ABSTRACT
The application of microbiology to environmental forensic investigations includes a range of subdisciplines, including microbial physiology, molecular microbial ecology, and microbial biochemistry. Microbial forensics employs a range of techniques to trace a contaminant through the environment using a microbial marker. Many of these techniques, such as selective isolation
Introduction ........................................................................................................ 195 Microbiology and Environmental Forensics .................................................. 196 Microbial Analyses and Environmental Forensics ....................................... 197 The Basis of Molecular Microbial Forensic Techniques ............................... 197
Ribosomes .................................................................................................. 199 Ribosomal RNA and Taxonomy ............................................................ 200 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) ........................................................ 201 PCR-Based DNA Fingerprinting Techniques ....................................... 202
Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis and Its Derivatives .................................................................... 202
DGGE, T-RFLP, and Forensic Science ..................................... 208 Single-Stranded Conformation Polymorphism Analysis
(SSCP) ............................................................................ 209 Terminal-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism
(T-RFLP).........................................................................210 Limitations of PCR-Based Methodologies .............................................211 Forensic Interpretation of Profiles ..........................................................214
Conclusions ..........................................................................................................214 References ............................................................................................................ 215
