The forensic olfactronics group is focused on detailed chemical analysis of human scent samples and other biological materials, mainly using advanced GC-MS techniques. The group aims to distinguish among the hundreds of compounds forming the human scent with a focus on the compounds that form the so-called human scent signature, which would allow an objective identification of the individual. Besides, compounds that would allow so-called class identifications (gender, age, race, and so on) are also the point of interest in the scent profiles. These findings would provide criminalists with a useful tool for their investigation. A very advanced tool for the authorities in criminal proceedings should then be the introduction of the so-called digital scent signature, which would allow the establishment of a criminalistic database of human scent signatures, their computer comparison, and the possibility of their distribution via the Internet.
Head: |
Prof. Dr. Štěpán Urban |
Dr. Oldřich Vyhnálek Veronika Škeříková, Ph.D. Petr Doležal, Ph.D. (ext.) |
|
Ph.D. students: |
Petra Pojmanová, nee Cinková, M.Sc. (ŠU)* Nikola Ladislavová, M.Sc. (ŠU)* Vlastimil Stenzl, M.Sc. (ŠU)* |
* supervisors listed in brackets: ŠU = Prof. Dr. Urban
Group goals:
- The digitization of scent signature
- Finding correlations between scent profiles and secondary characteristics of an individual (age, sex, race, etc.)
- The development of non-contact scent collection equipment
- The optimization of the scent collection process, including used sorption materials
- The development of GC-MS and GC × GC-TOF / MS methods for human scent analysis
Selection of final theses from recent years:
- Medicines and addictive drugs in the human scent
- The human scent composition influenced by smoking and by consumption of alcohol
- The differences in human scents depending on the person´s age
- The difference in the molecular composition of man and woman body scent
- Influences of the gravidity, childbearing and breastfeeding to the chemical composition of the human scent trace
- Class identification: Ethnic and race determination of human scent
- Detection of molecular indicators of diseases in breathing out air
- Scent collection device for chemical analysis
- Evaluation of sorbent properties for odour sampling from various parts of the human body
- Algorithm for the quantitative evaluation of scent samples
Publications:
Scientific papers in impacted journals:
- Pojmanová, P.; Ladislavová N.; Škeříková, V.; Kania, P.; Urban, Š.; Human scent samples for chemical analysis. Chem. Pap. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11696-019-00989-2
- Doležal P.; Furton K. G.; Lněničková J.; Kyjaková P.; Škeříková V.; Valterová I.; Pinc L.; Urban Š., Multiplicity of human scent signature. Egypt. J. Forensic Sci. 2019, 9 (1), 7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41935-019-0112-z
- Doležal, P.; Kyjaková, P.; Valterová, I.; Urban, Š., Qualitative analyses of less-volatile organic molecules from female skin scents by comprehensive two dimensional gas chromatography–time of flight mass spectrometry. J. Chromatogr. A 2017, 1505, 77-86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2017.04.062
Scientific papers in non-impacted journals with peer review:
- Lněničková, J.; Doležal, P.; Cinková, P.; Vyplelová, P.; Pinc, L.; Vyhnálek, O.; Škeříková, V.; Urban, Š. Vlastnosti lidské pachové stopy a multiplicita pachové signatury, Kriminalistický sborník, 2, Praha 2017, 60-66.
- Doležal, P.; Lněničková, J.; Cinková, P.; Benediktová, K.; Pinc, L.; Urban, Š. Molekulová skladba pachové signatury člověka, in: M. Vitnerová (Ed.) Kriminalistika 3, Praha 2016, 200-210.
Certified methodology:
- Urban, Š; Pinc, L.; Škeříková, V.; Vyhnálek, O.; Cinková, P.; Doležal, P., Metodika odběru lidského pachu pro chemickou analýzu. Recognized certified methodology within the project Scent Signature, no. VF20140215036 (2016).