Characterization of human DNA in environmental samples

Environmental samples from indoor surfaces can be confounded by dust, which is composed largely of human skin cells and has been documented to contain roughly tens of micrograms of total DNA per gram of dust. This study complements previous published work by providing estimates of the quantity of amplifiable human DNA found in environmental samples from a typical indoor environment, categorized by the intensity of human traffic and visible quantity of dust. Dust was collected by surface swabbing standard 576 cm² areas in eight locations, and evaluated for total DNA quantity, presence of human DNA (mitochondrial and nuclear loci using conventional PCR), quantity of human nuclear DNA using quantitative PCR, and STR analysis. The total DNA content of 36 dust samples ranged from 9 to 28 ng/cm², and contained 0.2–1.1 pg/cm² of human DNA. Overall, human DNA was detected in 97% of 36 dust samples and 61% of samples yielded allele distributions of varying degrees of complexity when subjected to STR analysis. The implications of this study are twofold. First, the presence of dust in evidence can be a significant contamination source in forensic investigations because the human DNA component is of sufficient quality and quantity to produce allele calls in STR analysis. This can be effectively managed by implementing stringent protocols for collection and analysis of potential biological samples. A second implication is the use of dust as a source of evidence for identification of inhabitants within a defined location. In the latter case, a number of additional studies would be necessary to identify relevant pretreatments for environmental dust samples and to develop the necessary deconvolution techniques to separate the composite genotypes obtained.     

论刑事诉讼中法官举证裁量权

抗辩式刑事庭审方式的中心环节是核查证据,法官举证裁量权是准确认定案件事实,公证作出判决及提高庭审效率的关键。借鉴国外经验完善我国的法官举证裁量权内容,是刑事诉讼立法完善的一项重要内容。     

我国公有公共设施致害的国家赔偿问题论析

目前我国尚没有关于公有公共设施致害国家赔偿的专门立法,司法实践中涉及相关的案件只有民事实体法依据.在我国,公有公共设施致害赔偿的归责原则应采取无过错责任原则.公有公共设施致害赔偿的构成要件:须为公有公共设施、须设置或管理有欠缺、须公民人身或财产遭受损害,并且损害与公有公共设施设置或管理具有相当因果关系.公有公共设施致害赔偿请求人不完全限于公物利用者,赔偿义务机关、赔偿范围和标准也应视具体情形分别认定.公有公共设施致害国家赔偿的程序可通过行政程序进行审理.     

Application of a simple extraction procedure using aqueous ammonia to the analysis of basic drugs in blood by gas chromatography

A simple and reliable previously reported extraction procedure has been extended to the analysis of a wide range of basic and neutral drugs in postmortem blood and other tissues. The method employs 200 microliters of blood treated with water and ammonia and extracted with diethyl ether. The concentrated extract is generally sufficiently clean for direct analysis by gas chromatography and high pressure liquid chromatography. Recovery, precision and linearity data are presented for selected drugs.     

Family violence and Asian drinkers

This is a study of 70 consecutive referrals to the Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital, for treatment of drinking problems. There were 31 Chinese and 39 Indian drinkers, with 63 males and 7 females. Family violence with physical abuse occurred in 21 cases (30%). One of three wives of drinkers had been physically abused, but no children were victims. Drinkers with family violence were generally younger and more severely dependent on alcohol than the non-violent drinkers. There was no relationship between family violence and the ethnicity or marital status of the drinkers.