Promega multiplex assay approved by FBI

Promega’s PowerPlex Fusion 6C System has been granted approval by the FBI in the United States for use in laboratories that generate DNA records for the National DNA Index System (NDIS). NDIS, a component of the FBI’s CODIS system, is a national database containing nearly 12 million offender profiles used by authorities to help solve criminal investigations nationwide.

Launched in January of this year, the PowerPlex Fusion 6C System is a 27-locus multiplex that combines common and informative loci, including SE33, Penta D and Penta E, to overcome typical challenges faced by laboratories, such as sample inhibitors, low levels of input DNA and degradation. The system contains three Y-STR loci to improve mixture analysis that is commonly done with crime scene samples.

The kit is capable of direct amplification with 12.5 µL reactions from numerous sample types, including FTA cards, nonFTA cards and commonly used swabs, enabling laboratories to streamline workflow and stretch their budget. Additionally, the system meets CODIS and European standards, allowing laboratories to achieve what is claimed to be the most inter-database compatibility and highest discrimination of any commercially available autosomal STR kit.

“Having the opportunity to be involved with Promega’s developmental validation allowed our laboratory to gain a better insight into this kit and its benefits,” said Learden Matthies of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office Laboratory, the sponsoring laboratory for NDIS approval submission for the PowerPlex Fusion 6C System. “The attributes of Fusion 6C proved superior to the other options evaluated in our laboratory, while the rapidly mutating Y-STR loci, a unique feature of the kit, may lend additional power to interpreting mixtures.”