IZHEVSK, August 14 (Itar-Tass) — A first genetics laboratory will be opened in Russia’s Republic of Udmurtia before the end of September, a leading researcher from the Russian centre for forensic medicine told Itar-Tass.
Ilya Shilov, Doctor of Bilogical Sciences, is preparing the laboratory for launching on the basis of the forensic medicine office in Izhevsk. This lab will allow to conduct unique research activities that will be in demand among ordinary people and law enforcers.
The genetics laboratory is estimated at 4 billion roubles for Udmurtia’s budget. It will make possible to use DNA research in criminal investigations, in crime instrument identifications as well as to create a database of risk groups among police staff of the republic.
“Now we have only probability conclusions concerning involvement of this or that person into a crime, when we find biological traces. In the future we will have 99.9 percent probability. Therefore we will be able to uncover crimes that now remain doubtable,” said the head of the Russian Investigative Committee’s Udmurtia department.
Senior criminalist of the Russian Investigative Committee’s Udmurtia department, Sergei Sobolev, said at present, DNA tests are ordered at Bashkiria’s laboratory of the Interior Ministry.
“This not only takes much time, but also costs much,” he said.
Experts expressed confidence that the laboratory will have an opportunity to provide services for ordinary people, for instance to pass tests for paternity or genetic diseases.
“We can conduct different types of research – disputable paternity expertise and kinship testing, etc,” said the head of the molecular and genetics department of the republican forensic genetics office, Vladimir Chirkov.
At present, the lab is operating in a test mode. It will open as soon as it gets all necessary licenses.