The hair analysis proficiency testing program of the French Society of Analytical Toxicology

In an effort to improve laboratories performing hair analysis in forensic cases, the French Society of Analytical Toxicology (S.F.T.A.) has implemented a proficiency testing program since 1992. Actually about 10 laboratories are participating. Each survey is dedicated to one analyte or one pharmacological class: opiates (6-monoacetylmorphine, morphine and codeine), cocaine and benzoylecgonine, tetrahydrocannabinol, buprenorphine and norbuprenorphine, beta-blockers (metoprolol, atenolol), beta 2-agonists (salbutamol, clenbuterol). Animal hair was tested for clenbuterol. Prior to sending, hair samples were reduced to a powdered form, well mixed to ensure homogeneity, and then tested by GC/MS or HPLC/MS. Results confirm those obtained in a preliminary study on opiates and cocaine analysis in hair: a common analytical procedure has to be used by all the participants, including hydrolysis of hair. It is essential to work on authentic drug-positive hair samples and not on spiked samples. Participation at this program is free of charge and considered as an educational tool. Comparison of the results with those of other laboratories in Europe and USA shows that the analytical methods used during this program are in accordance with all the other procedures.     

Doping control for beta-adrenergic compounds through hair analysis

An original procedure was developed to simultaneously test beta2-agonists (salbutamol and clenbuterol) and beta-blockers (atenolol, acebutolol, pindolol, betaxolol, propranolol, timolol, sotalol, metoprolol, tertatolol, bisoprolol, labetalol and oxprenolol) in both human and animal hair. After decontamination with methylene chloride (2 times, 2 min), a 200 mg hair strand is pulverized in a ball mill. Then, a 100 mg portion is incubated overnight in 2 mL 0.1 N HCl, at 56 degrees C, in the presence of carteolol, which was used as an internal standard. After neutralization of the acid phase with 0.1 N NaOH, a 2 mL bicarbonate buffer (pH 8.6) is added to the preparation, which is then purified by solid-phase extraction with Isolute C18 columns. Drugs are derivatized using a mixture of trimethylboroxine-ethyl acetate for 15 min at 80 degrees C to form methaneboronate derivatives. Drugs are detected using GC/MS on an HP 6890-5973 system. A 4 microL portion of the derivatized extract is injected using a pulsed mode in a 30 m HP5 MS capillary column. Linearity was observed for all compounds in the range 25 pg/mg to 10 ng/mg. Limits of detection were in the range 2 to 10 pg/mg. At 1 ng/mg, recoveries were in the range from 37 to 100%, with a within-run precision of 5.9 to 14.1% (n = 8). The application of the method can be documented by the following examples: (1) Hair from asthmatic patients (n - 11), including two cases of asthma deaths, tested positive for salbutamol in the range of 27 to 210 pg/mg. (2) A 24-year-old swimmer who tested positive in urine for salbutamnol denied the results. Hair analysis confirmed salbutamol exposure, with a concentration of 71 pg/mg. (3) A shooting specialist was assumed to chronically use metoprolol (100 mg/daily during some periods). Hair concentration of metoprolol was 8.41 ng/mg. (4) An archery specialist was assumed to chronically use sotalol (80 mg/daily, during some periods). Hair concentration of sotalol was 261 pg/mg. (5) Hair from two calves revealed chronic exposure to clenbuterol, which was used to increase the mass of the animals at a concentration of 30 and 48 pg/mg.     

The short-time dynamics of issue ownership and its impact on the vote

This paper analyzes the short-term dynamics of issue ownership and its effect on electoral choice. We hypothesize that voters who change their mind with regard to the party they deem most competent to handle the top issue are more probable to change their vote choice, than those who do not change their evaluation of competence. Second, we claim that the impact of a change in perception of party issue competence increases with the electoral strength of the party benefiting from this change. The analysis is based on data from a Rolling-Cross-Section with a panel component carried out in the 2011 Swiss Election Study. The results show the expected effects of change in issue competence assessment and the conditional role of party size.     

