The analysis of biological samples from crime scene for a future human DNA profile confrontation. Effects of presumptive test reagents on the ability to obtain STR profiles for human identification

Because of the increase of evidence of blood stains, that have been washed or cleaned in an attempt to mask the analysis of DNA profiles, there is also an increase in the use of presumptive tests on samples sent to laboratories. Some of the presumptive tests, used to identify blood and semen stains, could potentially affect the recovery of high molecular weight DNA from the samples, or extinguish them, especially those already present in small quantities. After the presumptive tests, often these samples are discarded. This study aimed to examine the possibility of obtaining a DNA profile from samples submitted for presumptive testing and cleaned with bleaches with and without chlorine. Two different protocols were conducted: (a) A unique sample of human blood in natura (5 μL), already typed through the DNA techniques with the genetic profile previously known (control), was distributed onto cotton fabrics and dried at room temperature. Four samples of fabric were macerated in saline solution and Coombs serum and then stored for three months (room temperature and freezer −20 °C). (b) Another sample of human blood, type A, in natura, already typed through the techniques of DNA (control) was used. Aliquots of 200 μL were distributed in: cotton, denim and synthetic fabric. The samples were dried at room temperature for 24 h. The blood stains in those fabrics (cotton, denim and synthetic) were then divided into three groups: unwashed, cleaned with chlorine bleach and cleaned with chlorine bleach and soap powder. The samples were again dried at room temperature for 24 h, before the use of luminol. The DNA were extracted with Chelex 100 and amplified with the Identifiler Kit (Applied Biosystems). The blood stains exposed to saline and Coombs serum had DNA profiles consistent with untreated samples (controls). This result shows that the experts should keep and store the samples treated with saline and Coombs serum for future DNA confrontation when necessary. Also discussed in this paper the pattern of blood stains after washing with bleaching solutions, as well as the quantity of DNA obtained from these samples.     

Substitution of human for horse urine disproves an accusation of doping*

In order to detect switching and/or manipulation of samples, the owner of a stallion asked our lab to perform a DNA test on a positive doping urine sample. The objective was to compare the urine DNA profile versus blood and hair DNA profiles from the same stallion. At first, 10 microsatellite markers were investigated to determine the horse identity. No results were obtained when horse specific markers were typed in the urine sample. In order to confirm the species origin of this sample we analyzed the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. This analysis from blood and hair samples produced reproducible and clear PCR-RFLP patterns and DNA sequence match with those expected for horse, while the urine sample results were coincident with human. These results allowed us to exclude the urine sample from the questioned stallion and determine its human species origin, confirming the manipulation of urine sample.     

Investigating the Roots of Civic Morality: Trust, Social Capital, and Institutional Performance

In the last decade considerable research in social sciences has focused on interpersonal trust, treating it as a remedy for most maladies modern democracies suffer from. Yet, if others act dishonestly, trust is turned into gullibility, thus mechanisms linking interpersonal trust with institutional success refer implicitly to honesty and civic morality. This paper investigates the roots of civic morality. It applies hierarchical models to data from 38 countries, and tests the individual, community and structural explanatory factors. The results of the analysis point to the relevance of an institutional dimension, both in the form of individuals’ perceptions as well as the quality of governance: confidence in political institutions and their objective quality are the strongest predictors of civic morality. At the same time, the findings show that the recently popular claims about the importance of social capital for citizens’ moral standards are largely unfounded.

Reproductive behaviour in the Lutheran urban family from historical Poland (the Parish of St. Peter from Poznań, the second half of the nineteenth century)

Fertility and reproductive behaviour in the nineteenth-century Lutheran family from the city of Poznań was characterized. Use was made of the St. Peter parish (Peterkirche) registers from 1840s to 1870s, upon which reconstructions of the individual histories of 463 families were based. Fertility was assessed on the basis of the length of between-birth intervals according to their order and age of women. Next, the age-specific fertility rates of women f_x and Coale Index of marital fertility I_g were calculated. From a seasonal rhythm of both marital and illegitimate births, and reconstructed on the basis of these, the annual rhythm of marital and prenuptial conceptions were characterized. In the Lutheran Parish of St. Peter from the city of Poznań illegitimate births and prenuptial conceptions accounted for almost 10% and over 5% of all births, respectively. Lack of seasonality for marital births was noted here. Illegitimate births, by contrast, were characterized by a statistically significant annual rhythm: their maximum was noted in April, which was a result of conceptions during summer. The average woman with completed reproduction cycle gave birth to the first and to the last child at the ages of 29 and 40 years, respectively. She therefore used 32% of her whole reproductive period. Late age of birth of the first child was associated with late age of marriage of women (on average 28 years). An average woman with completed reproduction gave birth to 4.8 children. The average length of the protogenesic interval was 18 months. The highest fertility occurred in women aged between 20 to 29 years. The value of the I_g index was 0.67, and proved a lack of birth control rather than conscious birth regulation. Generally, Lutheran women from Poznań were characterized by fairly high reproductive potential.     

Discrepancies in Death Certificates,Public Health Registries,and Judicial Determinations in Italy

The death certificate is mandated by civil law and serves as a medical‐scientific document useful for biostatistics and epidemiological research. For a variety of reasons, death certificates can be misclassified. We reviewed data from self‐inflicted deaths collected over an 8‐year period by the Forensic Institute of the University Sacro Cuore of Rome (Italy). Four hundred and thirty‐five of 2904 were classified as self‐inflicted deaths (15%). The comparison with death certificates processed by the local public health authority (ASL) and by the Italian National Census Bureau (Istat) and with the judicial investigation results available in the Italian Penal Court archive shows some discrepancies. One‐hundred and twenty‐four of 435 deaths were not considered to be self‐inflicted but due to a crime (29% overrecording suicide) with a higher reduction for women, suggesting that it is easier to confuse a murder for suicide in female cases. Any discrepancies between the mortality and crime data are discussed in details.     

The Belarusian Orthodox Church in the Shadow of the State

The Orthodox Church in Belarus tries to speak out in support of the state and at the same time uphold its own values. It can be effective in upholding its own values only if it participates in public dialogue.     

Variation of the chemical contents and morphology of gunshot residue in the surroundings of the shooting pistol as a potential contribution to a shooting incidence reconstruction

A study of the chemical contents and sizes of gunshot residue originating from 9×18mm PM ammunition, depositing in the vicinity of the shooting person was performed by means of scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry. Samples of the residue were collected from targets placed at various distances in the range 0-100cm as well as from hands and clothing of the shooting person. Targets were covered by fragments of white cotton fabric or black bovine leather. In the case of cotton targets microtraces were collected from circles of 5 and 10cm in radius. Results of the examinations in the form of numbers of particles, proportions of their chemical classes and dimensions revealed a dependence on the distance from the gun muzzle, both in the direction of shooting and in the opposite one, i.e., on the shooting person. The parameters describing gunshot residue differed also depending on the kind of the target substrate. The kind of obtained information gives rise to understanding the general rules of the dispersion of gunshot residue in the surroundings of the shooting gun. Thus, it may be utilised in the reconstruction of shooting incidences, especially in establishing the mutual positions of the shooter and other participants of the incident.