Is there recent progress in the estimation of the postmortem interval by means of thanatochemistry?

Numerous methods have been proposed in the last 60 years for the determination of the time since death by chemical means. Many of them were reviewed by Schleyer in his monograph on the determination of the time since death by means of thanatochemistry about 40 years ago and none of these early methods has gained any practical value since they do not meet the demands in practice (being precise, reliable, giving an immediate result). While the earlier studies were mainly carried out on blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) since the late 60s most investigations have been performed on vitreous humor (VH). This is mainly due to the fact that vitreous humor is topographically isolated and well protected, and thus, autolytic changes proceed slower compared to blood and CSF. The most studied parameter in VH is potassium and even nowadays reports on the postmortem rise of vitreous potassium are published, proposing new analytical methods or statistical evaluations. Chemical parameters studied for the determination of the time since death have to be differentiated according to the underlying process (catabolism, metabolic processes, pure autolysis and diffusion, putrefactive changes). In the present paper, recent studies on thanatochemistry are discussed regarding the underlying process, the analytical methods (for instance H magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H MR spectroscopy), immunohistochemistry), the studied fluid compartment, the statistical evaluation and the precision of death time estimation. The value of chemical methods for the determination of the time since death is up to now very limited. This is supported by the fact that field studies on the reliability and precision of death time estimation by chemical means are still scarce in the literature.     

What is the best sample for determining the early postmortem period by on-the-spot flow cytometry analysis?

The level of degradation of DNA as a means for determining the time of death has been proposed as a valid adjunct to the classic thanatochronologic methods. The twofold aim of this work was to determine which organ might reveal both a correlation between the percentage of degradation of the DNA and the time lapse since death, and would be easiest to sample and yield the most reproducible results even in technically unfavorable situations such as on-the-spot investigations at the scene of death. A comparison of the spleen, blood, and liver showed that hepatic tissue best meets these specific needs because it shows a virtually linear correlation between the time elapsed since death and the level of degradation of the DNA, and it can easily be sampled at the scene of death by use of a common biopsy needle.     

“The big sleep: Elucidating the sequence of events in the first hours of death to determine the postmortem interval”

Recent developments on postmortem interval estimation (PMI) take an advantage of the autolysis process, pointing out to the analysis of the expression of apoptosis and autophagy genes towards this purpose. Oxidative stress plays a role in this signaling as a regulatory mechanism and/or as a consequence of cell death. Additionally, melatonin has been implicated on apoptosis and autophagy signaling, making melatonin a suitable target for PMI determination. The aim of this study was to investigate the early PMI through the analysis of the expression of autophagy genes as well as oxidative stress and melatonin receptor. Our results demonstrated a rapidly increased on the expression of autophagy genes according to the expected sequence of events, then a marked decrease in this expression, matched with the switch to the apoptosis signaling. These results revealed potential candidates to analyze the PMI in the first hours of death, helping to estimate the time-since-death.     

Do bone elasticity and postmortem interval affect forensic fractographic analyses?

Forensic fractographic features of bone reliably establish crack propagation in perimortem injuries. We investigated if similar fracture surface features characterize postmortem fractures. Experimentally induced peri- and postmortem fractures were used to assess if fractographic features vary as bone elasticity decreases during the postmortem interval (PMI). Thirty-seven unembalmed, defleshed human femoral shafts from males and females aged 33–81 years were fractured at varying PMIs with a drop test frame using a three-point bending setup and recorded with a high-speed camera. Vital statistics, cause of death, PMI length, temperature, humidity, collagen percentage, water loss, fracture energy, and fractography scores were recorded for each sample. Results showed that fractographic features associated with perimortem fractures were expressed in PMIs up to 40,600 accumulated degree hours (ADH), or 60 warm weather days. Hackle was the most consistently expressed feature, occurring in all fractures regardless of ADH. The most variable characteristics were wake features (78.4%) and arrest ridges (70.3%). Collagen percentage did not correlate strongly with ADH (r = −0.04, p = 0.81); however, there was a strong significant correlation between ADH and water loss (r = 0.74, p < 0.001). Multinomial logistic regression showed no association between fractographic feature expression and ADH or collagen percentage. In conclusion, forensic fractographic features reliably determine initiation and directionality of crack propagation in experimentally induced PMIs up to 40,600 ADH, demonstrating the utility of this method into the recent postmortem interval. This expression of reliable fractographic features throughout the early PMI intimates these characteristics may not be useful standalone features for discerning peri- versus postmortem fractures.     

Pneumomediastinum and soft tissue emphysema of the neck in postmortem CT and MRI; a new vital sign in hanging?

