Age-related variation in the interstitial tissues of the cardiac conduction system; and autopsy study of 230 Han Chinese

The amount of fatty and fibrous tissues in 230 Han Chinese who died of noncardio-vascular diseases has been studied by a semi-quantitative method and analysed by chi-square test. The results have shown some consistency. Generally, in the sino-atrial node (SAN), fibrosis and fatty influtratin appear only after 40 years of age and increase one grade with every 20 years. The atrio-ventricular node (AVN) showed fatty change after 30 years of age and fibrosis appeared after 60. In the His bundle (HB), fatty infiltration and fibrosis appear after 40 years. The left bundle branch (LBB) showed similar changes. The appearance of fibrosis in the AVN seems to be later than that reported by Lev.     

Mountaineering fatalities on Mount Rainier, Washington, 1977-1997: autopsy and investigative findings.

Mountain climbing is a popular recreational activity with a growing number of participants and associated fatalities. To define the characteristics of these fatal incidents and the typical autopsy findings in the victims, we reviewed the autopsy and investigative findings of all fatalities that occurred on Mount Rainier from 1977 through 1997. A total of 50 deaths occurred in 29 separate incidents. Fifty-eight percent of accident victims died as the result of a fall; another 34% died as a result of an avalanche. The incidents leading to death occurred at an average altitude of 3652 m (11,977 feet); range, 2073 to 4389 m (6800-14,400 feet). The average age of the victims was 31.2 years (range, 17-55 years), and 47 of the 50 were men (94%). Bodies were not recovered in 13 cases (26%). Autopsies were performed in 30 of the remaining 37 cases. At autopsy, the cause of death was ascribed to multiple injuries in 12 cases (40%), isolated head and neck injuries in 7 cases (23%), and chest injuries in 1 case (3%). Asphyxia and hypothermia were the cause of death in 8 cases (27%) and 2 cases (7%), respectively. The frequency of specific injuries is presented by anatomic region. The unique autopsy and investigative features of mountaineering deaths are discussed.     

Brainstem changes in death from head injury

The cortex and brainstem changes in death from head injury were observed. There were hemorrhage, edema and neuron necrosis in brain injury group, and also in disputed group of brainstem injury.     

Evaluation of anti-muscle actin monoclonal antibody HHF35 in the diagnosis of early myocardial infarction

In order to explore the specificity of anti-muscle actin monoclonal antibody HHF35 in the postmortem diagnosis of early myocardial infarction, the changes of HHF35 staining in the infarcted myocardia and other non-infarcted myocardia with direct or indirect myocardial injury were studied with immunohistochemical S-P method. The results showed that the loss of HHF35 staining of different degrees was found in the infarcted myocardia, but also in the other non-infarcted myocardia with direct or indirect myocardial injury, such as cardiac contusion, myocarditis, hemorrhagic shock, electrocution, mechanical asphyxia. So it should be cautious in diagnosing early myocardial infarction with HHF35 immunohistochemistry.     

PCR-based DNA analysis of vWA31A,TH01, F13A01, FESFPS,TPOX and CSF1PO

The allele and genotype frequencies of 6 tetranucleotide STR loci were investigated in a sample of 132 unrelated individuals from Chinese Han population. The PCR products were analyzed on 6% denaturing PAGE and detected using fluorescently labeled primers in an automated 377 sequencer(PE). All loci meet Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. There was no random association of alleles among the 6 loci. The allele frequencies were compared with other population databases. Except locus vWA31A, the observed heterozygosity at other 5 loci was significantly lower than that reported in Caucasian and Black population studies. The calculated DP = 0.99999, PE = 0.9708, pM = 1.059 x 10(-5). The allelic frequency data can be used in forensic identification and paternity testing.     

Automated comparison of firearm bullets

Fired bullets bear striation marks that can be thought of as a "fingerprint" left by the firearm. This new comparison approach is based on an automated extraction of a "signature" encompassing the relevant marks from an image. To this end, multiple pictures of the bullet are recorded first by using different illumination patterns, and a high quality image is generated by means of fusion techniques. After a preprocessing, the image intensities are filtered along the striations direction, yielding a compact representation of the marks. A non-linear filter selects the striae of interest. The actual comparison takes place by cross-correlating the signatures obtained this way. Finally, an assessment strategy is proposed to objectively evaluate the performance of the system. As demonstrated with an image database of real bullets, the proposed approach outperforms a state-of-the-art commercial system.     

迟发性外伤性脑内血肿脑组织病理形态学研究

运用组织病理学HE染色和Mallory染色,观察迟发性外伤性脑内血肿的病理学改变并探讨其发生机理。结果显示,迟发性外伤性脑内血肿伴有陈旧性脑挫伤、外伤性血管壁坏死及血管炎、挫伤灶或血管壁多发散在钙化,陈旧病灶有纤维包裹、胶质细胞增生和反应性肥大,但无创伤性脑脓肿形成。脑挫伤和外伤性脑内血管病变是脑出血的重要病理学基础,是迟发性外伤性脑内血肿的主要原因。