The public salience of crime, 1960–2014: Age–period–cohort and time–series analyses†

The public salience of crime has wide-ranging political and social implications; it influences public trust in the government and citizens’ everyday routines and interactions, and it may affect policy responsiveness to punitive attitudes. Identifying the sources of crime salience is thus important. Two competing theoretical models exist: the objectivist model and the social constructionist model. According to the first, crime salience is a function of the crime rate. According to the second, crime salience is a function of media coverage and political rhetoric, and trends in crime salience differ across population subgroups as a result of differences in their responsiveness to elite initiatives. In both theories, period-level effects predominate. Variation in crime salience, however, may also reflect age and cohort effects. Using data from 422,504 respondents interviewed between 1960 and 2014, we first examine the nature of crime salience using hierarchical age–period–cohort (HAPC) models and then analyze period-level predictors using first differences. We find that 1) crime salience varies mostly at the period level; 2) crime salience trends are parallel (cointegrated) across demographic, socioeconomic, and partisan groups; and 3) crime salience trends within every population subgroup are most consistent with the constructionist model. The crime rate does not exert a significant effect in any subgroup.     

我国“或裁或审”条款的反思与突破——兼评《仲裁法司法解释》第7条

由于没有明确的立法规定,“或裁或审”条款的性质与类型在认定上十分模糊,因此各级人民法院经常在该问题上产生混乱。例如,“或裁或审”条款与“一裁终局”条款相混淆,多份协议与单一协议中的“或裁或审”条款相模糊,以及对《最高人民法院关于适用〈中华人民共和国仲裁法〉若干问题的解释》(以下简称《仲裁法司法解释》)第7条的理解不一致等。虽然最高人民法院发布的司法解释或指导性案例能为各级人民法院在“或裁或审”条款的性质与类型的定性中提供指引,但并不能从根本上解决《仲裁法司法解释》第7条中对于仲裁协议无效的规定。纵观各国对于既约定仲裁又约定诉讼的条款的态度,我国对于仲裁无效的判定过于严厉,这与我国正在推进建立亚太国际仲裁中心的政策考量不入。只有对法律制度的突破与变更才能在实质上修正立法的滞后性。先管辖先受理原则的借鉴,不仅可以为维护当事人意思自治提供出路,而且可以为我国鼓励与支持仲裁的发展消弭弊端。     

DNA Barcoding in Forensic Entomology – Establishing a DNA Reference Library of Potentially Forensic Relevant Arthropod Species,

Throughout the years, DNA barcoding has gained in importance in forensic entomology as it leads to fast and reliable species determination. High‐quality results, however, can only be achieved with a comprehensive DNA barcode reference database at hand. In collaboration with the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office, we have initiated at the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology the establishment of a reference library containing arthropods of potential forensic relevance to be used for DNA barcoding applications. CO1‐5P’ DNA barcode sequences of hundreds of arthropods were obtained via DNA extraction, PCR and Sanger Sequencing, leading to the establishment of a database containing 502 high‐quality sequences which provide coverage for 88 arthropod species. Furthermore, we demonstrate an application example of this library using it as a backbone to a high throughput sequencing analysis of arthropod bulk samples collected from human corpses, which enabled the identification of 31 different arthropod Barcode Index Numbers.     

Whole-genome sequencing of degraded DNA for investigative genetic genealogy

Whole genome sequencing has opened the doors to Investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) analysis of challenging forensic samples that are not suitable for microarray genotyping. These samples still do not typically achieve high enough coverage for direct genotype calling, therefore a pipeline for imputation from low coverage sequencing data was evaluated using data from the 1000 Genomes Project. This pipeline generated results suitable for IGG down to 0.25X coverage. Additionally, forensic samples from a variety of tissue types and input amounts were sequenced and successfully uploaded to genetic genealogy databases after imputation.     

法医学二代测序标准化进展与展望

二代测序技术可检测多种法医遗传标记获取海量序列信息,满足法医学实践中精准个体识别、复杂亲缘关系鉴定、特征刻画等应用需求。国内外已开展大量二代测序法医学应用科研工作,但由于缺乏行业标准,二代测序在我国公安实战中并未得到有效应用。目前,法医学二代测序的标准制定面临检测靶标特殊、测序技术流程和结果分析不统一等挑战。本文从核酸标准参考物、测序技术要求、序列多态STR等位基因命名规则等方面,梳理国外法医学二代测序标准化工作进展,并总结国内二代测序检测行业标准现状,希冀为我国法医学二代测序的标准建设提供思路和参考。     

