Shadowangel, I received responses to both my emails today with this information. I have also posted this information on the Boulder Jane Doe thread.
Response #1
It has the potential to work well. It gets more complicated for recent
remains because so much of our dietary intake doesn't come from local
sources.
- Do you have a Strontium Isotope database at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and if so, what regional areas are maintained in the database?
Not as such. We have many analyses, but they belong to the individual investigators who have paid for them. Most are published fairly rapidly, so they could be mined from the literature. The bulk of our work is from ancient European and Middle Eastern individuals. We have only recently been involved in modern forensic cases and those results are confidential.
- Do you know of other Strontium Isotope databases being maintained at other Universities?
I do not. However, if I was looking for such a thing, I would begin with Doug Price at Wisconsin.
- Are you excepting identified human data sources at this time to add to your database?
We're happy to do analyses.
- Do you except private samples for Strontium Isotope Analysis?
Absolutely. We can make recommendations about what to analyze the more we know about the question to be answered.
- What is the cost to have a private sample tested?
$75 a sample assuming we do all the work.
Please let me know if you need any additional information.
Response #2
Dear Ms. Smith,
Thanks for your interest in strontium isotope analysis. Unfortunately,
it is not always very helpful for modern populations. This is because
the strontium isotope signature in human bones and tooth enamel comes
from the food you eat. If you eat food from the region where you were
living, you will have the local geologic strontium isotope signature in
your bones and teeth. However, most people now eat foods that were grown
in a wide variety of geologic regions, so their strontium isotope
signatures are a mixture of many different regions and can't be used to
track mobility or movement between different geologic zones.
We don't have a strontium isotope database though we are looking into setting one up at ASU in the next couple of years. Labs charge $200-500 per sample for strontium isotope analysis. The geologic literature in the United States would be the place to look for regional strontium isotope signatures. I
work mostly in South America, so I don't know as much about the
signatures in the United States.
Hope this helps!