RESTON, Va. — RESTON, VA -- It is based in a stark, nondescript office in Reston. But Parabon NanoLabs is creating descriptions of suspected killers so vivid that it's changing the way they are caught.
"I don't think people know that out here in Reston there's this little technology company that's solving 30 to 40 year old cold cases," said Dr. Ellen Greytak, one of Parabon's lead geneticists.
The company's pioneering use of DNA testing technology combined with geneaology has helped police find suspected killers in dozens of cases, decades old. Only last week, the district attorney in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania credited Parabon with helping arrest a suspect in the 25-year-old murder of Christy Mirack.
Greytak stressed that old DNA testing matched only close relatives. Parabon uploads DNA to a public database to find relatives as distant as third cousins. The company's genealogist then rebuilds a family tree using public data. This generates new leads to find family members so police can get closer to an arrest.
"All of this has really come together into a perfect storm that has made this technology now possible," said Greytak.
DNA data does not come from sites like 23andMe or Ancestry. In fact, Parabon cannot search them since they are databases by private companies. You can upload your own DNA to the GEDmatch database Parabon uses. Volunteering means more chances to close cold cases.
"We're finding that we're really able to make a huge difference," said Greytak.
