Identification of fetal blood stains by radioimmunoassay of alpha 1-fetoprotein.

Radioimmunoassay of alpha 1-fetoprotein(AFP) for medico-legal identification of fetal blood stains using a commercial kit is described. The AFP content in fetal blood stains on filter paper ranged from 21--320 ng/9 mm2. The protein was detected in stains of adult blood and retroplacental blood in only negligible amounts. Aging of the blood stains did not influence the values up to 1 month. The method is simple and sensitive enough for application to medico-legal-practice.     

Detection of thyroglobulin in blood stains as an aid in the diagnosis of mechanical asphyxia

Mechanical forces applied to the neck region are known to release certain amounts of thyroglobulin into circulation. In this experiment, an attempt was made to detect thyroglobulin in bloodstains as an aid in the diagnosis of mechanical asphyxia. Experimental bloodstains containing thyroglobulin at concentrations of 1, 2, 5 and 10 mu g/mL were prepared on a sheet of filter paper. Small pieces of bloodstains, measuring approximately 2.4 cm2 in area, were extracted with 0.1 mL of distilled water and the extracts were tested against an antihuman thyroglobulin serum by precipitation-electrophoresis. Bloodstains containing more than 1 mu g/mL of thyroglobulin formed distinct precipitin lines for up to one month of storage, while bloodstains containing more than 5 mu g/mL of thyroglobulin formed distinct precipitin lines for up to three months of storage. The present results suggest that the bloodstains can be utilized in the diagnosis of mechanical asphyxia.     

C7 typing of blood stains using isoelectric focusing and immunoblotting

By means of isoelectric focusing and immunoblotting C7 types were clearly demonstrated from bloodstains which had been stored at 37 degrees C for up to three weeks, at room temperature for up to six weeks and at 4 degrees C for over ten weeks. The C7 typing is practically useful in medicolegal individualization of unknown bloodstains.     

Medicolegal use of placental alkaline phosphatase in infanticide

By means of starch gel electrophoresis and an improved staining technique for the demonstration of isoenzyme bands, placental alkaline phosphatase types were demonstrated in placenta tissue and birth blood traces, which had been stored for several days at room temperature. This method was successfully applied in a case of infanticide and secret delivery to identify the mother of the child. The results of a study on a Japanese population are also reported.     

Use of histoelectrofocusing in the determination of PGM1 subtypes in human body tissues

The present study reports the successful application of histo-electrofocusing to the determination of PGM1 subtypes in various tissues of the human body. The method described here is of practical use in individualizing parts of cadavers stored for up to 1 week.     

Population data on the AmpF/STR Identifiler loci in Africans and Europeans from South Africa

Allele frequencies of 15 short tandem repeat (STR) loci, D8S1179, D21S11, D7S820, CSF1PO, D3S1358, TH01, D13S317, D16S539, D2S1338, D19S433, vWA, TPOX, D18S51, D5S818 and FGA, were determined for 98 unrelated Africans from South Africa and 98 unrelated Europeans from South Africa using the AmpFlSTR Identifiler PCR amplification kit. The genotype frequency distributions of the 15 STR loci were in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for both populations.     

Determination of Acetamiprid and IM‐1‐2 in PostMortem Human Blood,Liver, Stomach Contents by HPLC‐DAD

An HPLC‐DAD method was developed to detect and quantify a neonicotinoid insecticide acetamiprid (ATP) and its metabolite IM‐1‐2 in autopsy samples of a fatal intoxication case. The postmortem blood and tissue distribution of ATP and IM‐1‐2 was determined for the first time. The method showed acceptable precisions and recoveries with relative standard deviations of <10% for ATP level and 1.38 % for IM‐1‐2. The detection and quantification limits for ATP were 0.015 μg/mL and 0.030 μg/mL for blood and were 0.035 μg/g and 0.050 μg/g for liver samples, respectively. The mean contents of ATP were 0.79 μg/g in the liver, 47.35 μg/g in the stomach contents and 2.7 μg/mL in the blood. IM‐1‐2 content was 17.0 μg/g in the stomach contents. ATP and IM‐1‐2 were not detected in the urine. The presence of ATP and IM‐1‐2 in the samples was confirmed by GC‐MS. The method can be exploited in future forensic casework.     

The Distribution of the Armenian Abandoned Properties in an Ottoman Locality: Kayseri (1915–18)

Abandoned properties of the deportee Armenians is a new topic in the literature which began to attract the interest of scholars. As a general tendency, most of the related studies focused on the evaluation of the rules and regulations on the abandoned properties. Even though it is important to take legal framework into consideration, this article would rather focus on the analysis of the actual process in an Ottoman locality, Kayseri. By doing this, it tries to go beyond presenting the ‘mentality’ of the ruling elite, and construct the actual history of the process. In the first part of the article, the studies on the abandoned properties would be analyzed, and in the second part, the distribution of the Armenian abandoned properties in the sanjak of Kayseri would be detailed.