Evaluation of the (hu)MANid program for sex and ancestry estimation in a diverse,contemporary CT scan-based sample

Human remains from forensic and bioarcheological contexts are often fragmentary, requiring methods for estimating a forensic profile that are based upon limited skeletal features. In 2017, Berg and Keryhercz created an online application, (hu)MANid, that provides sex and ancestry estimation from mandibular morphoscopic traits and linear measurements. In this study, we examine the utility of the (hu)MANid application in a diverse, urban US adult sample (aged 20–45; n = 143) derived from computed tomography (CT) scans. We secondarily conduct a preliminary analysis of the program's utility in a sample of adolescents (aged 15–17; n = 40). Six morphoscopic, and eleven morphometric traits were recorded as directed by the literature associated with the (hu)MANid program. Percent correct classification and posterior predictive values were calculated for the sex and ancestry estimations output by the program; chi-squared tests were employed to compare self-reported and predicted ancestry. In the adult sample, sex was accurately predicted for 75.52% of the sample. Ancestry prediction, however, was less favorable ranging from 19.3% to 50% correct. For the adolescent sample, correct sex estimation (45%) did not surpass what could occur by chance alone, though ancestry prediction fared better than in the larger adult sample (percent correct prediction overall average: 47.5%, range 35.71%–71.43%). The (hu)MANid application shows utility for use with CT scan-derived adult samples for sex estimation, but caution is warranted for ancestry estimation and use with samples that may not have reached full adult maturity.     

Evaluating expertise in forensic anthropology

The medicolegal system relies on the ability of experts and non-experts alike to make judgments about expertise and use those judgments to reach consequential decisions. Given the lack of standard criteria, mandatory certification, or licensure for establishing expertise required to practice forensic anthropology and testify as an expert witness, we sought to understand how individuals assess and identify expertise in forensic anthropology by using a social science tool called the Imitation Game. This tool assesses immersion in a specific area of study via discourse, with the premise that some individuals lacking expertise themselves imitate or attempt to pass as experts. For this project we recruited volunteers with varying expertise in forensic anthropology to participate in interviews which asked questions about the practice and structure of the discipline. Those interviews were transcribed, anonymized, and evaluated by other recruited individuals with varying expertise in forensic anthropology. Results found that judges who were experts in forensic anthropology performed better than non-expert judges in determining who was not an expert in forensic anthropology based on their anonymized responses; however, nearly half of the non-experts were still able to pass as experts in forensic anthropology. The difficulties in assessing expertise based on discourse interactions demonstrates the value and need for well-defined credentials and mandatory certification to practice forensic anthropology. This study demonstrates that accurately identifying expertise in forensic anthropology may be challenging for both experts and non-experts, especially when relying solely on interactional expertise rather than formal assessments of competency which directly elucidate contributory expertise.     

Detection of methamphetamine in mouse femurs exposed to high temperature

Bone samples are valuable for examining the cause of death and circumstance leading up to death when body fluids are not available for forensic toxicological analysis. Examined were heat-induced changes in methamphetamine and amphetamine concentrations in femurs removed from methamphetamine-injected mice to determine if the burned bones could be used for toxicology testing. The femurs were heated at 100°C, 300°C, or 500°C for 10 or 30 min. The tissue structure of the heated femurs was preserved at 100°C for 30 min but was destructed at higher temperatures. Methamphetamine and amphetamine were detected in femurs heated at 100°C for 10 min, 100°C for 30 min, and 300°C for 10 min (with methamphetamine and amphetamine concentrations ranging from 0.36 to 35 μg/g and 0.54 to 47 μg/g, respectively). Methamphetamine and amphetamine were detectable when heated above their decomposition temperature as a result of limited heat transfer do to protection provide by the femoral muscle. Thus, the bone could be a useful analytical sample in cases of burn-related deaths, where it is difficult to collect body fluids.     

