Chapter 766 Gene Chimera
Although private prisons in the United States are indeed terrible, the management of state prisons is obviously not so bad that serious criminals are being impersonated. When Jack and Jubal arrived at the state prison, the Kerry McMahe they saw was indeed himself.
"So what's going on?" Jubal, who was scolded by the other party, was not angry because of it, but was more confused and uneasy.
"Let's go to the CSI laboratory and ask. The DNA identification they made may be able to give a reasonable explanation." Jack probably had some ideas, but he still needed help from professionals.
At noon, the two found Mike Taylor sucking instant noodles in the supervisor's office.
After finishing the sandwich he bought on the road with the aroma of instant noodles, Jack explained his purpose, "Hannah is on her way to contact McMee's sister and is going to ask her if McMee has done a bone marrow donation before.
I know that bone marrow transplantation can lead to the emergence of genetic mosaics, but doesn’t this usually only happen in blood? "
Chimera is used in genetics to represent individuals with mixed or mixed expressions of different genetic traits. The English word seems more intuitive, chimera, a monster in ancient Greek mythology with a lion's head, a sheep's body and a snake's tail.
The phenomenon that a normal person carries at least two sets of DNA is called the "Chimera phenomenon." When fraternal twins develop normally in the mother's body, they will form two independent embryos.
However, if the mother's supply is insufficient or other reasons may cause one of the embryos to die, then the other surviving embryo will absorb it, and this embryo will become a chimera when it grows up.
In addition, there is another way to cause chimerism, which is bone marrow transplantation. The cause of leukemia is ultimately a problem with the patient's own hematopoietic function, so bone marrow transplantation is a very effective treatment method.
The transplanted bone marrow contains other people's hematopoietic stem cells, which is equivalent to some of the patient's own hematopoietic stem cells being replaced by others, so the patient's blood cells will contain the donor's DNA.
This is also where Jack is confused. They have basically ruled out the possibility that Kerry McMay has an identical twin brother, so the only possibility seems to be bone marrow transplantation.
However, the sample used for DNA identification by the CSI laboratory was not the murderer's blood, but the epithelial cells on the skin surface. Could this also lead to a misjudgment?
Mike Taylor thought for a while and called up a document on the computer, "In fact, not only the epithelial cells, but also the DNA in the recipient's semen and epithelial cells may be replaced by the donor's DNA.
This is a case in Wausau County, Nevada. Eight years ago, a man named Chris Long received a bone marrow transplant for acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome.
Three months after the successful operation, the DNA in his blood had changed, and the donor's DNA was also found in swabs taken from his lips, cheeks and tongue, and four years later, the DNA in his semen The DNA is also replaced. "
"Uh, I, are all these things you are talking about true?" Jubal is a man who has received higher education. Although he couldn't get a word in the whole process, he did understand roughly.
"So your intuition is right. In that case three years ago, Kerry McMay was indeed not the murderer." Jack smiled and reached out to shake his hand.
Jubal had mixed feelings for a moment, and he didn't even know whether he should be happy or sad.
"Don't think too much. The responsibility does not lie with you, and it will not even have any impact on your partner. This kind of thing is too rare and is a non-subjective factor. You may not have been very clear at that time, but the entire case handling process has nothing to do with it. question.
What we should do now is to correct that mistake as soon as possible and catch the real culprit to avoid the next victim. "
After speaking, Jack thanked Mike Taylor and left the CSI laboratory with Jubal. Before they returned to the Federal Building, Hannah called. She had received confirmation from sister Kerry McMahe that he was indeed I donated bone marrow once when I was 20 years old.
Jubal seemed to have regained his energy and spirit, "So we just need to find the recipient through the medical records. Isobel, immediately apply for a search warrant to access the relevant medical files. We want Catch that bitch before the next victim appears."
Isobel, who was waiting at the door as if to greet the two of them, showed a strange smile, "I think we may have found the murderer."
"Is he the volunteer at the children's hospital who claimed his car was stolen?" Unlike Jubal, who was agitated and full of thoughts along the way, Jack had roughly guessed the identity of the murderer on their way back.
Among the suspects currently investigated, this guy happened to have had leukemia.
There was a trace of undisguised appreciation in the smile on Isobel's face, "Yes, we captured a lot of portraits from the surveillance of the ATM machine opposite Sigby's cafe. The shooting time was every time the suspicious machine About ten minutes before the computer logs into a website in a cafe.
Originally, we just wanted to find a few frequently appearing faces and investigate their identities in detail, but Aubrey recognized Pete DeLeon at a glance. "
There was no one in front of the big screen in the operations center at this time. Only the photo and information of Pete DeLeon remained on the screen. He was a fat white man with brown curly hair. He looked safe and harmless. The smile in the photo was also full of warmth. This scene was quite ironic.
"After receiving your call and these photos, we figured out what was going on. I contacted the judge as soon as possible. The local police have arrested Pete DeLeon. Aubrey will be able to bring him back in an hour at most. Hannah and Jiejie are on their way to search his apartment."
Isobel explained what happened before and her arrangements.
"It seems that you have adapted to your job." Jack complimented Isobel.
Jubal rubbed his hands and asked hesitantly, "Can I be in charge of the interrogation later?"
Jack almost laughed out loud, "Have you forgotten that you are still the boss of the Operations Center?"
After two days of observation, he has confirmed that Jubal has indeed quit drinking, and he has never touched alcohol. This is not easy. It seems that the things that happened in the past have indeed taught this old man a deep enough lesson.
Just as Jubal was waiting anxiously, more than an hour later, the energetic Aubrey took Pete DeLeon into the interrogation room.
Jack did not participate too much in this case. From the on-site investigation, analysis and reasoning to the final truth, it was basically completed by teamwork. He played a role of catalyst at most.
He was also very satisfied with the performance of the crowd, and it could even be said that it far exceeded his expectations. Jack stood in the observation room, watching Jubal and Aubrey walk into the interrogation room together, and he was secretly proud in his heart.
"I am the chief agent Valentine." Jubal walked into the interrogation room as if he had changed a person, and threw a stack of information on the table with a serious face.
Pete DeLeon, whose hands were handcuffed to the table, smiled as usual, showing no signs of uneasiness. He looked harmless, and even spoke slowly, as if he was afraid that others could not hear him clearly.
"Can anyone tell me what happened?"
Jubal asked as he walked slowly, walked around behind him, and spoke without any ups and downs in his tone, "You had acute lymphocytic leukemia when you were a child, right?"
Pete DeLeon seemed to feel a little uncomfortable and moved his handcuffed hands. The smile on his face did not change, as if he was cast by some solidification magic, "Is there any problem with this?"
"Then you had a bone marrow transplant, and the person who successfully matched with you had no blood relationship with you, but the operation was successful, and you can almost be said to be cured, right?" Jubal continued to ask.
"Yes, how do you know this?" Pete DeLeon looked at Aubrey standing at the door, and then turned to look at Jubal, with a curious look on his face.