Divergent genetic strata in five Bahamian islands

Based on historical records, the genetic landscape of the Bahamian archipelago is presumed to be complex and to exhibit island-specific characteristics, yet the genetic composition of the island chain, which could corroborate or refute these past accounts, remains poorly defined. As such, the current investigation was undertaken to genetically characterize 5 Bahamian populations representing the Northwest (Grand Bahama and Abaco) and Central (Eleuthera, Exuma and Long Island) Bahamas across the 15 autosomal Identifiler loci routinely employed in forensic analyses. Altogether, our findings suggest that Bahamians are a genetically heterogeneous group, with each island sampled receiving differential contributions from African, European, East Asian and Native American sources. Even though the strongest genetic signal in all 5 collections emanates from continental Africa, inter-island differentiation is noted in both the Structure and admixture analyses. The presence of alleles not in common among the 5 insular populations also signals genetic heterogeneity among the islands of the archipelago. This is especially the case when considering the Long Island population, which exhibits statistically significant genetic differences in relation to the other Bahamian collections and the New World groups of African descent (Afro-American and Afro-Caribbean) in the G-test pair-wise comparisons, even after application of the Bonferroni adjustment.     

Bahamas: PTC's introduced

The Bahamas has introduced a comprehensive approach to PrivateTrust Companies (PTC) that fully and appropriately incorporatesPTCs into the country's robust financial system. PTC legislationhas passed both houses of Parliament in The Bahamas and is onits way to being brought into force before year-end. Under the legislation, a Bahamian PTC—like other structuressuch as foundations—will not require regulatory approval.The PTC need only arrange its affairs with a regulated Bahamianservice provider or registered representative. A RegisteredRepresentative, as     

The genetic legacy of the Transatlantic Slave Trade in the island of New Providence

The Bahamian archipelago has been influenced by a wide array of settlers (Lucayans, Eleutherian Adventurers, British Loyalists, Creoles from the United States and African slaves) throughout its short but dynamic history. Nevertheless, the Bahamas remains poorly characterized genetically and little is known about each group's contribution to the island chain. In the current study, the population of New Providence was analyzed based on 15 autosomal STR loci routinely employed in forensic DNA fingerprinting applications. A comparison of this collection with African groups reveals similar genetic profiles to West African populations from Equatorial Guinea and Angola, possibly resulting from the importation of slaves from West African ports during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Although the New Providence collection exhibits strong genetic affinities to the two US African American reference populations, the detection of unique alleles among them may necessitate the utilization of population-specific databases in forensic cases especially when the STR profiles include these specific variants.     

Concordance study on population database samples using the PowerPlex 16 kit and AmpFlSTR Profiler Plus kit and AmpFlSTR COfiler kit

Over 500 population database samples comprising African Americans, Bahamians, and Southwestern Hispanics were typed using the PowerPlex 16 and the Profiler Plus COfiler kits. There was only one sample in which a typing difference was observed. An FGA heterozygote profile was observed using the PowerPlex 16 primers, and a single allele FGA profile was observed using Profiler Plus primers. Thus, the extant data suggest that the primers used in the PowerPlex 16, Profiler Plus, and COfiler kits are reliable for typing reference samples destined for use in CODIS. In addition, African American, Bahamian, and Southwestern Hispanic databases have been established for the STR loci Penta D and Penta E. Both loci are highly polymorphic. The application of the product rule is valid for estimating the rarity of a multiple loci profile consisting of these two and the 13 core STR loci.     

Population data on the thirteen CODIS core short tandem repeat loci in African Americans, U.S. Caucasians, Hispanics, Bahamians, Jamaicans, and Trinidadians

Allele distributions for 13 tetrameric short tandem repeat (STR) loci, CSF1PO, FGA, TH01, TPOX, VWA, D3S1358, D5S818, D7S820, D8S1179, D13S317, D16S539, D18S51, and D21S11, were determined in African American, United States Caucasian, Hispanic, Bahamian, Jamaican, and Trinidadian sample populations. There was little evidence for departures from Hardy-Weinberg expectations (HWE) in any of the populations. Based on the exact test, the loci that departed significantly from HWE are: D21S11 (p = 0.010, Bahamians); CSF1PO (p = 0.014, Trinidadians); TPOX (p = 0.011, Jamaicans and p = 0.035, U.S. Caucasians); and D16S539 (p = 0.043, Bahamians). After employing the Bonferroni correction for the number of loci analyzed (i.e., 13 loci per database), these observations are not likely to be significant. There is little evidence for association of alleles between the loci in these databases. The allelic frequency data are similar to other comparable data within the same major population group.     

领导干部提高应对突发事件能力的思考

本文分析了领导干部应对突发事件应当具备的洞察和鉴别能力、统御全局能力、组织协调能力、快速反应和决断能力,提出了提高领导干部应时突发事件能力的对策,即应当充分认识提高领导干部应对突发事件能力的重要性,切实加强学习,重视在实践演练中提高,增强服务意识,不断对突发事件应对工作进行深刻的反思和总结.     