Oral and skin microbiome as potential tools in forensic field

The interest in the analysis of the human microbiome for personal identification purposes is based on the microbial diversity amongst individuals. The oral cavity hosts one of the most diverse and abundant microbial communities in the human body; the skin instead is a complex living ecosystem with unique microbial niches at different sites. Both skin and oral microbiomes are highly individual and relatively stable over time. As saliva and skin debris are often found at crime scenes, the analysis of their microbiome may represent a potential tool for personal identification. However, there are some gaps in knowledge on how factors such as age, sex, geographic origin, diet and pathologies can affect the composition of the microbiome. The aim of this study is to improve the existing knowledge by examining oral and skin microbiomes from the same individuals and evaluating the variability between anatomical sites and donors. For this study, 50 individuals living in Italy donated oral swab samples and provided information regarding their diet, lifestyle, health status, antibiotic use, and other demographic data. Skin swabs from 11 of the 50 individuals were also analysed and compared to the oral swabs from the same donors. All analyses were done through metabarcoding of the 16S rRNA region of DNA extracted from the samples. This research outlines the potential use of oral and skin microbiome signatures as added evidence in personal identification, providing useful investigative clues for future forensic caseworks.     

Probabilistic SNP genotyping at low DNA concentrations

We present a statistical method for biallelic SNP genotyping that reduces the risk of wrong SNP calls and gives fewer no-calls. The method uses a symmetric multinomial logistic regression model with an intuitive graphical interpretation. Its probabilistic nature gives the user control over the accepted risk through the estimated genotype probabilities. We compared the performance of our method with the HID SNP Genotyper v.4.3.1 plug-in (HSG) (Thermo Fisher Scientific) and the additional criteria of the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) through a series of six DNA dilutions from 500 pg to 16 pg DNA. The HSG method made wrong calls from 62.5 pg DNA and below, while the UCPH method made wrong calls at 16 pg DNA. Our method allowed SNP genotyping of 16 pg DNA without making wrong calls. Depending on the DNA dilution, our method also reduced the number of no-calls by 70–96 % compared to UCPH method and 59–69 % compared to the HSG method. Our method can be used for any biallelic genotyping.     

Postmortem genetic testing in sudden unexplained death: A public health laboratory experience

Sudden unexplained death in the young poses a diagnostically challenging situation for practicing autopsy pathologists, especially in the absence of anatomic and toxicological findings. Postmortem genetic testing may identify pathogenic variants in the deceased of such cases, including those associated with arrhythmogenic channelopathies and cardiomyopathies. The Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) is a state-run public health laboratory which performs postmortem genetic testing at no cost to Wisconsin medical examiners and coroners. The current study examines sequencing data from 18 deceased patients (ages 2 months to 49 years, 5 females) submitted to WSLH, from 2016 to 2021. Panel-based analysis was performed on 10 cases, and whole exome sequencing was performed on the most recent 8 cases. Genetic variants were identified in 14 of 18 decedents (77.8%), including 7 with pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants (38.9%). Whole exome sequencing was more likely to yield a positive result, more variants per decedent, and a larger number of variants of uncertain significance. While panel-based testing may offer definitive pathogenic variants in some cases, less frequent variants may be excluded. Whole exome testing may identify rare variants missed by panels, but increased yield of variants of uncertain significance may be difficult to interpret. Postmortem genetic testing in young decedents of sudden unexplained death can provide invaluable information to autopsy pathologists to establish accurate cause and manner of death and to decedent's relatives to allow appropriate management. A public health laboratory model may be a financially advisable alternative to commercial laboratories for medical examiner's/coroner's offices.     

线粒体高变区多聚C-stretch序列长度多态性

目的研究线粒体高变区多聚C-stretch序列长度多态性,并探讨其在法医学个体识别中的价值。方法针对线粒体高变区nt16180及nt310两个位点采用文献报道引物,应用直接测序技术研究其等位基因分布及频率。结果两对引物扩增长度分别为807bp和962bp,nt16180位点检测到7种基因型,其中AAAACCCCCTCCCC基因型占87.72%,AAAACCCCCCCCCCCCC基因型在汉族人群中首次报道;nt310检测到7种基因型,其中CCCCCCCCTCCCCCC基因型占60.53%;联合两个位点共检测出15种单倍型,GD值为0.6309,其中AAAACCCCCTCCCC-CCCCCCCCTCCCCCC检测出66条,达到57.89%。结论为线粒体控制区DNA在法医学领域中的应用提供基础数据,证实了线粒体nt16180位点和nt310位点单倍型在线粒体DNA鉴定中有较好的应用价值。     

知识产权平行进口法律规制研究

在经济全球化和国际贸易不平衡的大背景下,知识产权平行进口的问题日益增多,成为知识产权保护和国际贸易冲突的一个热门话题。随着我国综合国力的增强和对外贸易的不断发展,对外贸易中关于知识产权平行进口问题的案件日趋突出。因此,我们应当充分了解世界主要国家对平行进口的规定和态度,探求平行进口法律规制的发展趋势,为我国制定相关立法提供建议。