A novel method for STR-based DNA profiling using microarrays

We describe a novel method for rapidly identifying and distinguishing between different DNA sequences using short tandem repeat (STR) analysis and DNA microarrays. The method can be used to deduce identity, length, and number of STRs of the target molecule. We refer to this technique as the "variable-length probe array" method for STR profiling (VLPA). The method involves hybridization of the unknown STR target sequence to a DNA microarray displaying complementary probes that vary in length to cover the range of possible STRs. A post-hybridization enzymatic digestion of the DNA hybrids is then used to selectively remove labeled single-stranded regions of DNA from the microarray surface. The number of repeats in the unknown target is then deduced based on the pattern of target DNA that remains hybridized to the array. This DNA profiling technique is useful for performing forensic analysis to uniquely identify individual humans or other species.     

Reviews

Gradualist choice with question marks: an international panel of economists on the Hungarian transition

Istvan P. Szekely & David M. G. Newbery (eds), Hungary: An Economy in Transition. Cambridge, New York, Melbourne: Cambridge University Press 1993.

Joseph Held, ed., Democracy and Right‐Wing Politics in Eastern Europe in the 1990s. New York: Columbia University Press, 1993, vi + 232 pp., $40.50.

Stephen K. Batalden ed., Seeking God: The Recovery of Religious Identity in Orthodox Russia, Ukraine and Georgia. DeKalb, IL, Northern Illinois University Press, 1993, ix + 299 pp., $32.00.

K. Kaariainen, Atheism and Perestroika. Helsinki, Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia, 1993, 189 pp., Finmarks 140.00.

Börje Ljunggren ed., The Challenge of Reform in Indochina. Boston, MA: Harvard Studies in International Development, Harvard University Press, 1993.

Valery Boldin, Ten Years that Shook the World. The Gorbachev Era as Witnessed by his Chief of Staff. London: Harper Collins, 1994, viii + 310 pp., £10.99, $25.00.     

The trial of Abner Baker, Jr., MD: monomania and McNaughtan rules in antebellum America

On the third of October 1845, in a small mountain community in Kentucky, Abner Baker, Jr., MD, was executed for the murder of his brother-in-law Daniel Bates. At the trial Baker's attorney argued unsuccessfully that at the time of the crime the accused suffered from monomania, a form of mental disease, and therefore should not be held responsible for the act. The trial bears historical significance by the fact that it took place only a year after the formation of the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane, the first professional organization of psychiatrists in the United States, and two years after the McNaughtan ruling in British jurisprudence which molded the insanity plea around the concept of "knowing right from wrong." Because it took place at this particular juncture in the history of both law and medicine, it provides a revealing portrait of how medical and legal concepts on insanity interacted with the indigenous social and political circumstances of antebellum America.     

Biofuel,Energy Diversification,and NAFTA: A Proposition for the Future of the North American Biofuels Industry

This article demonstrates how the United States can use the free-trade legal structure to diversify the nation's energy portfolio by importing jatropha plants from southern Mexico for use as biofuel. The North American Free Trade Agreement has created a free trade zone among Canada, Mexico, and the United States, so jatropha imports from Mexico are not subject to tariff. This article contends that the United States and Mexico can change two of their legal devices, PROCAMPO and ethanol subsidies for U.S. farmers, to facilitate jatropha trade. Thus, the United States can diversify its energy market by using an abundant and easily accessible resource.     

Acupuncture in drug treatment: Exploring its role and impact on participant behavior in the drug court setting

The originators of the Miami drug court incorporated acupuncture into the substance abuse treatment regimen that has been widely imitated in hundreds of drug courts since 1989. Although there is some evidence to suggest that acupuncture may be an effective adjunct to treatment more generally, research has not yet examined its role and impact in the drug court setting. This paper describes an effort to study the impact of acupuncture on offender behavior and progress in treatment in the Clark County, (Las Vegas) Nevada Drug Court using a prospective modified experiment, where 336 new participants were randomly assigned to acupuncture and no-acupuncture conditions. However, significant treatment contamination hindered straightforward analysis, as nearly 40% of the control group received at least some acupuncture. To compensate for the treatment compliance problem, two-stage least-squares (2SLS) regression is employed with original group assignment as an instrumental variable and acupuncture exposure as a predictor. Results indicate no significant difference along a range of criminal justice and treatment outcomes, with the exception of one measure of treatment progress. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the findings and the need to design studies that are better able to separate the effects of acupuncture from other treatment and court interventions.     

A Systematic Observational Study of a Juvenile Drug Court Judge

The shift of the juvenile justice system from its initial rehabilitative ideal toward a more punitive orientation highlights the need to systematically document key elements of the juvenile drug court model. In particular, it is important to clearly document the role of the juvenile court judge because he or she is considered vital to this program model. The current study used participant observation as well as confidential questionnaires on which youth shared their perceptions of the judge. Findings show the judge‐participant interactions typically were brief, varied by the participants' level of compliance with the program, and that sanctions were given twice as often as rewards. Youth perceived the judge to be fair, respectful, and concerned about their lives. Discussion focuses on the significant opportunity that juvenile drug court judges have for positively influencing the lives of drug‐involved youth.     

MUDDLING THROUGH THE MURKY WATERS OF TROXEL

A critical case in the area of third-party visitation rights was decided by the U. S. Supreme Court in July 2000 ( Troxel v. Granville ). A plurality in this case held that a Washington grandparent visitation statute was not facially unconstitutional but was as applied to the facts of that case. The author discusses the varying opinions of the Supreme Court justices in the Troxel decision. Next, he analyzes the plurality opinion to determine the appropriate standard of review in grandparent visitation cases. Following is a consideration of how the decision will affect other state grandparent visitation legislation. Examining these issues, the author concludes that future third-party visitation cases will be decided on a fact-specific, case-by-case basis.     

Third World foundation news

This paper examines the evolving role of the UN specialised agencies in international responses to 'complex' emergencies, with particular reference to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). Despite some shortcomings in both the organisation and execution of interventions, FAO does indeed - as it claims - have the capacity to be a 'key player' in complex emergencies in terms of emergency and longer-term rehabilitation as well as preparedness and early warning, and is playing this role with increasing confidence and competence. A main constraint is donor reluctance to fund the kind of operations in which FAO specialises, despite their potential cost-effectiveness and capacity, with careful design and implementation, to mitigate crises and reduce relief needs. This is seen as part of a wider donor failure to provide adequate support for responses to complex emergencies which go beyond 'pure' relief in acute, high profile situations-something which has increasingly become a preoccupation within and outside the UN system and points to the need for improved coordination and monitoring and evaluation systems.