To run a DNA analysis in MaSTR
1. On the MaSTR main menu, click Analysis.
The Analysis page opens.
2. Click Run Analysis.
The Run Analysis page opens. The page has the following default characteristics:
• The Name field is automatically populated with a default name for the system parameters in a format that is based on the current date and time, for example, Analysis_2024-05-16T11:05:06.
• The Analysis Template field is pre-populated with an analysis template - either the template that was last added/uploaded to the MaSTR database or the template that was last used for an analysis.
• The Queue Priority is set to Default.
3. Enter the name for the analysis.
| The name must be a unique name. It cannot be the name of any other analysis that has already been run in the MaSTR database. |
4. Optionally, select a different analysis template.
| If there is a possibility that you will be required to recreate every iteration of the DNA analysis for a court case, then you should select an analysis template that saves all iteration data. |
5. Load the (Analysis) Signal file.
a. Click Upload.
The File Upload dialog box opens. The file type that you can you upload is set to All Supported Types (*.txt, *.json).
b. Optionally, to filter the files that are displayed for uploading, select a single file type.
c. In the File Upload dialog box, scroll to and select the (Analysis) Signal file, and then click Open.
The File Upload dialog box closes, and the selected file is displayed in the Signal field.
6. Select the value for the Number of Contributors.
| This value is the number of contributors to the Analysis Signal file. |
7. If applicable, upload one or more Known Contributor Profile files.
a. Click Upload.
The File Upload dialog box opens. The file type that you can you upload is set to All Supported Types (*.txt, *.json).
b. Optionally, to filter the files that are displayed for uploading, select a single file type.
c. In the File Upload dialog box, scroll to and select one or more Known Contributor Profile files (hold the CTRL key to select multiple files), and then click Open.
| The number of Known Contributor Profile files that you can load must be one less than the value for the Number of Contributors. For example, if the Number of Contributors = 3, then the maximum number of Known Contributor Profile files that you can load is 2. |
The File Upload dialog box closes, and the selected files are displayed in the Known Contributor Profiles field.
8. Upload one or more Person of Interest (POI) Profile files.
a. Click Upload.
The File Upload dialog box opens. The file type that you can you upload is set to All Supported Types (*.txt, *.json).
b. Optionally, to filter the files that are displayed for uploading, select a single file type.
c. In the File Upload dialog box, scroll to and select one or more POI Profile files (hold the CTRL key to select multiple files), and then click Open.
| You can load an unlimited number of POI Profile files regardless of the value for the Number of Contributors. |
The File Upload dialog box closes, and the selected files are displayed in the Person of Interest Profiles field.
9. Optionally, select Calculate Relative LRs, where Relative LRs indicates the overall likelihood that the POI is a contributor to the DNA mixture versus an individual who is related (Sibling, Parent, Half-Sibling, and so on) to the POI.
10. Optionally, if you are intending to recreate the analysis at a later date, select Random Seed, and then click OK to close the message that informs you to set the random seed.
| Although generating a random seed is optional, SoftGenetics strongly suggests that you always do so when running a DNA analysis in MaSTR. |
11. Leave the Queue Priority set to the default value of Default, or select High.
• Default: If multiple Default priority analyses are requested to run at the same time in MaSTR, then the Default priority analyses are carried out in the order on the server in which they were requested.
• High: If multiple High priority analyses are requested to run at the same time in MaSTR, then before any Default priority analyses are carried on the server, all the High priority analyses are carried out on the server in the order in which they were requested. Any Default priority analyses are then carried out in the order in which they were requested.
12. Click Run.
The Run Analysis page closes. The Analysis page opens and the analysis is started. The entry for the analysis job is the first entry listed on the page. The number of tasks completed is dynamically updated in the Completed column as the analysis runs.
| To cancel an in-process analysis job, click the name of the analysis, and then at the top of the Job Status page that opens, click Cancel Analysis Job. The job is immediately canceled and you return to the Analysis page. The entry for the analysis job is no longer displayed on the page. |
Two results are possible:
• The analysis fails at a particular task, for example, no further progress is noted after Task 1 (Download) has completed, which indicates that there are issues with Task 2 (Validate). Continue to
To review and cancel a failed analysis job.