FORT WORTH, Texas, Aug. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Of the 600,000-800,000
people trafficked across international borders each year, 50 percent are under
17. It is estimated that by 2010, human trafficking will be the No. 1 crime
worldwide.
Arthur Eisenberg, Ph.D., professor and chairman of the department of forensic
and investigative Genetics and co-director of the UNT Center for Human
Identification at the University of North Texas (UNT) Health Science Center,
is on a mission to stop this horrific industry through a $500,000 grant from
The Life Technologies Foundation to develop the DNA-PROKIDS Project (Program
for Kids Identification with DNA Systems ). PROKIDS is an international
humanitarian effort using DNA testing to deter human trafficking of children
and help reunite abducted and homeless children with their parents.
Through the DNA-PROKIDS program, DNA samples will be obtained from children
associated with human trafficking whether through prostitution, forced labor,
militant activities, or illegal adoptions, or homeless children found living
on the street. Their DNA profiles will be stored in an international database
were they can be searched against the DNA profiles provided by families who
have had their children kidnapped or lost.
Eisenberg is collaborating with Jose Lorente, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor
of legal and forensic medicine at the University of Granada-Spain, to help
establish a worldwide DNA database to help reunite children with their parents
and ultimately deter the trafficking of children. Lorente was inspired to
establish DNA-PROKIDS to help return children to their parents after seeing
countless numbers of children wandering the streets in cities across the
world. He wondered, were their families looking for them? Without a way to
identify them, it would be impossible to bring them home. Perhaps an
international DNA database would help reunite these children with their
families.
Lorente chose to collaborate with the UNT Health Science Center because of its
reputation as a world-renowned center for human identification. The Center has
been responsible for the development of DNA technologies and systems for
parentage testing, forensic testing and for the identification of missing
persons and human remains.
Eisenberg and Lorente hope all countries throughout the world will develop
national databases that will link to an international repository of these DNA
profiles. Then DNA- PROKIDS will become a deterrent and prevent criminals from
kidnapping and trafficking children, the most vulnerable of all victims.
About the University of North Texas Health Science Center
The University of North Texas Health Science Center comprises the Texas
College of Osteopathic Medicine, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences,
the School of Public Health, and the School of Health Professions. Key
research areas include aging and Alzheimer's disease, cancer and physical
medicine. This year, the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine was named a
top 50 medical school in primary care by U.S. News & World Report for the
eighth consecutive year. "Fort Worth's medical school and more" contributes
more than $400 million to the Tarrant County and Texas economies annually.
For more information, go to http://www.hsc.unt.edu/
About Life Technologies
Life Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: LIFE) is a global biotechnology tools
company dedicated to improving the human condition. Our systems, consumables
and services enable researchers to accelerate scientific exploration, driving
to discoveries and developments that make life even better. Life Technologies
customers do their work across the biological spectrum, working to advance
personalized medicine, regenerative science, molecular diagnostics,
agricultural and environmental research, and 21st century forensics. Life
Technologies had sales of more than $3 billion in 2008, employs approximately
9,500 people, has a presence in more than 100 countries, and possesses a
rapidly growing intellectual property estate of approximately 3,600 patents
and exclusive licenses. Life Technologies was created by the combination of
Invitrogen Corporation and Applied Biosystems Inc. For more information on how
we are making a difference please visit our website: www.lifetechnologies.com.
SOURCE University of North Texas Health Science Center
Breanne Koutek, +1-817- 735-5178, Bkoutek@hsc.unt.edu, or Lauren LaFleur,
+1-817-735-5152, llafleur@hsc.unt.edu, both of University of North Texas
Health Science Center
