Establishing a missing person DNA Biobank as a form of human rights protection

Abstract

Nowadays, organ transplantation is considered an established medical practice that, every year, improves the quality of life of thousands of patients. However, the increasing demands for kidney transplantation are in contrast with the global lack of organs. The imbalance between supply and demand for organs has created the basis for a highly profitable black market, placing illicit organ trafficking in the broader context of human trafficking. Currently, thanks to the advancements of the analytical techniques used in laboratories, forensic genetics is able to discriminate the geographical origin of genetically distinct populations. The recent availability of genetic data regarding many populations of the world and the concomitant development of technologies and methodologies that are appropriate for the study of panels of STRs and SNPs are fundamental resources in this direction. This type of analyses, together with the creation of missing person DNA databases, may be used in cases of dubious origin of organs or in transplantation cases in which clear and comprehensive medical records of patients and donors are not available. It can also establish a scientific tool useful to contrast the illegal traffic of human kidneys. In this article, we will discuss biological and ethical aspects of this interesting perspective.

Keywords: black market; genetics; human trafficking; kidney; missing person DNA database; single nucleotide polymorphisms; transplantation.