Reliability of the Acid Phosphatase Test for the Identification of Seminal Fluid

Abstract

Abstract From the day in 1677 when a medical student named Johann Ham first discovered spermatozoa swimming about in a microscopic field to the present, it has been traditional to identify seminal fluid by finding spermatozoa in the specimen. It has been pointed out [1–4], however, that conditions exist in which the ejaculate bears no spermatozoa. Because of this situation, forensic scientists have been searching for a foolproof method of identifying seminal fluid in the absence of spermatozoa.