The Microbial Rosetta Stone database: A common structure for microbial biosecurity threat agents

Infectious microorganisms are important to multiple communities engaged in biodefense and biosecurity, including the agencies responsible for health, defense, law enforcement, agriculture, and drug and food safety. Many agencies have created lists of high priority infectious microorganisms to prioritize research efforts or to formally control the possession and distribution of specific organisms or toxins. However, the biological classification of infectious microorganisms is often complex and ambiguous, leading to uncertainty and confusion for scientists involved in biosecurity work. To address this problem, we created a database, known as the Microbial Rosetta Stone, which resolves many of these ambiguities and includes links to additional information on the microbes, such as gene sequence data and scientific literature. Here we discuss the efforts to coordinate organism names from pathogen lists from various governmental agencies according to biological relatedness and show the overlap of high-priority organisms from multiple agencies. To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive coordination of pathogens, synonyms, and correct taxonomic names. The organized tables and visual aids are freely available at http://www.microbialrosettastone.com. This website provides a single location where access to information on a broad range of disease-causing organisms and toxins is available to members of the biosecurity community.     

An ideal material for the preparation of known toolmark test impressions

Traditionally, toolmark test exemplars are produced by applying a tool's working surface to a piece of soft metal such as lead. Soft, pliable metals are primarily used for this purpose because they will replicate the microscopic grooves present on a tool's working surface without damaging the tool. In this paper the authors present an alternative material for the preparation of test toolmarks. Jewelry modeling or carving waxes are utilized in this study. These waxes are designed for the jewelry modeling industry to create very fine, highly detailed wax models of jewelry pieces that will be cast in various metals utilizing the lost wax casting method. Jeweler's waxes have been found to be ideal for preparing test toolmarks from exemplar tools. The test tool's working surface is applied to a piece of the appropriate wax in a manner consistent with the tool's design. The replicas obtained are exact, highly detailed, 1:1, negative impressions of the exemplar tools working surface, have a long shelf-life, and are suitable for use in toolmark examination and comparison cases.     

Forensic value of pattern and particle transfers from deployed automotive airbag contact

Many automobile manufacturers began installing airbags on the driver's side in the late 1980's. Passenger side airbags followed in the early 1990's. Most airbags use a solid-propellant type of material that produces a hot gas to inflate the airbags. The gas in the driver side airbag leaves the inflator at a temperature as hot as 600 degrees C. The hot gas escapes through the vent holes after deployment, but it can also leak through the stitching seams in the front and singe a pattern on the occupant's clothing characteristic of the seam pattern. The singe patterns from the driver and passenger side airbags will be different. Cornstarch, which is used as a lubricant in some driver side airbags, can transfer to the driver's shirt. Hairs, fibers and make-up can transfer from the driver or passenger to the surface of the deployed airbags. Two cases are presented, illustrating singe patterns and particle transfers, and how they helped determine who a driver or passenger were.     

Assessment of edema fluid distribution in the brain

The technique is proposed allowing quantitation of brain edema and typing of liquor distribution in different parts of brain tissue. In combination with other assays this test can determine a variant of tanatogenesis, detect cause of death and duration of the terminal period. The method application is illustrated by the study of brain hydration in mechanical strangulation asphyxia. It is shown that this death is associated with hypohydration of cerebral structures, especially pronounced in the cortical compartments.     

Estimation of shooting distance for a pneumatic gun MP-654 K loaded with small lead shots

The experimental material has shown possibility of definition of shooting distance and some technical characteristics of the barrel of the pneumatic gun loaded with shots.     

Assessment of unfavorable outcomes of dental care provoked by the patient

Some causes of ineffective dental care because of the patient's negligence were analyzed. In 16 cases the patients ignored recommendations of the dentist and missed visits to the doctor. As a result, the patients developed complications leading to esthetic dissatisfaction, prolonged treatment, repeated prosthetic management.     

Suicide in children and adolescents: a 10-year retrospective review

Suicide is second only to accidents as the most common cause of death for children and adolescents age 10 to 19 in Canada. All of the pediatric cases that were referred to the Hamilton Regional Forensic Pathology Unit from 1993 to 2002 were reviewed. For the purpose of this study, pediatric deaths were defined as deaths in the age group of 1 day up to and including 19 years of age. Specific criteria for suicide were applied to each case, independent of the manner of death issued by the coroner. The criteria were 3-fold. First, homicide had to be ruled out by the police investigation and autopsy findings. Second, the method had to be consistent with self-infliction. Finally, there had to be some evidence of suicidal intent. Questionable cases were discussed among the authors, and if reasonable intent could not be established, then the case was excluded. The autopsy and police reports were examined in detail regarding age, sex, location and method of suicide, presence of suicide notes, and any contributing psychologic factors or stressors. Of the 501 pediatric autopsies performed during the 10-year period, 31 (6%) met the criteria of suicide. The majority of cases (87%) were in older adolescents (age 15 to 19), and the male to female ratio was 2.4:1. Psychologic factors were identified in some of the cases, including depressed mood (77%), suicidal ideation (45%), previous suicide attempts (23%), and drug or alcohol problems (19%). Most of the suicides (61%) occurred in the victim's home, and 12 (39%) cases left a suicide note. In 9 cases (29%), alcohol or street drugs were detected postmortem, though in 8 cases toxicology was not performed. Hanging (48%) was the most common method of suicide, followed by firearms (13%), poisoning (10%), drowning (10%), and blunt force vehicular trauma (10%). Almost 60% of the male suicides were by hanging. No specific trend was identified in the 9 female suicides. These results were compared with similar studies within Canada and other countries. Overall, the method of suicide is dictated by what is convenient and readily available, though the acceptance of various suicide methods can change over time. Suicide prevention efforts should be tailored to address local trends.     

A coffee can, factor analysis, and prediction of antisocial behavior: the structure of criminal risk

The predictive accuracy of the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised, Level of Service Inventory-Revised, Violence Risk Appraisal Guide, and the General Statistical Information on Recidivism were compared to four instruments randomly generated from the total pool of original items. None of the four original instruments better predicted post-release failure than the four randomly generated instruments. These results suggest two conclusions: (a) the instruments are only measuring criminal risk, and (b) no single instrument has captured sufficient risk assessment theory to result in better prediction than randomly derived instruments measuring criminal risk. A two-stage factor analysis was completed on 1614 cases. This analysis of the risk items indicated a 4-factor solution and all 4 factors were equal to the original instruments in predicting post-release failure. Thus, the original instruments did not improve prediction over randomly structured scales, nor did the restructuring of items improve risk assessment, suggesting substantial deficiencies in the conceptualization of risk assessment and instrumentation. We argue that developing a risk-based construct, which involves hypothesis testing and an explanation of behavior, is the optimal method to advance risk assessment within the criminal justice and mental health systems. Such an approach would provide targeted areas for clinical intervention that are salient to risk.     

A preliminary study on findings of psychopathy and affective disorders in adult sex offenders

The construct of psychopathy has often been considered mutually exclusive to the presence of genuine depressive or anxiety symptomotology. This article addresses the hypothesized reasons for this dichotomous relationship. In this study, 68 civilly committed adult male sex offenders were evaluated using a variety of psychological measures to determine if psychopathic individuals in this group would demonstrate clinically significant affective symptoms. Results indicate that the men in this sample endorsed high rates of psychopathy on the PCL-R, with 42% of these expressing concurrent symptoms of depression and 26% manifesting symptoms of an anxiety disorder. Relationships between affective symptoms and PCL-R factor scores and qualitative differences between these constructs in child molesters and rapists are also discussed.