Spontaneous pneumomediastinum commonly occurs in healthy young men or parturient women in whom an increased intra-alveolar pressure (Valsalva maneuver, asthma, cough, emesis) leads to the rupture of the marginal pulmonary alveoli. The air ascends along the bronchi to the mediastinum and the subcutaneous space of the neck, causing cervico-fascial subcutaneous emphysema in 70-90% of cases. Ninety-five forensic cases, including five cases of hanging, were examined using postmortem multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) prior to autopsy until December 2003. This paper describes the findings of pneumomediastinum and cervical emphysema in three of five cases of hanging. The mechanism of its formation is discussed based on these results and a review of the literature. In conclusion, when putrefaction gas can be excluded the findings of pneumomediastinum and cervical soft tissue emphysema serve as evidence of vitality of a hanged person. Postmortem cross-sectional imaging is considered a useful visualization tool for emphysema, with a great potential for examination and documentation.     

Is immunohistochemistry a useful tool in the postmortem recognition of myocardial hypoxia in human tissue with no morphological evidence of necrosis?

Myocytes in the border zone of myocardial infarction are under severe hypoxia without characteristic morphology of necrosis, and show ultrastructural features similar to those seen within the first hours after coronary occlusion. This study was carried out to evaluate the possibility that immunohistochemical methods could be used for the early diagnosis of myocardial infarction by detecting areas of hypoxia. Nineteen human sections of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded myocardial samples showing a necrotic area and its border were submitted to immunohistochemical staining with the markers antimuscle actin, antimyoglobin, antitroponin T, antifibronectin, and anticomplement component C9. Sections were also subjected to azan trichrome and hematoxylin-basic fuchsin-picric (HBFP) staining techniques. Immunohistochemistry and azan trichrome showed that in the border zone there was a pattern of reaction intermediate between the infarcted area and the normal myocardium. The HBFP failed to distinguish these two areas. In conclusion, immunohistochemistry and azan trichrome can recognize myocardial hypoxia. Because hypoxia is an invariable condition in infarction, these techniques can be used to confirm suspected cases of myocardial infarction in which necrosis is not yet evident. However, considering that agonal states may be associated with generalized hypoxia, further studies are needed to confirm the reliability of this procedure in the earlier phases of myocardial infarction.     

Unusual infant death: dog attack or postmortem mutilation after child abuse?

An unusual form of fatal child abuse is reported in which investigations by the police and the medical examiner were able to distinguish blunt force head trauma followed by postmortem dismemberment from a fatal dog attack. A discussion of the approaches used to ascertain the correct diagnosis is presented, as well as an overview of dog attacks on humans.     

Olanzapine concentrations in clinical serum and postmortem blood specimens--when does therapeutic become toxic?

The concentration of olanzapine (Zyprexa) was determined in 1653 clinical serum specimens during routine drug monitoring, and in 58 postmortem whole blood specimens as part of routine toxicological analysis. The analysis of olanzapine was performed by the solid-phase extraction of 1.0 mL of buffered serum or blood, followed by gas chromatography separation with nitrogen-phosphorus detection. The analysis of the clinical serum samples showed that 86% of positive serum values were within the range of 5 to 75 ng/mL, with a mean and median of 36 and 26 ng/mL, respectively. These data suggest that the concentrations of olanzapine expected during therapy may be higher than those previously reported. In 58 postmortem whole blood specimens the mean olanzapine concentration was 358 ng/mL with a range of 10 to 5200 ng/mL. Further, investigation of deaths involving olanzapine suggest that potential toxicity should be considered at concentrations above 100 ng/mL. Although the majority of the olanzapine-related deaths were associated with many other drugs, death primarily due to olanzapine toxicity was determined at concentrations in post-mortem blood as low as 160 ng/mL.     

The black soldier-fly, Hermetia illucens (Diptera, Stratiomyidae), used to estimate the postmortem interval in a case in Amapá State, Brazil

The black soldier-fly (Hermetia illucens) is a generalist detritivore which is commonly present in corpses in later stages of decomposition and may be useful in forensic entomology. This paper describes the estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI) based on the life cycle of the black soldier-fly in a case in northern Brazil. A male child was abducted from his home and 42 days later his corpse was found in an advanced stage of decay. Two black soldier-fly larvae were found associated with the body. The larvae emerged as adults after 25-26 days. Considering the development cycle of H. illucens, the date of oviposition was estimated as 24-25 days after abduction. Since H. illucens usually (but not always) colonizes corpses in more advanced stages of decay, this estimate is consistent with the hypothesis that the child was killed immediately after abduction.     

Coexistence and concentrations of ethanol and diazepam in postmortem blood specimens: risk for enhanced toxicity?

