BLOOD

• Has been called the circulating tissue of the body. It is referred to as highly complex mixture of
cells, enzymes, proteins and inorganic substances.
• Blood is opaque. On treatment with water or other reagents it becomes transparent and
assumes lake color. It is faintly alkaline. Normal pH is 7.35.

IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY OF BLOOD:

• As circumstantial or corroborative evidence against or in favor of the perpetrator of the crime.

• As evidence in case of disputed parentage.
• As evidence in the determination of the cause of death and the length of time the victim survive
the attack.
• Determination of the direction of escape of the victim or the assailant.
• Determination of the origin of the flow of blood.
• As evidence in the determination of the approximate time the crime was committed.

COMPOSITION OF BLOOD:

A. Solid
45% formed elements or the solid materials consisting of:
• Red blood cells (RBC) or Erythrocytes
• White blood cells (WBC) or Leucocytes
• Blood platelets or Thrombocytes
55% Plasma – the fluid or liquid portion of blood where the cells are suspended.
• Water – 90%
• Solid – 10%

B. SERUM - A straw-yellow colored liquid formed when clotted blood is allowed to stand for sometime
and the clot contracts.

Problems in the Study of Blood:

• Where blood has to be searched for?
• How is the collection, preservation, packing and transportation of specimen suspected to
contain blood?

1. FLUID BLOOD
May be collected from:
• Victims of crimes of violence
• Parents and child in case of disputed parentage.

2. DRIED BLOOD OR BLOODSTAINS

May be collected from:
• Smooth surface like walls, finished floors and table tops;
• Hard surface like axe, hammer, knives, stones and crowbars;
• Glazed surface like glass, tiles, automobiles;
• Bulky objects like blackboard, linoleum sheets, doors, window frames;
 • Clothing;
• Blood absorbed by the soil.

EXAMINATION FOR BLOOD

FOUR CHRONOLOGICAL TESTS FOR BLOOD:

1. Preliminary Test
2. Confirmatory Test
3. Precipitin Test
4. Blood Grouping / Typing

I. PRELIMINARY TEST - used to demonstrate presence of blood (maybe blood).

Test Positive Result
1. Benzidine test Intense blue color

2. Phenolphthalein test (Kastle- Rose color or deep pink or permanganate

Meyer test) color.
3. Guaiacum test (Van Deen or Beautiful blue color
Day’s or Schoinbein Test)

4. Leucomalahite Test Malachite or Bluish green

5. Luminol Test Luminescence

• OXIDATION – the principle involved in the color formation of the preliminary test for blood
except in luminol test.
• PEROXIDASE – enzyme that accelerates the oxidation of several classes of organic compounds
by peroxide.
• HEMOGLOBIN – the red coloring matter of the red blood cells of the blood.
II. CONFIRMATORY TEST - the actual proof that a stain is blood (surely blood)
A. MICROSCOPIC TEST
a.1. Useful for the demonstration and mensuration of blood corpuscles.
a.2. Distinction between mammalian, avian, piscine and reptilian blood.
a.3. Investigation of menstrual, lochial and nasal charges.
B. MICROCHEMICAL OR MICROCRYSTALLINE TEST

Test Positive Result

1. Teichmann Test or Heamin Crystal Dark brown rhombic crystal of heamatin

Test chloride

2. Haemochromogen crystal test or Large rhombic crystals of salmon pink

Takayama test color arranged in clusters or sheaves.

3. Acetone-Haemin Test Small dark diachronic acicular crystals of

acetone haemin.

C. SPECTROSCOPIC EXAMINATION - the most delicate and reliable test for the determination of the
presence of blood in both old and recent stains.
III. PRECIPITIN TEST

• Is the standard test used to determine whether the stain/blood is of human or animal origin.
• If human blood the positive result is a white cloudy line or milky precipitate at the contact point
of the fluids.
IV. BLOOD GROUPING/TYPING
FOUR BLOOD GROUPS

Group Agglutinogen Agglutinin

A A Anti-B

B B Anti-A

AB A and B None

O (universal donor) none Anti-A and Anti-B

Group Anti-A Anti-B

A + -

B - +

AB + +

O - -

(+) means agglutination or clumping of RBC

(-) means absence of agglutination or no clumping of RBC
 DIFFERENT MATINGS POSSIBLE BETWEEN THE FOUR BLOOD GROUPS

PARENTS POSSIBLE IMPOSSIBLE

OxO O A, B, AB

AxO A, O B, AB

AxA A, O B, AB

BxO B, O A, AB

BxB B, O A, AB

AxB O,A,B,AB None

AB x O A, B O, AB

AB x A A, B, AB O

AB x B A, B, AB O

AB x AB A, B, AB O

BLOOD TYPING

Anti-M + Anti-N + Antigen

Whole Blood Whole Blood Present Type

+ - M M

- + N N

+ + M and N MN

(+) Shows agglutination (-) Shows absence of agglutination

Case Study:
In a juvenile court, a woman filed a petition for support against an alleged father to be the
probable father of her child. The judge requested the forensic chemist to analyze the fresh blood
submitted by the subjects. The test showed the following results:

Subject Anti A Anti B Anti M Anti N Group Type

Mother + - - +

Father - + + -

Child + - + -

Questions:
1.What are the blood group and type of the above stated subjects?
2.Is the child possible under ABO system? Under MN system?
3.If you were the judge, will you grant the petition for support filed by the mother against the alleged
father? Why?