Efficiency of Casework Direct Kit for extraction of touch DNA samples obtained from cars steering wheels

Analysis of STR profiles obtained from touch DNA has been very useful to the elucidation of crimes. Extraction method may be determinant for the recovery of genetic material collected from different surfaces. Vehicle theft is one of the most common crimes in São Paulo city, Brazil, but collection of biological traces in car steering wheels is not considered, because of the belief that profiles generated won’t be able to identify the thief, only the owner. This study aimed to analyze the efficacy of extraction methods for obtaining DNA profiles in samples collected from steering wheels. Eight criminal acts were simulated with 2 different individuals each (mixture of victim and thief), in duplicate, in order to compare two extraction methods: DNA IQ™ and Casework Direct Kit (both Promega Corporation). Genetic material was collected by double swab method and quantified by Quantifiler™Trio (ThermoFisher Scientific). Amplification was conducted with PowerPlex® Fusion System (Promega). It was possible to obtain STR profiles for all experiments. The mixtures were compared with reference profiles to evaluated how many alleles of each donor were observed. Samples extracted with Casework Direct Kit obtained STR profiles with higher averages of alleles for primary and secondary donors (88.7% and 59.9%, respectively) than those extracted with DNA IQ™ (60.4% and 38.1%, respectively). This could be explained by the differences established in the protocols of both methods, since DNA IQ™ is based on successive washes and can result in loss of DNA, whereas Casework Direct Kit minimizes this problem. We concluded that Casework Direct Kit was more efficient for processing touch DNA samples than DNA IQ™.     

Simultaneous analysis of six amphetamines and analogues in hair, blood and urine by LC-ESI-MS/MS: Application to the determination of MDMA after low Ecstasy intake

A rapid and sensitive method using LC-MS/MS triple stage quadrupole for the determination of traces of amphetamine (AP), methamphetamine (MA), 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, “ecstasy”), 3,4-methylenedioxyethamphetamine (MDEA), and N-methyl-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-butanamine (MBDB) in hair, blood and urine has been developed and validated. Chromatography was carried out on an Uptisphere ODB C₁₈ 5 μm, 2.1 mm × 150 mm column (Interchim, France) with a gradient of acetonitrile and formate 2 mM pH 3.0 buffer. Urine and blood were extracted with Toxitube A^® (Varian, France). Segmented scalp hair was treated by incubation 15 min at 80 °C in NaOH 1 M before liquid–liquid extraction with hexane/ethyl acetate (2/1, v/v). The limits of quantification (LOQ) in blood and urine were at 0.1 ng/mL for all analytes. In hair, LOQ was <5 pg/mg for MA, MDMA, MDEA and MBDB, at 14.7 pg/mg for AP and 15.7 pg/mg for MDA. Calibration curves were linear in the range 0.1–50 ng/mL in blood and urine; in the range 5–500 pg/mg for MA, MDMA, MDEA and MBDB, and 20–500 pg/mg for AP and MDA. Inter-day precisions were <13% for all analytes in all matrices. Accuracy was <20% in blood and urine at 1 and 50 ng/mL and <10% in hair at 20 and 250 pg/mg. This method was applied to the determination of MDMA in a forensic case of single administration of ecstasy to a 16-year-old female without her knowledge during a party. She suffered from hyperactivity, sweating and agitation. A first sample of urine was collected a few hours after (T + 12 h) and tested positive to amphetamines by immunoassay by a clinical laboratory. Blood and urine were sampled for forensic purposes at day 8 (D + 8) and scalp hair at day 60 (D + 60). No MDMA was detected in blood, but urine and hair were tested positive, respectively at 0.42 ng/mL and at 22 pg/mg in hair only in the segment corresponding to the period of the offence, while no MDA was detectable. This method allows the detection of MDMA up to 8 days in urine after single intake.     

肝中对硫磷的固相萃取—电子捕获检测气相色谱分析法

目的建立肝中对硫磷的快速、灵敏、可靠的GC／ECD分析方法。方法肝匀浆加内标甲基对硫磷,用乙腈浸提,浸提液加6％高氯酸稀释,稀释的上清液用GDX403树脂进行固相提取,提取物用HP-5色谱柱和电子捕获检测器进行气相色谱分析。结果提取率92.3％,检测限7.8ng／g,线性范围0.04～4.0μg／g,回收率99.6％±6.2％(Mean±CV,n=5)。结论方法简便、灵敏适合于实际案件检验。     

分子印迹固相萃取法在血中苯丙胺类毒品分析中的应用

目的建立分子印迹固相萃取（MISPE）、GC/MS分析方法,用于血液中苯丙胺类毒品检测。方法 10mmol/L醋酸铵缓冲液（pH8.0）4倍稀释空白添加血液,1mL甲醇,1mL10mmol/L醋酸铵缓冲液（pH8.0）活化苯丙胺类分子印迹固相萃取柱;2×1mL去离子水、1mL60%的乙腈去离子水、1mL1%醋酸乙腈洗涤杂质;2×1mL1%甲酸/甲醇洗脱,洗脱液挥干定容,经GC/NPD、GC/MS分析检测。结果各种苯丙胺类毒品回收率均在90%以上,在20～5 000ng/mL浓度范围内线性关系良好,r2为0.995 7～0.998 9,LOQ在16～30ng/mL之间,LOD在8～15ng/mL之间。结论本方法回收率高,净化效果显著,稳定性好,杂质干扰少,可用于血液中低浓度苯丙胺类毒品的分析检测。     

