Lubrificante em camisinha de vítimas de estupro ajuda a chegar ao agressor

Study will be presented for the first time in Brazil on 05/31, during the 46th RASBQ, by Italian researcher Marta da Pian at the invitation of Elsevier

A group of researchers from the Universidad degli Studi di Padova discovered a way to help identify suspects of rape and other sexual assaults by analyzing biological traces of lubricant from condoms used in crimes, revealed by examining vaginal and/or anal swabs. . The study Combined statistical analyzes of forensic evidence in sexual assault: A case report and brief review of the literature, published in the Journal of Forensic Sciences, will be presented in Brazil for the first time on May 31st, by Italian researcher Marta da Pian, during the 46th RASBQ, Meeting of the Brazilian Chemical Society, in Águas de Lindóia (SP)

From an immediate report, the indication of a suspect and the certainty that a condom was used in the attack, within 72 hours it may be possible to reach the person who committed the crime. The identification of certain compounds present in condoms can be useful to reconstruct the event that occurred, especially in cases of sexual assault where DNA analysis did not show the presence of a male profile and where RNA analysis did not show the presence of sperm markers. .

“We are talking about a very short window of time, material that needs to be collected within 48 hours from the vagina and/or anus after the event. Then, there is a comparison of what was found on the victim with a possible condom located where the crime was committed (although we can do without it), or even its discarded packaging, so that there is proof. There is still no regulation on this in the world, but if the method is recognized as effective, it is what we need to make the legal gears start moving in this favor”, highlights Marta da Pian.

PhD in organic chemistry, coordinator of the Young Researchers group of the Italian Chemical Society (SCI, acronym in Italian), representative of the Organic Chemistry Division of the SCI and Italian delegate for the International Network of Young Researchers (IYCN, acronym in English), Marta also currently holds the role of senior manager of Elsevier Life Sciences Solutions for Southern Europe.

The researcher's presentation, entitled Detection of traces of polymers after sexual abuse, will be on 05/31, at 11:10 am, in Águas de Lindóia (SP). Participants at the 46th RASBQ will have the opportunity to learn about the mechanisms that Marta and her teammates - from the chemical, legal and medical areas - developed to transform condom lubricants into allies in the investigation of sexual assaults.

“Of course, we cannot buy all the condoms in the world, but, if we make a general characterization of types of lubricants, we will have a kind of benchmark to compare. The development of this database of condom lubricants is a continuation of our research and is increasingly important, especially when no biological trace that allows us to identify the aggressor is found in the victim.”

Premeditated attacks, carried out by “trustworthy” people The lack of studies on the subject surprised the group of researchers and led to the search for statistics in their home country, where condoms were used in 1/3 of the estimated 22 million cases of sexual assault , according to 2014 data from the Italian National Statistics Institute (Istat). The group also found a survey in the United States of 841 reports of sexual assaults, with the prevalence of condom use in 11% to 15% of situations.

“These are numbers collected from reports of complaints. We didn't imagine it would be so much. Probably, the population's awareness of the value of DNA in police investigations of sexual crimes is causing an increase in the use of condoms by aggressors”, says the researcher.

Rapes committed using condoms led to another finding also considered alarming by the scientist: the attackers are family members or friends of the victims in 40% of cases (Istat/2014).

For Marta, the study does not have many precedents for several reasons, including this: that many attacks are carried out by known people, theoretically trustworthy, and this makes reporting difficult. There is also the issue of rape being recognized as such, given that a sexual relationship can start out consensual and then become abusive. “It’s a very difficult subject and this is a stimulus for us to continue research. It is gratifying to know that science can contribute to the reduction of sexual assaults and their many physical, emotional, social and sexual consequences in people's lives”, he adds. In Brazil, one rape every two minutes, Marta highlights the importance of publicizing of research especially in Brazil, a country where an estimated number of 822 thousand rapes occur per year, the equivalent