Diatoms as a Forensic Evidence: Transfer of Marine Diatoms to Different Fabrics and Determination of Their Appropriate Extraction Method
Abstract
In forensic studies, diatoms are often used as trace evidence. In particular, diatoms attached to clothing are used for this purpose. However, studies show that the transfer of diatoms to clothing and the extraction method give different results on different fabrics. Therefore, this study was designed to determine the most effective marine diatom isolation method for the most commonly used fabrics. Fabric pieces were immersed in seawater for 4, 24 and 96 hours to ensure the transfer of diatoms. Diatoms were extracted from the fabrics using three different methods: rinsing with distilled water, rinsing with ethanol, and digestion with hydrogen peroxide. Results showed that the extraction method, fabric type, and immersion time affected the number of diatoms. 4 hours of immersion time was sufficient for the transfer of diatoms to viscose fabric. 4 hours of immersion time also seems to be sufficient for the transfer of diatoms for viscose+polyester fabric, but they could only be obtained from the fabric by the H2O2 method. However, it is understood that 24 hours of immersion time is required for diatom transfer to tencel+polyester fabric. Our results showed that the most effective method for all fabric types is H2O2 digestion. Therefore, we recommend the use of the H2O2 method, especially in cases where the residence time in seawater is unknown in forensic cases. If there is any signs that the evidence has been in seawater for a long time, other methods may be preferred.
Keywords
Project Number
FYL-2021-519
Thanks
We would like to thank Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nurhayat DALKIRAN for identifying the diatoms.
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Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Botany (Other) |
| Journal Section | Research Article |
| Authors | |
| Project Number | FYL-2021-519 |
| Submission Date | February 26, 2026 |
| Acceptance Date | April 7, 2026 |
| Publication Date | April 17, 2026 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19590544 |
| IZ | https://izlik.org/JA54BG56FL |
| Published in Issue | Year 2026 Issue: 58 |
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Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi, Müh.-Mim. Fakültesi, Çevre Mühendisliği Bölümü'nden mezun olmuştur. Yüksek lisans ve doktorasını ABD'nde tamamlamıştır. Uzmanlık alanı, hava kirliliği ve kontrolü üzerinedir. Özellike kalıcı organik kirleticiler (KOK'ler) üzerine araştırmalarını devam ettirmektedir. Halen Bursa Uludağ Üniversitesi, Mühendislik Fakültesi, Çevre Mühendisliği Bölümü'nde öğretim üyesidir.
Danka Bukvicki gained her master and PhD in Biology at the Faculty of Biology University of Belgrade (FBUB). She is a Senior Research Associate at the Department of Morphology and Systematics of Plants, FBUB. Postdoctoral studies in phytochemistry of liverworts and medicinal plants she accomplished at the Tokushima Bunri University (TBU), Japan, the University of Bologna(UNIBO), Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), and Chemodiversity Research Group, University of Vienna, Austria. Her research interests are applied botany, medicinal and aromatic plants, bioactivity of natural compounds, food microbiology, food technology and phytochemistry. Dr Bukvicki published more than 40 scientific publications in peer-reviewed international journals. She is a member of the editorial board of 2 international scientific journals. She is engaged as a coordinator in international research project (UNDP). Danka has supervised a few national and international master and bachelor students. She is a member of the Phytochemical Society of Asia (PCA) since 2015 and a member of the Serbian Biological Society, since 2011.
She is a specialist in the field of food drying, the application of non-thermal food processing methods, food storage and safety, and packaging. Her scientific and research interests focus mainly on engineering issues in food technology, especially the physical properties of raw materials and mainly plant products.
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