, as demonstrated by this literature analysis. The aim of this paper is to better understand the main sources of stress in the practice of legal medicine in Italy, highlighting the need for systematic psychological support. The risks of work-related stress for the social and health professions are well known in literature. In Italy, however, due to a series of complex circumstances and cultural and research delays, forensic practitioners often seem to be excluded from these kinds of complex issues. The authors, after a series of considerations drawn from a review of the literature and from experience in the forensic and medical field, point out how work in this area entails risks for workers, on par with all others belonging to the helping and social-health professions. They conclude their contribution with a series of proposals for appropriate protocols to cope with such problems for workers in the forensic and medical field.</p><p><strong>Key points: </strong>Work-related risks for the social and health professionals are widely recognized in the literature.Although legal medical doctors are often thought to be safe from these types of issues, significant risks exist for this category as well.It is important to create appropriate protocols to address outcomes for legal medical doctors.</p>","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"116-122"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445592/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10260843","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sex estimation from virtual models: exploring the potential of stereolithic 3D crania models for morphoscopic trait scoring.","authors":"Madeline Robles,&nbsp;Rachael M Carew,&nbsp;Carolyn Rando,&nbsp;Sherry Nakhaeizadeh,&nbsp;Ruth M Morgan","doi":"10.1093/fsr/owad017","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/fsr/owad017","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Modern computed tomography (CT) databases are becoming an accepted resource for the practice and development of identification methods in forensic anthropology. However, the utility of 3D models created using free and open-source visualization software such as 3D Slicer has not yet been thoroughly assessed for morphoscopic biological profiling methods where virtual methods of analysis are becoming more common. This paper presents a study that builds on the initial findings from Robles et al. (2020) to determine the feasibility of estimating sex on stereolithic (STL) 3D cranial models produced from CT scans from a modern, living UK population (<i>n</i> = 80) using equation 2 from the Walker's (2008) morphoscopic method. Kendall's coefficients of concordance (KCC) indicated substantial agreement using cranial features scores in an inter-observer test and a video-inter-observer test. Fleiss' Kappa scores showed moderate agreement (0.50) overall between inter-observer sex estimations, and for observer sex estimations in comparison to recorded sexes (0.56). It was found that novice users could virtually employ morphoscopic sex estimation methods effectively on STL 3D cranial models from modern individuals. This study also highlights the potential that digital databases of modern living populations can offer forensic anthropology.</p><p><strong>Key points: </strong>First example of Walker's (2008) method applied to a living UK population.Open-source software is a valuable resource for crime reconstruction approaches.Male scoring bias was observed in method application.Forensic anthropologists would benefit from virtual anthropology training to use and interpret 3D models.Digital databases offer more ethical, diverse, modern populations for future research.</p>","PeriodicalId":45852,"journal":{"name":"Forensic Sciences Research","volume":"8 2","pages":"123-132"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10445579/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10260841","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}