DNA experts respond to Degenhart: evidence can't be done "like it was maquila"

"doing it in a mobile office makes it virtually impossible, because it requires a very specific team to do the genetic study," says Rudy Alejandro Higueros, coordinator of promotion and logistics at the Institute for Chemical, Biological, Biomedical and Biophysics Research at Mariano Gálvez University (UMG). These tests are thorough, as well as costly, he added.

Meticulous process

Doing a genetic study would take at least six hours, as the process involves a series of steps that cannot be overlooked.

By taking a sample of oral swabbing, the amount of DNA it contains is not "large enough" to obtain the information that needs to be analyzed. It takes a previous step to amplify that information, which would take about 90 minutes, and then move on to DNA reading on a special team.

Higueros mentions that in order to identify whether or not there is a possibility of biological relationship between people, more than one fragment of DNA has to be analyzed, since most people share at least one allele-each of the versions of a gene-within their genetic profile.

"the study of biological relationship by DNA must be thorough enough to allow us to make even that differentiation, we have to analyze fragment by fragment," says the expert.

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The tests performed in the UMG laboratory analyze 15 fragments to genetically profile a person, which are compared to each other, and then make the biological relationship with the help of a special program. The interpretation of results to be carried out by trained personnel for this purpose.

This process takes no less than five hours, so Degenhart's approach to delivering the results in 90 minutes is unlikely.

"it's a pretty elaborate job, and you want to do it right, I Don't think it takes less than noon, and you'D be talking about something like maquila. I wouldn't dare to think about taking a paternity test in a day, "Higueros adds.

But not only does the time factor make the Minister of the Interior's proposal unfeasible, since to do DNA studies and obtain accurate and accurate readings requires well-calibrated equipment, which is unlikely if it is transported from one point to another in a mobile laboratory.

"First, it would be virtually impossible for us to have a power source that feeds a genetic sequencer, and second, that (the transfer) would induce a decalibration of the equipment, I dare say, in less than a week," says the UMG expert.

High cost

Every genetic profile that the university lab practices costs between Q800 and Q1,000, without the institution earning a penny.

According to Marco García, a forensic genetics analyst at Guatemala's Forensic Anthropology Foundation, which is a non-profit institution, a DNA test costs Q2,000. The result takes a month. Only the technical-scientific process could take 15 days.

In private clinics the cost ranges from Q3,000 to Q4,600 (US $600). At the sites consulted, the test takes no more than 20 minutes (mouthpiece), but the waiting for the result varies depending on the price you are willing to pay. In the first case, it takes 15 days, and in the second case, 10. Those responsible make the proviso that such evidence has no legal validity.

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Garcia comments that in countries like the United States. United States of America There are other organizations, especially private ones, that deliver the results on the same day, but the cost increases exponentially.

If the idea is to make a "mass identification process" it will require more time because various comparisons are made and large volumes of sample are processed for which it requires not only basic equipment, but also specialized software, something that Garcia and Higueros agree on.

In addition, Guatemala would have to allocate a high budget to pay for these tests, as Degenhart confirmed last Wednesday when he stated that "the United States is not doing or is going to be held responsible" for it.

Separation of families is a matter of concern

Miriam Roquel, Deputy Procurator for Human Rights, points out that, before the State of Guatemala conducts DNA tests on minors of any nationality, it must comply with the provisions of the international conventions on the protection of migrant workers and members of their families and on the rights of the child.

"not because the United States says I'm going to apply it, before we have to do a study or analysis of the migration policies that the state of Guatemala can use. That is the fundamental thing, to see the mechanisms to protect children, "he emphasized, while considering that there is no need to submit Honduran and Salvadoran migrants to genetic profile tests if they come to the Guatemalan border with the documentation that they prove they travel with their children.

Another concern, mentions the Deputy Attorney General, is that the measure should lead to the separation of families, which is one of the fundamental rights of human beings.

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