Allelic distribution of four tetranucleotide repeat loci (D3S1358, D18S51, D19S253, and FGA) in a population from Porto (North Portugal)

Allele frequencies for four short tandem repeat loci were determined in a population sample from Porto (North Portugal), using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), in order to investigate possible genetic differences between populations from the center and north of Portugal. After denaturing PAGE electrophoresis, nine alleles were identified for D3S1358 (n = 256), 13 alleles for D18S51 (n = 235), 10 alleles for D19S253 (n = 238), and 15 alleles for FGA (n = 181). No deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were found. The allele frequencies observed are similar to those of the Portuguese population compared except for the D3S1358 system.     

Cognitive problem-solving training to improve the child-care judgment of child neglectful parents

Child neglect, the failure to adequately meet a youngster's care needs, is the most frequent form of child maltreatment reported to welfare authorities. However, there have been few empirical reports of treatment outcomes for adjudicated, child neglectful parents. In the current study, an initial assessment of three neglectful parents revealed substantial deficits in cognitive problem-solving skills related to child care judgment. Treatment, consisting of modeling, shaping, practice, and feedback was used to improve each parent's child care problem-solving skills in a multiple baseline design. Skill enhancement was also found for untrained (generalization) problem situations, and independent caseworker ratings of each family's functioning provided external validation of the intervention's clinical impact.     

Choking death on a live fish (Dicologoglossa cuneata)

A choking death of a healthy fisherman, who put a type of live sole between his jaws to free up his hands so that he could collect more fish to put into his basket, is described. The fish squirmed into the larynx and upper trachea and the attempts to rescue the man by his colleagues who used pliers did not succeed, and the man died. Other published cases are reviewed, and risk factors and rescue possibilities discussed.     

Genetic identification of degraded DNA samples buried in different types of soil

Biological samples buried in different types of soil are often found in crime scenes. These samples are usually highly degraded which difficult their analysis. Several factors contribute to the degradation of biological material including temperature variation, humidity, UV light and especially the presence of microorganisms.Blood was collected from three non-related male donors and blood stains were made in fabrics such as jeans, cotton and lycra. Blood stains were dried at room temperature and buried in three different types of soil (sand, marsh and clay), to promote its natural degradation.The buried samples suffered a high degradation over time which difficult their genetic identification. The marshy soil proved to be the most destructive one, leading to rapid degradation of the different analyzed fabrics, which disabled the obtainment of the genetic profiles.     

Antipoverty Transfers and Labour Market Outcomes: Regression Discontinuity Design Findings

The article estimates the impact of Familias en Acción, a human development conditional cash transfer programme, on adult labour market outcomes in urban areas in Colombia. Relying on a regression discontinuity design and a large panel dataset, the article finds significant, largely positive, but heterogeneous programme effects on labour market outcomes. The findings suggest that antipoverty transfers enable a re-allocation of household productive resources among participant households.     

Genetic data of 4 X-chromosomal short tandem repeats in a North of Portugal population

POPULATION: One hundred unrelated females and 100 unrelated males, autochthonous, healthy, from the North of Portugal.     

Results of the 2003-2004 GEP-ISFG collaborative study on mitochondrial DNA: focus on the mtDNA profile of a mixed semen-saliva stain

We report here a review of the seventh mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) exercise undertaken by the Spanish and Portuguese working group (GEP) of the International Society for Forensic Genetics (ISFG) corresponding to the period 2003-2004. Five reference bloodstains from five donors (M1-M5), a mixed stain of saliva and semen (M6), and a hair sample (M7) were submitted to each participating laboratory for nuclear DNA (nDNA; autosomal STR and Y-STR) and mtDNA analysis. Laboratories were asked to investigate the contributors of samples M6 and M7 among the reference donors (M1-M5). A total of 34 laboratories reported total or partial mtDNA sequence data from both, the reference bloodstains (M1-M5) and the hair sample (M7) concluding a match between mtDNA profiles of M5 and M7. Autosomal STR and Y-STR profiling was the preferred strategy to investigate the contributors of the semen/saliva mixture (M6). Nuclear DNA profiles were consistent with a mixture of saliva from the donor (female) of M4 and semen from donor M5, being the semen (XY) profile the dominant component of the mixture. Strikingly, and in contradiction to the nuclear DNA analysis, mtDNA sequencing results yield a more simple result: only the saliva contribution (M4) was detected, either after preferential lysis or after complete DNA digestion. Some labs provided with several explanations for this finding and carried out additional experiments to explain this apparent contradictory result. The results pointed to the existence of different relative amounts of nuclear and mtDNAs in saliva and semen. We conclude that this circumstance could strongly influence the interpretation of the mtDNA evidence in unbalanced mixtures and in consequence lead to false exclusions. During the GEP-ISFG annual conference a validation study was planned to progress in the interpretation of mtDNA from different mixtures.