Parabon NanoLabs (Parabon) announced today receipt of a grant from the National Geographic Society Expeditions Council to fund a blind evaluation study of the company's Snapshot DNA Phenotyping Service, the first law enforcement service capable of producing a composite image of a person from a DNA sample, according to the company. Dr. Ellen McRae Greytak, Director of Bioinformatics at Parabon, is the Principal Investigator on the project, which is designed to measure Snapshot's accuracy on DNA samples from volunteers whose appearance will be concealed from the Parabon Snapshot team. Dr. Bruce Budowle, Executive Director of the Institute of Applied Genetics at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, will recruit study participants and conduct the formal evaluation.
The National Geographic Expeditions Council grant program supports exploration and adventure worldwide, ranging from the expeditions for which National Geographic is well known to emerging fields, such as DNA phenotyping. "It is an honor to receive this grant," said Greytak, "as it supports our efforts to demonstrate Snapshot's accuracy." Budowle, a renowned expert in DNA forensics, underscored his appreciation for the award, saying, "The National Geographic funding is extremely helpful as it will allow us to generate the data necessary for a peer-reviewed evaluation of the Snapshot technology."
