Validation of a method to detect cocaine and its metabolites in nails by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

The objective of the present work was to compare previously published methods and provide validation data to detect simultaneously cocaine (COC), benzoylecgonine (BE) and norcocaine (NCOC) in nail. Finger and toenail samples (5mg) were cut in very small pieces and submitted to an initial procedure for external decontamination. Methanol (3 ml) was used to release analytes from the matrix. A cleanup step was performed simultaneously by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and the residue was derivatized with pentafluoropropionic anhydride/pentafluoropropanol (PFPA/PFP). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to detect the analytes in selected ion monitoring mode (SIM). Confidence parameters of validation of the method were: recovery, intra- and inter-assay precision, as well as limit of detection (LOD) of the analytes. The limits of detection were: 3.5 ng/mg for NCOC and 3.0 ng/mg for COC and BE. Good intra-assay precision was observed for all detected substances (coefficient of variation (CV)<11%). The inter-assay precision for norcocaine and benzoylecgonine were <4%. For intra- and inter-assay precision deuterated internal standards were used. Toenail and fingernail samples from eight declared cocaine users were submitted to the validated method.     

A qualitative study of compact bone microstructure and nuclear short tandem repeat obtained from femur of human remains found on the ground and exhumed 3 years after death

Forensic identification of human remains is composed of anthropological study of race, sex, age, etc. By using these traditional methods, inconclusive or nonidentified cases could be subjected to DNA analysis. However, in spite of advances in human identification techniques, especially by PCR-amplified DNA, some limitations that affect the ability of obtaining DNA from human remains still persist. Light microscope sections of postmortem compact bones from human remains are presented here for the purpose of increasing a forensic examiner's prediction of successful nuclear DNA typing. Femoral compact bones were obtained from 7 human remains found on the ground, in different degrees of decomposition, and were cleaned by boiling to remove soft tissues, 8 collections of bones having undergone natural decomposition, not boiled (as no soft tissue was adhered), and 5 cadavers 12 to 16 hours postmortem. The histologic sections were stained by hematoxylin and eosin, the loci CSF1PO, TPOX, TH01, F13A01, FESFPS, vWA, D16S539, D7S820, D13S317, and amelogenin were amplified by PCR, and the polyacrylamide gel was stained with silver. The results presented here clarify questions concerning the viability of DNA for identification analysis, and they also may help to establish better strategies for optimization of DNA extraction and analysis in compact bones of human remains.     

Genetic data on nine STRs (CSF1PO, TPOX, THO1, F13AO1, FESFPS, vWA, D16S539, D7S820 and D13S317) and two VNTRs (D1S80 and D17S5) in Rosario population, Santa Fe Argentine

Allele frequencies for nine short tandem repeats (STRs) loci (CSF1PO, TPOX, THO1, F13AO1, FES/FPS, vWA, D16S539, D7S820 and D13S317) and two variable number tandem repeats (VNTRs) were obtained from a sample of 270 unrelated individuals born in the Rosario city, Santa Fe province of Argentina.     

Reexamining Racial Attitudes: The Conditional Relationship Between Diversity and Socioeconomic Environment

Social science research notes that racial context is related to attitudes toward social issues; however, surprisingly little research has examined how the impact of racial context on attitudes is activated. The aim of this article is to examine racial context "effects" for policy preferences, but to do so within a broader perspective. This article extends the literature on racial attitudes by considering a conditional relationship between racial and ethnic context and socioeconomic context and expanding racial context to include multiple racial and ethnic groups. The findings indicate that racial and ethnic contextual effects do emerge; however, these effects are conditional on the socioeconomic context in which an individual resides. Specifically, high socioeconomic contexts and highly diverse contexts are related to higher levels of support for racial social issues; however, contexts characterized by low socioeconomic context and high racial and ethnic diversity are associated with lower levels of support for such issues .     

Reclaiming Community? From Welfare Society to Welfare State in Australian Catholic Social Thought

Influenced by both conservative and left wing communitarian thinking, current debate about welfare governance in Australia reflects an inflated evaluation of the potential role of the third sector or civil society organisations in the production of welfare. This paper gives an overview of twentieth century Australian Catholic social thinking about state, market and civil society relations in the production of welfare. It highlights the neglected, historical role of the Catholic Church in promoting a "welfare society" over a "welfare state" in Australia. It points to the reasons for the Church's later embrace of the welfare state and suggests that these reasons should make us deeply sceptical of the current communitarian fad.     

Individual differences and the pursuit of legal rights

In this article we explore the role of individual differences in the proclivity to pursue legal rights. A series of field surveys and a laboratory experiment indicated that a measure of claim propensity was consistently related to the reporting of “rights” problems, the tendency to make claims in response to these problems, and preferences for styles of conflict resolution. Although the findings leave many unanswered questions that will have to be addressed in future research, the most important contribution of the article, we believe, is that it draws attention to rights, or claims, consciousness as an important phenomenon and demonstrates that it is amenable to empirical investigation.