大白口蘑子实体的化学成分研究

目的 研究大白口蘑(Tricholoma giganteum Massee)子实体的化学成分。方法 大白口蘑子实体的乙酸乙酯部位经过硅胶、RP-18、Sephadex LH-20等多种材料进行分离纯化, 通过现代波谱技术进行结构鉴定。结果 分离鉴定了12个化合物,它们分别为：亚油酸甲酯（1）、亚油酸（2）、麦角甾-4, 6, 8 (14), 22-四烯-3-酮（3）、麦角甾-5, 7, 22-三烯-3β-醇（4）、过氧麦角甾醇（5）、麦角甾-7, 22-二烯-3β, 5α, 9α-三羟基-6酮（6）、麦角甾-7, 22-二烯-3β, 5α-二羟基-6酮（7）、麦角甾-7, 22-二烯-3β, 5α, 6α, 9α-四醇（8）、麦角甾-7, 22-二烯-3β, 5α, 6β, 9α-四醇（9）、麦角甾-7, 22-二烯-3β, 5α, 6β-三醇（10）、3β-O-glucopyranosyl-5α, 6β-dihydroxy-ergosta-7,22-diene（11）、脑苷脂D（12）。结论 化合物1-3、6-12均为首次从该种真菌中分离得到。     

Mitochondrial DNA Extraction from Burial Soil Samples at Incremental Distances: A Preliminary Study

Preservation variance of soil DNA is neglected in the literature, and exceptional cases exaggerate amplification capabilities. This study sought to amplify a short mitochondrial fragment (212 bp) specific to Sus scrofa domesticus from the soil surrounding decomposing pig remains from an open‐air locale. Samples collected above the body at incremental distances after 145 days of initial placement yielded pig DNA. A secondary sampling was collected in 2017, approximately 768 days after burial. Inhibition tests corroborated that pig DNA was no longer present in the soil resulting in a loss of original DNA between 145 and 768 days. The results provide evidence that genetic material leaches out radially from the source and DNA fragments longer than 200 bp do not persist in soil for a relatively short timeframe in western Montana. The conclusions support the collection of soil in crime scene investigation procedures within the first few months of decomposition.     

Microwave-assisted extraction and differential scanning calorimetry in the chemical identification of sliming agents apprehended in the south region of Brazil

Over the past decades, consume of slimming agents considerably increased in several countries, including Brazil, due to weight-loss and stimulant properties. Since these drugs are controlled to prevent illicit and indiscriminate use, there is a parallel illegal market that uses the Internet and irregular pharmacies in order to distribute these formulations. Slimming agents produced by these illegal sources are known for being manufactured with little or none quality control resulting in uncertain and unknown formulations. For forensic purposes, apprehended pharmaceuticals have to undergo a process of chemical identification that can be difficult due to its complex matrix. In this sense, application of assisted energies in the extraction step such as microwave irradiation can be a promising method to increase the recuperation of the target molecules of the sample. Therefore, the aim of this research was to identify four slimming agents apprehended in Brazil by means of visual inspection, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, Differential Scanning Calorimetry and Gas Chromatography – Mass Spectrometry. Moreover, the efficiency of solid-liquid extraction and microwave-assisted extraction was compared. It should be noted that our work was one of the few to use Differential Scanning Calorimetry and the application of microwave irradiation in the analysis of apprehended materials. Results showed that the majority of the samples was counterfeit being composed of one or several adulterants or contaminants. Initially, visual inspection resourcefully screened the slimming agents for possible signs of falsification, however it failed to detect fraudulent products that were very similar to veridical medicines. Sequentially, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy detected functional groups present in the samples while the presence or absence of the alleged active ingredients were successfully measured with Differential Scanning Calorimetry and, thus, providing a full chemical screening of the apprehended materials. Gas Chromatography- Mass Spectrometry confirmed the presence of adulterants such as caffeine, fluoxetine and phenolphthalein as well as contaminants such as sulfurol in the falsified samples. Finally, comparison of extraction procedures indicated that microwave-assisted extraction increased the recovery of compounds detected in chromatographic analysis to a greater extent than solid-liquid extraction.     

Full STR profile of a 67-year-old bone found in a fresh water lake

DNA extraction from and DNA typing of fresh water-exposed aged bone specimens poses a challenging task and is not very well examined. This study presents a new method to extract typable DNA from such problematic bone specimens. The procedure comprises low-heat drilling and cryogrinding, mild lysis conditions, and silica-column-based DNA cleaning. DNA quantity is assessed by quantitative PCR prior to short tandem repeat (STR) amplification. The procedure was employed with a 67-year-old tibia bone fragment recovered from a fresh water lake and succeeded to produce a full STR profile using the MPX-SP1 and MPX-SP2 mini-STR kits and a partial profile with 12 successfully amplified STRs using the Identifiler STR kit. The new method for the extraction of DNA from aged fresh water-exposed bone specimens presented herein was successfully applied to prepare DNA of sufficient quality and quantity to generate a full STR profile.     

应用分子印迹固相萃取法提取血液中大隆和溴敌隆

目的采用分子印迹固相萃取,UPLC/MS分析,检验血液中大隆和溴敌隆。方法以大隆为模板分子,丙烯酰胺为单体,二甲基亚砜为有机溶剂,按照模板分子与单体摩尔配比关系为1∶4合成大隆分子印迹聚合物,作为固相萃取剂萃取血液中大隆和溴敌隆,以2×1mL去离子水、1mL 30%甲醇去离子水洗涤杂质,2×1mL 1%甲酸/甲醇洗脱,提取血中目标物后进行UPLC/MS分析检测。结果溴敌隆和大隆回收率均在90%以上,在50～500ng/mL浓度范围内线性关系良好r,2溴敌隆为0.998 4,大隆为0.991,检测限（S/N=5/1）低于10ng/mL。结论本方法回收率高,基质效应降低,杂质干扰少,可用于血液中低浓度大隆和溴敌隆的检验。