Critique: measuring hydrogen stable isotope abundance of proteins to infer origins of wildlife, food and people.

Measurement of the relative abundance of (2)H (expressed in δ(2)H values) in tissues of plants, wildlife and people has evolved into a powerful forensic tool. The approach is based on the strong linkage between spatial patterns of δ(2)H values in precipitation at local and continental scales, and the tissues of plants and animals produced on these 'isoscapes'. Unfortunately, despite this exciting potential, difficulties inherent in the measurement of δ(2)H values in complex organic materials such as proteins, as well as the accuracy of such measurements, and a reluctance to adopt strict quality assurance/QC approaches to address challenges associated with these measurements, has clearly limited this potential. These challenges are entirely avoidable and techniques now exist for the routine reliable measurement of δ(2)H values in materials of forensic interest that will allow completely comparable data among laboratories.

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