RMR-1029
Definition
The reference material repository flask at USAMRIID Fort Detrick that was identified as the probable source material for the 2001 anthrax letters, based on morphotype analysis and whole-genome SNP comparison in the Amerithrax investigation.
- Location
- USAMRIID, Fort Detrick
- Role
- Probable source flask for the 2001 anthrax letters
- Investigation
- Amerithrax
- Identification method
- Morphotype analysis and whole-genome SNP comparison
Common questions
Why couldn't the FBI identify a single suspect from the flask alone?+
RMR-1029 had been distributed to multiple researchers and laboratories over the years, so tracing the flask narrowed the pool of people with access but did not by itself prove who prepared the mailed material.
What made the SNP comparison method significant for microbial forensics?+
Comparing rare single-nucleotide polymorphisms across the Bacillus anthracis genome let investigators distinguish minor genetic variants within the flask's population, a level of resolution standard strain typing could not achieve at the time.
Is morphotype analysis alone sufficient to establish a source flask?+
No, morphotype variants can arise independently in other cultures, so the genomic SNP evidence was needed to corroborate the morphotype findings before RMR-1029 was named as the probable source.
Related terms
- Microbial Forensics
- The application of molecular biology, genomics, and population genetics to attribution questions in cases involving microorganisms, toxins, or biological agents used in...
- Morphotype
- A phytolith shape class defined by the geometry of the silica body: bilobate, cross-shaped, saddle-shaped, elongate, dendritic, and so on. Individual morphotypes...
- Multi-Locus Sequence Typing (MLST)
- Species-level and strain-level characterisation using DNA sequences from five to seven conserved housekeeping genes. Provides higher resolution than 16S rRNA alone and...
- NBFAC
- National Bioforensic Analysis Center, Fort Detrick, Maryland. Established 2004 as the US federal government's primary bioforensics reference laboratory for biological evidence in...
- Phylogenetic Proximity
- The principle in viral forensics that transmission between individuals is supported when their viral sequences cluster together in a phylogenetic tree separately...
- Select Agent
- A biological agent or toxin designated by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and USDA as posing a severe public...