发表在《国际法医学：遗传学》期刊上的一项最新研究显示，犯罪现场空气中悬浮的环境DNA（eDNA）微粒已成为法医鉴定的新前沿。人体在日常活动中会持续脱落脱落皮肤细胞、头屑和唾液微粒，在周围形成悬浮的个人微粒云。奥斯陆大学医院的奇亚拉·凡蒂纳托（Chiara Fantinato）团队在早前证实室内空气DNA足以构建居住者遗传图谱的基础上，探索了利用空气中残留遗传物质追踪入室盗窃犯罪嫌疑人的可行性。
该研究在挪威奥斯陆和澳大利亚阿德莱德联合展开，共招募了22户家庭，各城市平分11户。在受控模拟实验中，从未到访过这些住宅的志愿者扮演窃贼，在屋内翻动抽屉和橱柜活动15分钟。在模拟入侵者逃离30分钟以模拟警方抵达延迟后，全副防护装备的法医科研人员启动空气采样真空设备在厨房抽取样本数小时，并结合地面灰尘扫样进行常规DNA测序与图谱比对。
实验结果呈现出显著的地域与环境差异：奥斯陆采集的空气样本中，嫌疑人DNA比对成功率高达82%，而在阿德莱德这一比对成功率骤降至36%，研究人员推测这可能与气候湿度、住户家庭人数及室内清洁频率等变量有关。尽管该技术的超高灵敏度有时甚至会吸入调查人员自身的微量DNA，且活动气流或衣物携带可能引入历史残留DNA杂质，但研究团队强调，空气DNA虽不能作为定罪的唯一孤证，却能作为重要的调查破案辅助线索，目前正与警方探讨未来在实案侦查中的规范化应用。
A novel forensic investigation published in Forensic Science International: Genetics demonstrates that airborne environmental DNA (eDNA) suspended in crime scenes can successfully identify transient intruders. Human occupants continuously shed biological debris—primarily skin flakes, dandruff, and microscopic saliva droplets—generating airborne personal clouds that linger after departures. Expanding upon 2022 findings which proved indoor air yields sufficient genetic material to identify recent office occupants, researchers led by Chiara Fantinato at Oslo University Hospital assessed whether airborne genetic harvesting could aid forensic criminal investigations.
The clinical trial evaluated 22 private households divided evenly across Oslo, Norway, and Adelaide, Australia. In controlled simulations, unfamiliar volunteers entered homes to stage 15-minute mock burglaries, opening cabinets and drawers before fleeing. To mirror realistic law-enforcement response delays, forensic teams waited 30 minutes before utilizing vacuum-based air-sampling equipment inside kitchens for approximately two hours, complementing air collections with floor dust sweeps to extract and cross-reference comparative genetic profiles against the intruders.
Identification outcomes revealed marked geographic divergence: investigators achieved an 82% successful genetic match rate in Oslo, whereas the detection rate fell to 36% among Adelaide homes, likely reflecting discrepancies in ambient environmental variables, household occupant density, and domestic cleaning habits. While the methodology exhibited exceptional sensitivity—inadvertently capturing minute traces shed by fully suited technicians—and remains subject to complications from airborne redistribution of older dust, researchers emphasize that air eDNA serves as an auxiliary investigative asset rather than standalone proof of guilt, with researchers already consulting police agencies regarding standardized operational deployment.
Source: Burglars could be identified from airborne DNA
Subtitle: Skin cells, dandruff and saliva are largely responsible
Dateline: Oct 8th 2026\n