Forensic Entomology: Molecular Identification of Blow Flies Maggots (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in Iraq Using COI Gene
Though traditional methods of identifying their anatomy may result in misinterpretations due to species and geographic variation, forensic entomology plays a significant role in crime investigations by using insects like blowflies to calculate post-mortem intervals (PMI) and link suspects to crime scenes. Molecular techniques make accurate species identification and phylogenetic analysis possible, particularly PCR and DNA sequencing. Our goal in this study is to detect forensically important blowflies in Iraq using Mitochondrial Cytochrome Oxidase Subunit 1 gene (COI) by collecting 150-200 blowfly larval samples from different areas of Iraq. The resulting sequences were aligned and deposited in GenBank. Phylogenetic analysis revealed distinct clusters for each blowfly species with high bootstrap support. The following species with their accession numbers, including Calliphora vomiteria, Calliphora vicina, Lucilia sericata, Lucilia cuprina, Chrysomya megacephala, Chrysomya albiceps, and Chrysomya rufifcies, were obtained. Our findings provide valuable information for future forensic entomological research in Iraq.