Advancement in Age Estimation in Forensic Science Through Molecular Fingerprinting Techniques – A Review Paper

Dactyloscopy has long been used for personal identification from the latent fingerprint residues, capable of providing an insight into various factors of an individual, such as age, sex, habits and lifestyle. Various studies have been conducted to precisely identify the changes in activity of sweat glands and the chemical breakdown of fingerprint residues with respect to time. However, a reliable method for accurately estimating or approximating the age of the fingerprint donor is yet to be established. The emerging field of molecular fingerprinting analyses latent fingerprint sweat residue and profiles the components present in it, which aids in personal identification as an individualistic marker specific to each individual. This review article highlights the advancements in estimating the age of the fingerprint donor from latent fingerprint residue and addresses the technical and technological research gaps in the timeline of molecular fingerprinting techniques, as this method holds potential in aiding forensic investigation and criminal profiling from the fingerprints retrieved from the scene of crime.