STRmix™ NGS
STRmix™ NGS Research and Validation is expert forensic software for laboratories familiar with STRmix™ that are investigating the future implementation of emergent Next Generation
Sequencing (NGS) / Massively Parallel Sequencing (MPS) technology.
Developed by global leaders in the field, this first application of the ground-breaking STRmix™ technology to NGS uses a fully continuous approach for interpretation of NGS-generated Short Tandem Repeat (STR) DNA profiles.
FAST: STRmix™ NGS interprets complex STR DNA results in minutes.
ACCESSIBLE: STRmix™ NGS can be run on a user’s PC, without the need for high-speed computing.
ENABLING: STRmix™ NGS can easily be understood by DNA analysts.
Not currently for casework use, it allows users to research the potential implementation and validation path of Probabilistic Genotyping alongside NGS chemistries and sequencing equipment.
STRmix™ NGS is a breakthrough for forensic laboratories embarking on the implementation of NGS as it can help laboratories plan for the future use of NGS DNA mixtures evidence in casework. The software has been developed by New Zealand Crown Research Institute ESR, with Forensic Science SA (FSSA).
With STRmix™ NGS you will be able to:
Investigate the interpretation of complex mixed STR DNA results generated with NGS technology
Compare profiles against a person of interest and calculate a likelihood ratio (LR)
Resolve complex NGS STR DNA mixtures
Use more of the information in an NGS DNA profile, and model any type of stutter
Search complex, mixed DNA profiles against a database.
Download the Brochure
Discover how STRmix™ NGS Research allows users to research the potential implementation and validation path of Probabilistic Genotyping alongside NGS chemistries and sequencing equipment.
About STRmix™ NGS
Learn more about STRmix™ NGS, including how it works, published data describing its validation and features, as well as product specifications and compatibilities.
STRmix™ NGS Research and Validation is a highly innovative, emergent tool that allows users to:
Interpret DNA profiling data generated at STR profiling loci.
Resolve complex mixed DNA profiles without reference to known contributors.
Undertake quality checks for data.
Model any type of stutter observed within your STR profiling kit.
Compare reference (including legacy length-based) DNA profiles to single source and mixed DNA profiles and provide a statistical weighting.
Interpret DNA profiles from a range of starting template DNA concentrations.
Use laboratory-specific settings to perform calculations suited exactly to your laboratory’s results.
Search a deconvoluted DNA profile directly against a database without the need to interpret a single source component.
Calculate LRs from multiple reference inputs to a previously run deconvolution (LR Batch tool).
Batch multiple deconvolutions or other STRmix™ NGS functions (such as Interpretation, LR from Previous, and Database Search) in a queue, allowing the user to run multiple deconvolutions and calculate LRs sequentially.
Consider related individuals as alternate contributors in the LR.
Carry out familial searches against a database, searching for close relatives of contributors to mixed DNA profiles.
Generate fully configurable (and if required, retrospective) reports.
Password protect default settings and kit settings.
STRmix™ NGS combines sophisticated biological modelling and standard mathematical processes to interpret a wide range of complex NGS STR DNA profiles.
Using well-established statistical methods, the software builds millions of conceptual DNA profiles. It grades them against the evidential sample, finding the combinations that best explain the profile.
Validation
The STRmix™ NGS workflow and user experience is grounded on the capillary electrophoresis-based STRmix™ technology, which has been extensively validated and used for casework interpretation at ESR and multiple Australian, US, Canadian, European, Asian, and UK laboratories (first implemented in August 2012).
The following selection of papers describing the biological model and mathematics of STRmix™ NGS have been published:
[1] D.A. Taylor, J.-A. Bright, J. S. Buckleton, The interpretation of single source and mixed DNA profiles, Forensic Science International: Genetics. 7(5) (2013) 516-528.
[2] J.-A. Bright, D.A. Taylor, J. M. Curran, J. S. Buckleton, Developing allelic and stutter peak height models for a continuous method of DNA interpretation, Forensic Science International: Genetics. 7(2) (2013) 296-304.
[3] K. Cheng, J. Skillman, S. Hickey, R. Just, L. Moreno, J.-A. Bright, H. Kelly, M.-H. Lin, J.M. Curran, J.S. Buckleton. Variability and additivity of read counts for aSTRs in NGS DNA profiles. Forensic Science International: Genetics. 48 (2020) 102351.
[4] K. Cheng, M.-H. Lin, L. Moreno, J. Skillman, S. Hickey, D. Cuenca, W.R. Hudlow, R. Just, J.-A. Bright, J.S. Buckleton, J.M. Curran. Modeling allelic analyte signals for aSTRs in NGS DNA profiles. Journal of Forensic Sciences. 66(4) (2021) 1234-1245.
[5] J.-A. Bright, D.A. Taylor, J. M. Curran, J. S. Buckleton, Searching mixed DNA profiles directly against profile databases Forensic Science International: Genetics. 9 (2014) 102-110.
[6] D.A. Taylor. Using continuous DNA interpretation methods to revisit likelihood ratio behaviour. Forensic Science International: Genetics, 2014. 11: 144-153.
[7] J.-A. Bright, J.M. Curran and J.S. Buckleton, The effect of the uncertainty in the number of contributors to mixed DNA profiles on profile interpretation. Forensic Science International: Genetics, 2014. 12: 208-214.
[8] D.A. Taylor, J.-A. Bright and J.S. Buckleton, Considering relatives when assessing the evidential strength of mixed DNA profiles. Forensic Science International: Genetics, 2014. 13: 259-263.
[9] H. Kelly, J.-A. Bright, M.D. Coble, J.S. Buckleton. A description of the likelihood ratios in the probabilistic genotyping software STRmix™. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, https://doi.org/10.1002/ wfs2.1377.
[10] L. Russell, S.J. Cooper, R. Wivell, Z.B. Kerr, D. Taylor, J.S. Buckleton, J.-A. Bright, A guide to results and diagnostics within a STRmix™ report. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, https://doi.org/10.1002/wfs2.1354.
[11] K. Cheng, J.-A. Bright, H. Kelly, Y.Y. Liu, M.H. Lin, M. Kruijver, D.A. Taylor, J.S. Buckleton, Developmental validation of STRmix™ NGS, a probabilistic genotyping tool for the interpretation of autosomal STRs from forensic profiles generated using generated using NGS. Forensic Science International: Genetics 62 (2023) 102804.
STRmix™ NGS is designed to run on an individual DNA analyst’s PC (either standalone or in a networked environment), without the need for high speed computing.
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