Key operational considerations for biogeographical ancestry prediction capabilities

Biogeographical ancestry (BGA) prediction is a valuable Forensic DNA Intelligence (FDI) tool used to provide investigators with additional information about the donor of biological evidence. FDI is particularly useful in cases where routine DNA analysis has not led to an identification. Over the last two decades, substantial research effort has been directed towards the development of new panels of ancestry informative markers and analysis tools for BGA prediction. These efforts have supported the successful application of BGA prediction in casework across several international jurisdictions. This paper identifies critical components of operational BGA prediction methods to highlight considerations for method development, optimisation, validation and associated interpretation and to identify areas where further research is needed to enhance capabilities.