Racemization dating definition

These results have been repeated by several investigators, and typically a high correlation between aspartic acid racemization ratio and age has been reported (for a review, see Ref. Despite these overall positive results, not all groups report the same level of accuracy, and inconsistencies do exist (for a review, see Ref. In comparison, radiocarbon analysis of tooth enamel is a relatively new technique (first described in 2005 (4)) and yet to be significantly tested by the forensic community.

Unlike amino acid racemization analysis, radiocarbon dating of enamel provides information about the date of birth of an individual.

Because of the continuous formation and removal or degradation of amino acids, tissues with low metabolic rates provide better age estimates than those with high metabolic rates.

With this in mind, teeth are the tissue of choice for age estimation analysis.

Age estimation in children and adolescents often depends on morphological methods, such as radiological examination of skeletal and dental development.

In adults, however, age estimation based on these methods is much less accurate.