A common problem encountered in forensic casework involving human skeletal remains is the inability to distinguish artifacts left on bones by scavengers from those associated with a victim’s death. If an artifact can be conclusively identified as scavenging marks, it will save valuable time and resources that might be spent processing it as possible evidence relating to the death of an individual. This research investigates the possibility of using DNA isolated from rodent buccal cells deposited on skeletal remains as a means of making such a distinction. Any DNA isolated from gnaw marks left on the remains will be amplified and sequenced using the cytochrome b gene in the mitochondrial genome as the target region. This genetic marker shows a high degree of differentiation between different species and allows for more definitive identification of the source of the artifact in question.