Modification of the Marmarou and Foda model of diffuse axonal injury (DAI) improves percentage survival of rats at 24 h and increases the amount of DAI identified

More than two decades ago, Marmarou published a valid model for producing diffuse axonal injury (DAI) in rats. Since then, both mild and severe injuries have been obtained by researchers using the original method and a weight of 450 g. However, the diffuse brain injuries produced in rats were only similar to those seen in humans when the rats sustained severe brain injuries. In these cases, rat mortality in the original article was around 50%, and the cause of death was prolonged apnea post-impact. Rat survival after impact is critical for studying the progression of DAI. In order to explain the cause of death in human victims with cranial trauma who do not show gross brain injury, testing for the presence of DAI is essential. Thus, in order to minimize local and cervical injuries to increase rat survival, attention should be paid to the following aspects: a wider head protector disc should be used, the head of the rat should be elevated at the time of impact, and the foam bed should be soft enough to allow the movement caused by acceleration. With our modified method, rat survival increased by 30% compared to the original model (80% versus 50%). Moreover, 85.7% of rats demonstrated DAI after 24 h of survival. With these modifications, injuries appear in the same locations as in humans; thus, the method is suitable for the study of traumatic DAI in humans.     

Who are the most highly cited forensic scientists in the United States?

The most highly cited forensic practitioners in the United States were identified using a publicly available citation database that used six different citation metrics to calculate each person's composite citation score. The publication and citation data were gleaned from Elsevier's SCOPUS database, which contained information about ~7 million scientist each of whom had at least five entries in the database. Each individual was categorized into 22 scientific fields and 176 subfields, one of which was legal and forensic medicine (LFM). The database contained citation records for 13,388 individuals having LFM as their primary research discipline and 282 of these (2%) were classified as being highly cited. Another 99 individuals in the database had LFM as their secondary discipline, making a total of 381 highly cited forensic practitioners from 35 different countries. The career-long publication records of each individual were compared using their composite citation scores. Of the 381 highly cited scientists, 93 (24%) had an address somewhere in the United States. The various branches of forensics they specialized in were anthropology, criminalistics, DNA/genetics, odontology, pathology, statistics/epidemiology, and toxicology. The two most highly cited scientists, according to their composite citation score, were both specialists in DNA/genetics. Bibliometric methods are widely used for evaluating research performance in academia and a similar approach might be useful in jurisprudence, such as when an expert witness is instructed to testify in court and explain the meaning of scientific evidence.     

The utility of histology in assessing the cause of death in medico-legal autopsies in selected trauma deaths: Suspension-, immersion-, fire-, and traffic-related

The goal of a medico-legal autopsy is primarily to determine the cause and manner of death. To this end, the pathologist often uses auxiliary analyses, including histology. However, the utility of routine histology in all medico-legal autopsies is unknown. Earlier studies on the utility of routine histology have shown inconsistent effects, with some studies recommending it and others rejecting it. To study the degree to which histology informs on the underlying cause of death, we sent autopsy reports from suspension-, immersion-, fire-, and traffic-related deaths to senior board-certified forensic pathologists and had them assess the cause of death, first without knowledge of the histological findings and then with knowledge thereof. Fifty cases were identified in each of four subgroups: fire-, immersion-, suspension-, and traffic-related deaths. The autopsy reports were anonymized, and the histological findings and conclusions were removed. Two board-certified forensic pathologists independently reviewed the reports in each subgroup and assessed the manner and underlying cause of death (including their certainty of this assessment on a five-level scale) with and without access to histological findings. The probability of changing the underlying cause of death posthistology was low in all study groups. There was a slight increase in the degree of certainty posthistology in cases where the underlying cause of death was not changed, but only when the antehistology certainty was low. Our results suggest that histology does not meaningfully inform on the underlying cause of death in suspension-, immersion-, fire-, and traffic-related deaths except when antehistology certainty is low.