Both ethanol and diazepam are classified as depressants of the central nervous system and exert their effects via the GABAA receptor complex. We report the coexistence and concentrations of ethanol, diazepam, and its primary metabolite nordiazepam in a case series of 234 forensic autopsies collected over a ten-year period. Diazepam, nordiazepam, and ethanol were determined in femoral venous blood by highly selective gas chromatographic methods. The mean (median) femoral blood concentrations were ethanol 0.24 g/100 mL (0.25 g/100 mL), diazepam (D) 0.23 microg/g (0.10 microg/g), nordiazepam (ND) 0.24 micro/g (0.20 microg/g), sum (D + ND) 0.43 microg/g (0.30 microg/g), and the ratio D/ND was 1.19 (1.0). When cause of death was attributed to alcohol and/or drug intoxication (N = 50), the mean and median blood-ethanol concentration was higher, being 0.36 g/100 mL and 0.38 g/100 mL, respectively, whereas the mean (median) and range of blood-diazepam concentrations were about the same, 0.23 microg/g (0.10 microg/g) and 0.05 to 1.2 microg/g. The femoral-blood concentrations of diazepam and nordiazepam were highly correlated (r = 0.73), but there was no correlation between the concentrations of ethanol and diazepam (r = -0.15). In another 114 fatalities (all causes of death) with diazepam and/or nordiazepam as the only drugs present, the mean (median) and range of blood-diazepam concentrations were 0.22 microg/g (0.10 microg/g) and 0.03 to 3.5 microg/g. The pathologists report showed that none of these deaths were classed as drug intoxications. The impression gleaned from this study of ethanol-diazepam deaths is that high blood-ethanol concentration is the major causative factor. We found no evidence that concurrent use of diazepam enhanced the acute toxicity of ethanol, although interpretation is complicated by the high blood-ethanol concentration (median 0.38 g/100 mL), making it difficult to discern an added effect of diazepam.     

Dental hygiene students' matching accuracy when comparing antemortem dental radiographs and oral photographs to simulated postmortem WinID3® odontograms

Matching dental antemortem (AM) and postmortem (PM) data for human identification is especially challenging when the workforce is limited. Dental hygienists have served mass fatality incidents (MFIs) due to dental-related expertise. However, forensics within dental hygiene education and research on transferable skills is limited. This qualitative balance design study assessed senior dental hygiene students' match accuracy of simulated cases varying in dental identifiers based on AM full mouth series (FMS) radiographs and oral photographs to PM WinID3^® odontograms to demonstrate possible disaster victim identification (DVI) transferable skills gained during formal education. A convenience sample of senior dental hygiene students (n = 31) was presented information on WinID3^® interpretation, then presented with 5 mismatched cases and asked to visually interpret each to make 10 total matches; five based on AM FMS with simulated PM WinID3^® odontograms and five based on AM photographs with PM WinID3^® odontograms. Match accuracy scores ranged from 41.9% to 58.1% for cases with 1–10 identifiers, and 77.4% to 93.5% for cases with 11–40 identifiers. Accuracy when matching AM radiographs to PM odontograms versus AM photographs to PM odontograms was compared and revealed no statistical differences in match accuracy depending on image type (p = 0.388 to 1.000). Results of this pilot study suggests transferable match accuracy skills resulted from the participants' dental hygiene formal education. These baseline skills with additional specialized training support the rationale for dental hygienists serving on DVI teams. More research is needed in education and practice when preparing dental hygienists for forensic-based service.     

Development and validation of a LC–MS/MS method for analysis of vortioxetine in postmortem specimens. First data from an authentic case

Vortioxetine is an antidepressant recently licensed in USA and EU for the treatment of major depressive disorder. Neither fatal case due to overdose nor data about postmortem concentrations on blood or other specimens have been reported. The aims of this study were the development and validation of a method for vortioxetine analysis by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) in postmortem samples and its application in an authentic case. The method was validated and applied on blood, vitreous humor, bile, brain, liver, kidney, and gastric content. After protein precipitation, the supernatant was directly injected into LC–MS/MS. Analysis was carried out by Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) mode. The authentic case concerned a 38 years-old woman, affected by depression, who was found hanged at home. The method determined an acceptable sensitivity, selectivity, linearity, precision, and accuracy for all matrices. No interference was shown for all matrices. The matrices do not significantly reduce the peak intensity of vortioxetine. No carryover was shown. Toxicological analysis of the authentic case showed vortioxetine in blood (234 ng/ml), vitreous humor (10.5 ng/ml), brain (490 ng/g), lung (479 ng/g), liver (3751 ng/g), kidney (798 ng/g), bile (2267 ng/ml) and gastric content (253 ng/ml). Our case suggests that even at blood concentrations of vortioxetine equal to 234 ng/ml, the subject was able to stage and carry out the hanging. Vortioxetine concentrations found in the other cadaveric samples (biological fluids, organs, and gastric content) may be helpful to evaluate further similar comparable cases.     

