PORTLAND, Ore. (COIN) – A new study led by researchers at the University of Oregon has explored the limitations of a forensic tool used at crime scenes – uncovering a way people can be incorrectly linked to a crime.

According to the study, published on September 18 in the journal iScienceforensic DNA analysis is less accurate among people with low genetic diversity.

In these cases, forensic DNA analysis is more likely to incorrectly link an innocent person to a crime, the researchers said.

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Modern DNA analysis techniques are “extremely sensitive”, the researchers explained. In some cases, scientists can collect traces of DNA from shed skin cells and match that DNA to a person.

But the technique also means scientists are often looking at mixtures containing DNA from different people, such as everyone in a house who has recently touched a door handle, the researchers explained.

Even though scientists can analyze variation in genetic markers in a sample and compare it to a suspect’s DNA, the study found some limitations.

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University of Oregon data scientist and principal investigator Rori Rohlfs and a team of researchers at San Francisco State University wanted to see how the accuracy of this approach was affected by genetic ancestry.

The researchers looked at previously published genetic databases to see the frequency of certain genetic variants for groups of people with different genetic ancestry. The researchers then used forensic analysis software to create profiles of the individuals along with DNA mixtures representing groups of people from different genetic backgrounds.

Mixtures with less genetic diversity were more likely to have a false positive or incorrectly link someone to a mix of DNA that wasn’t involved. Some groups that may have less genetic diversity include indigenous, Latino or Pacific Islander groups, the researchers said.

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This problem was compounded when the mixtures contained DNA from multiple people.

“The accuracy of DNA admixture analysis really varies by genetic ancestry,” Rohlfs said. “Groups with less diverse genetic variants will have higher false inclusion rates for DNA admixture analysis, and this gets worse when you have multiple contributors.”

The researchers said the study included the use of simulated genetic admixtures from “complex data sets,” so they cannot say specifically that the forensic technique is less accurate for certain groups of ancestors. Rohlfs added that traditional labels of race and ethnicity are often too broad and don’t always accurately map genetic ancestry.

She noted that this research also shows the challenges of conducting ethical genetic research, adding that many of the studies her team reviewed did not necessarily practice informed consent when collecting people’s DNA, with some samples coming from incarcerated individuals.

This study, Rohlfs said, only included data from people whose informed consent was verified, which limited their data pool.

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