Nullomers are the smallest DNA sequences not seen in nature. These were identified and named by Dr. Greg Hampikian in 2007, and New Scientist Magazine called them “DNA Too Dangerous to Exist.” Hampikian has now shown that these sequences can be used to tag reference standards submitted by victims, arrestees, convicted offenders, military recruits and others who are asked to provide DNA for database entry. The Nullomer tags are compatible with standard profiling kits for STR, Y-STR, and mitochondrial profiles, and are detected in samples even after the original human profile has been diluted out. These essentially non-dilutable tags serve as DNA Safeguards for those providing samples, and assure laboratories that their reference and evidentiary samples are properly labeled and separated.

A paper covering this is in press with the Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine.