Screening Biological Stains with qPCR versus Lateral Flow Immunochromatographic Test Strips: A Quantitative Comparison using Analytical Figures of Merit

Biological fluid identification is an important facet of evidence examination in forensic laboratories worldwide. While identifying bodily fluids may provide insight into which downstream DNA methods to employ, these screening techniques consume a vital portion of the available evidence, are usually qualitative, and rely on visual interpretation. In contrast, qPCR yields information regarding the amount and proportion of amplifiable genetic material. In this study, dilution series of either semen or male saliva were prepared in either buffer or female blood. The samples were subjected to both lateral flow immunochromatographic test strips and qPCR analysis. Analytical figures of merit—including sensitivity, minimum distinguishable signal (MDS) and limit of detection (LOD)—were calculated and compared between methods. By applying the theory of the propagation of random errors, LODs were determined to be 0.05 μL of saliva for the RSID? Saliva cards, 0.03 μL of saliva for Quantifiler^® Duo, and 0.001 μL of semen for Quantifiler^® Duo. In conclusion, quantitative PCR was deemed a viable and effective screening method for subsequent DNA profiling due to its stability in different matrices, sensitivity, and low limits of detection.     

The short tandem repeat locus VWF2 in Intron 40 of the von Willebrand factor gene consists of two polymorphic sub-loci

This study describes the complex nucleotide sequence structure of the TCTA short tandem repeat (STR) locus, VWF2. Eight alleles of VWF2 were observed in a population of 116 unrelated Caucasian individuals. The alleles ranged in size from 150 to 178 base pairs (bp). Sequence analysis of the isolated alleles revealed two polymorphic regions that were named sub-loci VWF2-a and VWF2-b. VWF2-a is located at the 5' end of the conventional locus, whilst VWF2-b is located at the 3' end. The two sub-loci are joined by a 30-nucleotide non-polymorphic sequence which contains two additional TCTA motif repeats. A semi-nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was designed to amplify the VWF2-b region in conjunction with the standard VWF2 amplification. This new amplification method enabled a higher level of allele discrimination than could be achieved by assigning alleles according to size. A cohort of 99 unrelated individuals was tested with this method. VWF2-a expressed five different alleles ranging from zero motif repeats to four motif repeats, while VWF2-b alleles ranged from 8 to 14 motif repeats. Allelic configuration based on the VWF2-a and VWF2-b sub-alleles revealed 23 unique configurations out of a possible 31 for the original eight VWF2 alleles. In conclusion, the VWF2 is a highly polymorphic STR locus with potential application for forensic and parentage testing.     

Mobilizing the Will to Prosecute: Crimes of Rape at the Yugoslav and Rwandan Tribunals

Widespread and systematic rape pervaded both the genocides in Bosnia–Herzegovina in 1992 and in Rwanda in 1994. In response to these conflicts, the Yugoslav Tribunal (ICTY) and the Rwandan Tribunal (ICTR) were created and charged with meting justice for crimes committed, including rape. Nevertheless, the two tribunals differ in their relative success in administering justice for crimes of rape. Addressing rape has been a consistent element of the ICTY prosecution strategy, which resulted in gender-sensitive investigative procedures, higher frequencies of rape indictments, and more successful prosecutions. In contrast, rape has not been a central focus of the ICTR prosecution strategy, which resulted in a sporadic approach to gender-sensitive investigative procedures, inconsistent rape indictments, and few successful prosecutions. What accounts for this disparity in rape prosecutions between the Rwandan and Yugoslav tribunals? Building off the existing literature that discusses factors such as legal instruments and resource capacity of the tribunal, this article argues that transnational advocacy helped generate the necessary political will to adopt and implement legal norms regarding crimes of sexual violence at the ICTY and the ICTR. Following the importance of transnational advocacy as agents of norm change, this paper also explores the antecedent conditions of advocacy mobilization that conditioned different levels of mobilization vis-à-vis the ICTY and the ICTR, including media attention and framing, connections and interest match with local groups, and geopolitical context.     

