TURNING BACK THE CLOCK  Monday, October 13, 2008

Section 7646 of the California Family Code may get some updating if the state legislature gets its way. An amendment (SB 1333) to the code, that allows fathers to contest a past judgment of paternity if DNA paternity testing shows they are indeed not the biological father, is awaiting approval. The California Alliance for Families and Children (CFAC), a family advocacy group, asserts this is the first step in dealing with paternity fraud.

[California N.O.W.]

CALLING CARD  Wednesday, October 8, 2008

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department is breaking ground in new ways to collect DNA evidence. Officers started using Trigger ID kits recently to preserve potential DNA evidence from handguns found at the scene of a crime. Before packing the weapon into an evidence bag, police use a pocket-sized kit to swab the pistol grip, barrel and magazine. Law officials are hoping DNA testing from these swabs will lead to more prosecutions in gun-related crimes.

[Indystar.com]

IT'S IN THE GENES  Thursday, October 2, 2008

Preliminary research suggests parents pass on more than just hair and eye color. A recent study published in the medical journal Pediatrics led researchers to speculate 1 in 116 children are born with the herpes virus passed through their maternal or paternal DNA. Caroline Hall, MD and professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at the University of Rochester and senior author of the study, says they will continue research to see if the affects of the virus differ for children born with it compared to those who contract it after birth.

[Scientific American]