适足住房权实现之国家义务研究

适足住房权是指公民有权获得可负担得起的适宜于人类居住的、有良好的物质设备和基础服务设施的、具有安全、健康和尊严,并不受歧视的住房的权利。它主要包括:居住权、安全与健康权(或称舒适权)、住宅公平权、住宅隐私权、住房选择偏好权、住宅救济权以及住宅不受侵犯权和自由处分的权利。人权实现与国家义务之间存在密切的内在关联,对于人权的实现国家既具有消极义务,更具有积极义务。我国政府在公民适足住房权实现上具有不可推卸的义务,应从尊重、保护、促进和实现四个方面对国家义务进行分析,使之具有较强的体系性和可行性。     

论“署名权”应改为“保护作者身份权”

我国现行著作权法中规定的"署名权,即表明作者身份,在作品上署名的权利"与我国著作权法第三次修订草案送审稿中曾拟定的"署名权,即决定是否表明作者身份以及如何表明作者身份的权利"的表述,都以偏概全,名不副实。其实署名权是表明作者身份权的下位概念,表明作者身份权又是保护作者身份权的下位概念。建议在我国著作权法第三次修改中,将"署名权"改为"主张作者身份和反对损害作者身份的权利"的保护作者身份权。我国著作权法中的著作人身权应当由保护作者身份权、保护作品完整权与发表权共同构成。     

论征纳权利——兼论税权问题

征纳权利是税收程序法的基石理论范畴 ,对它的内涵、定位、分类、内容、征税权与纳税人权利相互关系等的科学揭示 ,是税收程序法乃至整个税法理论体系形成和理论创新的标志 ,对推动税收法治建设意义重大。     

论促进和保护受教育权的国际标准

从现有国际人权法渊源中确立促进和保护受教育权的国际标准可谓构成国际人权法的新发展 ,而从国际人权上对受教育权作出识别是确定上述标准的前提。本文根据有关受教育权的主要国际文件的统一化进程并结合国际社会的实践将受教育权归类为基本教育权、初等教育权、中等教育权、高等教育权和教育选择权 ,并依据一系列国际文件对世界各国促进和保护受教育权的义务性安排建立起国际社会促进和保护各类受教育权的国际标准模型 ,同时揭示了上述国际标准模型在适用过程中的特性。     

宪法解释权和适用权是实现宪法监督的关系——英美法系司法审查权的启示

英美法系国家的宪法监督权,通常由普通法院和专门机关来行使,这些机关均享有宪法解释权和适用权,宪法监督主体享有宪法解释和适用权是行使宪法监督权的关键和保证。     

试论公共危机预防

当代的公共危机管理是一个由危机预防、危机准备、危机回应及危机恢复四部分组成的循环。笔者从危机预防环节入手,分析了危机预防的重要性和当前我国政府在危机预防方面存在的问题,提出了有效防范的措施。     

Back to the Future

They thought this out very well, having in mind the television broadcast of the Constitutional Court session on TV Channel One. Ukraine has not seen anything like this before. The general public, as a rule, has been able to see only the final portion: a judge in his robes pronouncing a verdict—a decision that is not subject to appeal. Today everyone who wants to can become familiar with the work in the constitutional kitchen. Total access, as they say. Well, almost total, since the confidentiality of the meeting room is still preserved.     

Premature detachment of the placenta due to kicks to the lower abdomen

An 18-year-old woman in an advanced stage of pregnancy was admitted to hospital for gynaecological emergency treatment with pain after kicks to the lower abdomen. Premature detachment of the placenta was diagnosed and an immediate Caesarian section was performed. Although the newborn was resuscitated at once by the medical team, it died two days later in the paediatric hospital from multiorgan failure. The autopsy results together with the pathological findings of the palcenta proved the causal context between the kicks, the premature detachment of the placenta and the hypoxia requiring postnatal resuscitation, so that the perpetrator was found guilty.     

Letters to the Editor

While many basked in the euphoric rays emanating from the New Jersey state court Mt. Laurel decision, commentators and litigators in the land use field were tempering their sentiments with the knowledge of the U.S. Supereme Court's impending consideration of a primary federal land use challenge in Warth v. Seldin. The Court's 5-4 decision, affirming a federal appeals court'ss affirmance of the dismissal of an exclusionary zoning challenge by various individuals and groups, was predicated on the elusive concept of “standing.” If a sufficient case or controversy existed, according to the Court, or if the various classes of plaintiffs alleged a sufficiently personal stake in the outcome of challenge, their right to challenge Penfield's zoning could be established. In Warth the majority took a restrictive view and, on a one by one basis, denied standing to each of the plaintiffs.     

关注修宪

现行宪法的第四次修改将在3月份正式进行,毋庸置疑,第四次修宪将成为2004年中国法治领域的最大亮点。《中国共产党中央委员会关于修改宪法部分内容的建议》高度概括了本次修宪的主要内容,从法律的视角讲,第四次修宪体现了与时俱进的特点,彰显了弘扬先进的法治文明的特色。 根据《中国共产党中央委员会关于修改宪法部分内容的建议》,有关涉及法治文明的内容主要体现在下述条款的修改:宪法第三十三条拟增加一款,作为第三款:“国家尊重和保障人权。”宪法第十三条拟修改为:“公民的合法的私有财产不受侵犯。”“国家依照法律规定保护公民的私有财产权和继承权。”“国家为了公共利益的需要,可以依照法律规定对公民的私有财产实行征收或者征用,并给予补偿。”宪     

Letter to the Editor

Geneva, 2^nd April 2008 Professor Geoff Gilbert Editor-in-Chief International Journal of Refugee Law Dear Professor Gilbert, May I refer to the article on ‘Redundant or Essential?How politics shaped the Outcome of the 1967 Protocol’by Dr. Sara Davies in the     

Letter to the Editor

I was surprised to read in Joseph Savirimuthu's article on theGoogle Print Library project (Volume