Diversity of dental patterns: application on different ages using the Brazilian National Oral Health Survey

Methods of individual identification using human remains are widely used in forensic anthropology; however, there are few studies that use statistical methods in order to obtain a correct definition of parameters. The objectives of the study were to verify the diversity of dental patterns in the Brazilian population and analyse its application on different ages. Data from the Brazilian National Oral Health Survey were used to verify the presence and absence of dental treatment among 35,613 individuals of several age groups: 15-19, 35-44 and 65-74. Information referring to every dental element was described: higid (H), decayed (D), filled (F), missing (M) and prosthesis (P). Coincidences that were observed in pairs of homologous teeth were analysed according to clinical situation, gender and age. Ordinary findings (presented in more than 10% of pairs) and extraordinary ones (presented in less than 10% of pairs) were described. Total and conditional diversity estimates were performed. Among adolescents, H were the most frequent teeth, and the first molar teeth were the ones presenting less frequency of H. Among adults, the frequency of M teeth among females ranged from 15.17% to 71.59%, and among males they ranged from 9.00% to 87.20%. Among the elderly, M teeth were observed in the largest frequency, and anterior teeth presented fewer losses than posterior ones. M was the condition that most coincided with both sides in the elderly. In adults, some pairs of teeth presented H, but mostly pairs of teeth presented as M. Among adolescents, there was more concordance of the H component. Among male and female adolescents, we observed extraordinary findings in DMFP dental conditions in most of the teeth. Among adults, the less frequent dental condition was P, which was found in several teeth. The extraordinary findings among elderly male teeth were codes H, D, F and P; among females, they were H, D, F and P codes. The high prevalence of healthy teeth in adolescents and a high rate of edentulism in the elderly interfered with the analysis performed. However, when an estimation of diversity that corrects those distortions was used, all of the groups presented satisfactory results that were homogeneous in the performed analysis.     

Cores and Peripheries: Spatial Analysis of Housing Choice Voucher Distribution in the San Francisco Bay Area Region, 2000–2010

This study uses spatial regressions and spatial statistics to examine the changes in the distribution of Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) households within an expanded San Francisco Bay Area region. From 2000 to 2010, the density of HCV households grew disproportionately across the region, and areas of significant increase emerged in both the region’s urban cores and its rural periphery. Furthermore, the destination communities shared a set of common characteristics. In 2010 HCV households were more likely to locate in areas with lower housing prices, lower percentages of educated people, higher rates of poverty, and higher percentages of African American households when compared with the region as a whole. These findings suggest that voucher holders locate where housing is affordable. We conclude that in regions with tight housing markets, supply matters. This study also introduces housing researchers and policy makers to a methodological approach that addresses what is known in geostatistics as a change of support problem.     

The Role of Important Non-Parental Adults (VIPs) in the Lives of Older Adolescents: A Comparison of Three Ethnic Groups

Previous research has consistently documented the importance of VIPs (mentors or important non-parental adults) in the lives of adolescents. Little is known, however, about whether VIPs play the same important roles across ethnic groups and whether VIPs remain influential when adolescents are older and involved in romantic relationships. The present study compared VIPs of 355 Hispanic, Asian, and European American older adolescents (age range = 17–19 years; M = 18.7 years; 62% female). Results indicated that, despite ethnic differences in their social capital, VIPs’ psychological characteristics (e.g., warmth and acceptance, depressive symptoms, and problem behavior) were similar. VIPs were perceived to have more positive psychological profiles than parents and peers, and in some cases, romantic partners. Moreover, with a few exceptions, the associations between VIP characteristics and adolescent adjustment (e.g., self-esteem, depressive symptoms, and problem behavior) were largely similar across ethnic groups. Finally, VIPs made unique contributions to adolescents’ self-esteem and problem behaviors even after the effects of romantic partners were considered. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

where do women ‘stand’ in Islam? negotiating contemporary Muslim prayer leadership in North America

The article analyses programmes against gender-based violence (GBV) in Cambodia in order to understand what notions of power, agency and resistance reside within these programmes. The text relies on in-depth interviews with four different organisations in Cambodia. The interviews display a number of hands-on practices of resistance against GBV, which require a broad discussion of identity in order to be fully understood. In particular, the organisations emphasize the importance of approaching men—in men's groups, as trainers and role models—in the resistance against GBV. In their approach to Cambodian men, the trainers mixed representations of a more ‘particular’ character with representations of a more ‘universal’ appearance. Both in the establishment of new subject positions and new discourses, the Cambodian trainers leaned upon and alternated between universal and particular notions. In addition, men's ‘particular’ subject positions became the very lens through which they considered ‘universal’ notions of violent masculinities. New aspects of the resistance against GBV thus become visible as the concepts of universalism and particularism are put in use. It is in the nexus between ‘universal’ and ‘particular’ representations that a non-violent masculinity is fostered.