W and the design of the na

e browse background and design navigational maps properly in VE and WWW for reducing cognitive burden and improving 搃mmersion?in VE.virtual environments, www, hypertext, disorientation0心理科学进展Journal of Developments In Psychology76-82B845F102;1;E;FF102_1;沈昉000     

Agamben’s Grammar of the Secret Under the Sign of the Law

This paper suggests that a grammar of the secret forms a concept in Agamben’s work, a gap that grounds the enigma of sovereignty. Between the Indo-European *krei, *se, and *per themes, the secret is etymologically linked to the logics of separation and potentiality that together enable the pliant and emergent structure of sovereignty. Sovereignty’s logic of separation meets the logic of relation in the form of abandonment: the point at which division has exhausted itself and reaches an indivisible element, bare life, the exception separated from the form of life and captured in a separate sphere. The arcanum imperii of sovereignty and the cipher of bare life are held together in the relation of the ban as the twin secrets of biopower, maintained by the potentiality of law that works itself as a concealed, inscrutable force. But the ‘real’ secret of sovereignty, I suggest, is its dialectical reversibility, the point at which the concept of the secret is met by its own immanent unworking by the critic and scribe under the *krei theme, and subject to abandonment through the work of profanation; here, different species of the secret are thrown against one another, one order undoing the other. The secret founded upon the sacred is displaced by Agamben’s critical orientation toward the immanent: what is immanent is both potential and hiddenness.     

Merger—the name of the FE game

In the Australian legal environment today the overwhelming importance of laws made by Parliament is obvious, yet many first year law programmes pay insufficient attention to the coordinated teaching of statutory interpretation (SI). This project formed part of a collaborative initiative between an educational developer and the coordinator of legal research methods (LRM) to introduce statutory interpretation into a first year unit of study. Our study used a qualitative research framework – a questionnaire was administered to students at two intervals throughout the first semester. In Week 3, 160 students participated in the questionnaire and at Week 4, a keystone module on statutory interpretation using a building block approach was introduced in LRM. Since the nature of assessment in LRM is largely reflection, this unit lent itself well to investigating the language and literacy challenges of statutory interpretation, in particular, to students monitoring their own progress in this regard. The overall aim of the project was to establish a framework for students to build on their knowledge and understanding of statutory interpretation throughout their undergraduate studies, and in the interests of improved learning and teaching outcomes, for staff to be able to document the changes in student thinking. This paper focuses on the preliminary stage of our investigation into the language and literacy challenges involved in introducing statutory interpretation into a first year unit of study.

I know of only one authority which might justify the suggested method of construction. “When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean, neither more nor less.” “The question is,” said Alice, “whether you can make words mean so many different things.” “The question is,” said Humpty Dumpty, “which is to be master – that’s all.”

(Alice Through the Looking Glass, c. vi.)

After all this long discussion, the question is whether the words “If a man has” can mean “If a man thinks he has.” I am of opinion that they cannot, and that the case should be decided accordingly.

(Lord Atkin in Liversidge v Anderson [1942] AC 206)     

Why Do the Finns Trust the Police?

Ideological trends in the criminal policy of the Nordic countries since the 1960s are analysed. Although criminal policy in these countries is not unified, one can argue for the existence of a 'Scandinavian criminal policy' characterized by several common features concerning historical tradition, intensive cooperation and a similar approach to crime prevention and control. The following trends and characteristics are examined in some detail: the cycle from criticism of the treatment ideology to a reappraisal of the role of the criminal justice system and the function of penal sanctions; the differentiation of criminal policy strategies (e.g. social and situational crime prevention, cost-benefit thinking, criminal law policy, sanctions policy). Discernible tendencies towards more unified or, at least, more harmonized criminal policies on the international and European level are also examined. Active participation in this developmental process is encouraged to ensure that the fundamental principles of Scandinavian criminal policy are properly utilized.     

National parliaments and the European Union: part of the problem or part of the solution to the democratic deficit in the European constitutional settlement?

European integration is as much an opportunity as a threat to national parliaments. The view that national parliaments have been the main losers in the process is not substantiated by empirical evidence. National parliaments have adapted their structures and procedures to keep pace with the increasing scope of integration. This process has included strengthening the constitutional powers of parliaments in some of the member states. The recognition in the Nice and Laeken declarations that national parliaments have an important role in enhancing the democratic legitimacy of the Union and the key provisions of the draft protocols on the role of national parliaments and subsidiarity adopted by the Convention on the Future of Europe will ensure that national parliaments have the opportunity and the means, if they so choose, to be closely involved in Union affairs. Constitutional change at the Union level is likely to trigger normative and procedural change in the member states.