Detection of dermcidin for sweat identification by real-time RT-PCR and ELISA

We evaluated the performance of real-time RT-PCR and ELISA assays for detection of dermcidin (DCD) in sweat and body-fluid stains. DCD, a small antibiotic peptide secreted into human sweat, was detected by real-time RT-PCR in 7-day-old stains containing as small as 10 μL of sweat, and the assay showed high specificity when testing 7-day-old stains containing 30 μL of other body-fluid. ELISA using anti-human dermcidin mouse monoclonal antibody detected DCD sweat diluted up to approximately 10,000-fold and could specifically detect DCD in 10 μL of body-fluid stains. The performance of the two assays was tested during winter on samples that simulated forensic case samples: an undershirt and a sock worn for 20 h, a handkerchief used to wipe the brow several times within 12 h, a cap and a cotton glove worn for 4 h, and a white robe worn at intervals for 2 years. The result showed that the former assay detected DCD in all sites of the undershirt examined (armpit, back, and breast), and the latter gave a relatively high OD value in the armpit among the three sites. For the socks, although the latter assay gave very high OD values in both the center and toe of the foot sole, the former could not detect DCD in both of them. These results indicate that highly damp conditions, such as inside a shoe, might promote the degradation of mRNA in samples such as socks. In the other case samples, sweat was adequately detected by both assays.This study is the first demonstration of the use of real-time RT-PCR to sensitively identify sweat among body-fluid stains, and it confirmed that dermcidin was an excellent marker for sweat identification. In addition, the usefulness of ELISA was also verified. Positive sweat identification using these assays is expected to assist forensic practice.     

Food Fraud and the Partnership for a ‘Healthier’ America: A Case Study in State-Corporate Crime

At a moment of heightened public concern over food-related health issues, major corporations in the food industry have found their products and practices under scrutiny. Needing to be understood as socially responsible, these corporations have established partnerships with the state to construct a positive, proactive, and cooperative public image. One major public–private partnership that evolved from former First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move initiative—the Partnership for a Healthier America—serves as a case study in this paper, which analyzes the consequences and social harms perpetuated by a public health campaign bound by the imperative to maximize profit. By using trusted state actors to deliver accurate but deceptive claims about food companies’ commitment to public health, this public–private partnership actively misleads the public and potentially exacerbates public health challenges, warranting a skeptical revision of how we understand corporate social responsibility and neoliberal governance on issues of health and nutrition. As a form of fraud, these attempts to mislead the public go beyond the actions of public sector individuals or members of corporate boards, but are structurally incentivized by the legal rights, regulatory privileges, and profit-related incentives central to the modern corporate form. While conventional criminological research tends to underemphasize state and corporate harms, we make use of a critical criminological perspective to analyze state-corporate partnerships in the space between food industry practices and public health policy.     

Recovery of genomic DNA from archived PCR product mixes for subsequent multiplex amplification and typing of additional loci: forensic significance for older unsolved criminal cases

A method for genomic DNA recovery from different types of PCR product mixes suitable for multiplex amplification and typing using the Profiler Plus STR typing system has been investigated. The application of this method is of significance in cases where the original DNA samples have been exhausted due to repeated typing analyses in an effort to maximize their evidentiary value. Such cases typically involve samples analyzed using the available DNA typing systems of the time which gave a markedly lower power of discrimination, either alone or in combination, compared to that of modern multiplex STR typing systems. It was found that an effective method for recovering genomic DNA from HLA-DQA1 +PM and CTT triplex amplification mixes, suitable for reproducible achievement of the complete Profiler Plus profile, involved the use of Amicon Microcon-100 microconcentrators. Interestingly, this method was not required to achieve the complete nine STR profile using D1S80 amplification mixes.     

Posthumous reproduction: a consideration of the medical, ethical, cultural, psychosocial and legal perspectives in the New Zealand context

This paper describes the development of New Zealand policy on posthumous reproduction in assisted human reproduction. It outlines five perspectives: medical, ethical, cultural, psychosocial and legal and shows the multidisciplinary approach taken by the National Ethics Committee. It is argued that each of these perspectives has important contributions to make to the multidisciplinary approach. The guidelines determined by the Committee are outlined, along with the processes used in arriving at these.     

Japan’s search for influence in the Korean peninsula after the Cold War: Aspirations and constraints

This article examines Japan’s search for a more active international role in the Korean peninsula after the Cold War. It argues that Japanese foreign policy toward the Korean peninsula after the Cold War has continued to exhibit a reactive posture due to several important constraints. The United States has remained an important factor in shaping the Japanese foreign policy agenda in the post-Cold War era. Moreover, the Japanese domestic political environment, despite the dramatic political realignment after 1993, has continued to favor a nonmilitary Japanese role in world affairs. Finally, the lingering Korean mistrust toward Japan has hampered Japan’s bid to increase its political profile. Consequently, these constraints ensure that Japan’s independent role in the Korean peninsula will be rather limited in the foreseeable future.     

Surveying Research on Parliament and Parliamentary Oversight of the Public Sector

This presentation begins by offering a brief overview of the existing research into Parliament and Parliamentary Oversight of the Public Sector. It highlights the work of those who are experts in the area and concludes by identifying areas which would benefit from further research.     

The effectiveness of the telecommunications regulatory regime: the case of Sri Lanka telecom

This article examines the telecommunications industry in Sri Lanka and assesses the effectiveness of regulatory arrangements associated with the liberalisation of the telecommunications industry, from a management point of view. The review focuses on the scope of services, price and the quality of services available to customers after the liberalisation. This study finds that, despite the early establishment of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) to monitor the telecommunications industry, its interventions have been only partially successful in making it conducive to service providers and customers. While liberalisation of the telecommunications industry has been favoured, the role of the regulator has been controversial with regard to its independence, impartiality, capability, transparency and accountability. We argue that the current model has failed to create favourable market conditions under the circumstances prevailing in the country, and hence a more appropriate model is yet to be developed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.