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1.identify potential suspects whose DNA may match evidence left at crime scenes

2.exonerate persons wrongly accused of crimes

3.identify crime and catastrophe victims

4.establish paternity and other family relationships

5.identify endangered and protected species as an aid to wildlife
officials (could be used for prosecuting poachers)

6.detect bacteria and other organisms that may pollute air, water,
soil, and food

7.match organ donors with recipients in transplant programs

8. determine pedigree for seed or livestock breeds

9.authenticate consumables such as caviar and wine
Any type of organism can be identified by examination of DNA sequences
unique to that species. Identifying individuals is less precise at
this time, although when DNA sequencing technologies progress further,
direct characterization of very large DNA segments, and possibly even
whole genomes, will become feasible and practical and will allow
precise individual identification.
To identify individuals, forensic scientists scan about 10 DNA regions
that vary from person to person and use the data to create a DNA
profile of that individual (sometimes called a DNA fingerprint). There
is an extremely small chance that another person has the same DNA
profile for a particular set of regions.

1.assess health damage and risks caused by radiation exposure,
including low-dose exposures
2.assess health damage and risks caused by exposure to mutagenic
chemicals and cancer-causing toxins
3.reduce the likelihood of heritable mutations
Understanding the human genome will have an enormous impact on the
ability to assess risks posed to individuals by exposure to toxic
agents. Scientists know that genetic differences make some people more
susceptible and others more resistant to such agents. Far more work
must be done to determine the genetic basis of such variability. This
knowledge will directly address DOE's long-term mission to understand
the effects of low-level exposures to radiation and other
energy-related agents, especially in terms of cancer risk.

Techniques aimed at crop improvement have been utilized for centuries.
Today, applied plant science has three overall goals: increased crop
yield, improved crop quality, and reduced production costs.
Biotechnology is proving its value in meeting these goals. Progress
has, however, been slower than with medical and other areas of
research. Because plants are genetically and physiologically more
complex than single-cell organisms such as bacteria and yeasts, the
necessary technologies are developing more slowly.

1.Improvements in Crop Yield and Quality

In one active area of plant research, scientists are exploring ways to
use genetic modification to confer desirable characteristics on food
crops. Similarly, agronomists are looking for ways to harden plants
against adverse environmental conditions such as soil salinity,
drought, alkaline earth metals, and anaerobic (lacking air) soil
conditions.
Genetic engineering methods to improve fruit and vegetable crop
characteristics - such as taste, texture, size, color, acidity or
sweetness, and ripening process, are being explored as a potentially
superior strategy to the traditional method of cross-breeding.
Research in this area of agricultural biotechnology is complicated by
the fact that many of a crop's traits are encoded not by one gene but
by many genes working together. Therefore, one must first identify all
of the genes that function as a set to express a particular property.
This knowledge can then be applied to altering the germlines of
commercially important food crops. For example, it will be possible to
transfer the genes regulating nutrient content from one variety of
tomatoes into a variety that naturally grows to a larger size.
Similarly, by modifying the genes that control ripening, agronomists
can provide supplies of seasonal fruits and vegetables for extended
periods of time.
Biotechnological methods for improving field crops, such as wheat,
corn and soybeans, are also being sought, since seeds serve both as a
source of nutrition for people and animals and as the material for
producing the next plant generation. By increasing the quality and
quantity of protein or varying the types in these crops, we can
improve their nutritional value.