Design Like a J.E.D.I.: Silent Heroes, Still Waiting: How Mitochondrial DNA Is Giving a Voice to the Missing and Hope to the Families Left Behind
The conflicts we see around the world today are painful reminders that, in every war, civilians often bear the heaviest burden—caught in the crossfire of political decisions beyond their control. But this isn't just a story of today. The echoes of past wars, especially those in Korea and Vietnam, still ripple through the lives of families who never got the chance to say goodbye.
During the Korean War alone, more than 700,000 Korean civilians lost their lives. What began as a geopolitical struggle ended with a nation torn in two—North and South Korea, permanently divided. Without the intervention of American and allied forces, South Korea’s future might have looked very different. Many believe the vibrant, democratic, and technologically advanced country we see today could have been lost to a starkly different fate.
But that hope came at a high cost. Thousands of American soldiers gave their lives in Korea and Vietnam—not for conquest, but for the belief that peace and freedom were worth defending. Now, as we mark the 75th anniversary of the Korean War, what lingers is not just the history—but the haunting absence of the missing: names never called during roll, chairs that remain empty at family tables, and loved ones still waiting for answers.
This story is personal for me. One of my relatives remains missing in action from the Korean War. He served in the US 2nd Infantry Division and was last seen near Changbong-ni, in what is now North Korea. Declared MIA and presumed dead, his absence became a quiet ache that never faded. My grandfather, who never stopped hoping, would make yearly pilgrimages to the Demilitarized Zone on Korean War Memorial Day—standing in silence at the edge of a divided land, honoring the brother he never saw again.
But ours is not a singular story. Families across the United States, South Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, and beyond share the same grief—the same hope. My father-in-law, who grew up in the Philippines, still recalls the fear of bombs falling near his childhood home during Japanese invasions. These scars are generational. The stories passed down became the only way to keep the memories alive—and to keep hoping that one day, the missing might finally come home.
My grandfather never lived to see that hope fulfilled. And maybe we never will. But something has changed—something extraordinary. Science has opened doors we never thought possible.
The quiet power of mitochondrial DNA
In recent years, breakthroughs in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis have offered new hope to families like mine. These technologies allow scientists to recover and identify genetic material from remains that have degraded over decades—sometimes beyond recognition. Through these efforts, families separated by war are slowly being reunited with their loved ones.
More than 18,000 soldiers from the United States, South Korea, and Vietnam remain unaccounted for. For decades, strained diplomacy and a lack of scientific resources made recovery and identification almost impossible. But change began in the early 1990s.
At the formal request of the US government, North Korea returned 208 boxes of commingled human remains—believed to contain the remains of up to 400 American servicemembers. This unprecedented humanitarian gesture, made between 1990 and 1994, sparked a series of joint recovery missions that brought back hundreds more remains before being suspended in 2005.
In parallel, US recovery teams expanded their search into Southeast Asia. Beginning in 1988, teams were granted access to sites in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. By 1992, a dedicated forensic laboratory was established in Vietnam to support the growing scale of operations.
More recently, the Vietnamese government began opening access to historic military archives, giving investigators new tools to help identify remains. These archives, combined with cutting-edge DNA analysis, have transformed what was once thought impossible into real, tangible answers. To date, more than 1,300 individuals have been identified and returned to their families—each one a deeply personal triumph.
A triumph of science and design
DNA analysis has become the cornerstone of modern forensic identification. Nowhere is this more evident than in the effort to identify those lost to war.
Ancient DNA—genetic material recovered from skeletal remains long buried and degraded—has revolutionized our ability to match the unidentified with the living. And mitochondrial DNA, inherited through the maternal line, has become an especially powerful tool. Because it exists in thousands of copies per cell, mtDNA can often be recovered even when nuclear DNA has deteriorated beyond use.
Several groundbreaking advances have made this work possible:
Automated laboratory workflows using robotics and LIMS systems have greatly improved the speed and accuracy of DNA processing.
mtDNA recovery allows for identification through maternal relatives, even when only partial profiles are available.
Complementary forensic methods—such as dental record comparisons and skeletal analysis—remain crucial in cases where DNA is insufficient.
Yet science alone is not enough. The ability to process ancient DNA requires facilities built to exacting standards. Contamination from even a single modern skin cell can overwhelm a fragile aDNA sample. To prevent this, labs must be designed from the ground up to protect the integrity of every sample.
State-of-the-art ancient DNA labs follow a few critical principles:
Linear workflows that isolate sample preparation, extraction, and analysis into separate cleanrooms.
Triple pre-PCR rooms to ensure stepwise decontamination before amplification.
HEPA filtration and UV sterilization to maintain sterile air environments.
Strict gowning protocols and dedicated equipment to avoid any cross-contamination.
One powerful example is the K208 Lab in Hawaii, created in response to the remains returned from North Korea. Since its founding in 2011, this lab—equipped for mitochondrial DNA and aDNA processing—has helped identify over 600 individuals. Each identification is a moment of resolution, long-awaited.
In Southeast Asia, Project 150 continues the work—combining US and Vietnamese expertise to identify missing servicemembers through modern science and cooperation.
Toward healing, one name at a time
Each identification is more than a scientific achievement—it is a homecoming. It is a letter finally delivered, a photo no longer orphaned, a name no longer unknown. It is a family, after decades of silence, able to say: “We found you. You’re home now.”
As technology continues to advance, and as more governments recognize the urgency and humanity of this work, we move closer to a future where every missing soldier has a name—and every family has an answer.
My grandfather didn’t live to see his brother’s return. But perhaps my father will. And maybe someday, we all will.
Because behind every strand of recovered DNA is more than data—it’s the chance to bring someone home, and to remind a grieving family that they were never forgotten.
All opinions expressed in Design Like a J.E.D.I. with Jinhee Lee are exclusive to the author and are not reflective of Lab Design News.
