USARDOG
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Hey, I rarely post but I had to jump in here. Be aware my knowledge is limited but I do have some to share. I am a biotechnology student and I work with DNA on occasion.
It is more likely that if there was DNA in the trunk it degraded between the period of time that Caylee was placed in there and the time CA found it. Warm, moist temperatures will cause it to degrade, over time. It takes a lot of heat to completely destroy DNA. Relatively low heat (say 200 or so degrees) will not completely destroy DNA. It will cause it to basically split in two (between the nucleotide bases, hydrogen bonds), more accurately, it melts and can be reformed when cooled. If it was steam cleaned it would have to be very high heat to destroy it completely because of the covalent bonds in the back bone of DNA. A quick search on steam cleaners and their temps came up with 180 degrees. Even if there were fragments left (how possible would it be to completely remove every piece of DNA from that trunk with a steam cleaner?) PCR could be performed. (PCR uses the "melting" aspect of DNA to drive its process, heat is applied and the two strands break apart allowing matching nucleotides to join and make copies, aka amplify)
I am guessing that Caylee was in a bag that did not leak. Where the stain came from, I do not know. Could be unrelated or if it is her fluids, it degraded over time.
Oh I can almost hear it now... JUNK SCIENCE!! No real evidence found!! Any science that proves guilt is, "junk science," and any that can be twisted to show innocense is of course, the gospel... And I can almost see the Baez smirk as he does his best legal beagle version of the twist. Don't think he can win, but it will be interesting to say the least.
Very good post by the way, thanks!