Interethnic discordance and stability in Estonia

This article proposes a theoretical model of perceived intergroup stability (STB) consisting of two factors: the perceived strength differential (PSD) between the groups, expressing the changeability of the power relations, and the level of intergroup discordance (D), expressing the level of aversion towards the outgroup combined with the perceptions of legitimacy of intergroup power relations. A quantitative study of Estonian (N?=?538) and Russian-speaking (N?=?460) communities revealed that the perceived stability was highest in monolingual Estonian regions while it was lowest in Russian-speaking eastern Estonia. The findings concur with the results of previous empirical studies, validating the conceptual structure of the theoretical model underlying the current study.     

Long Allele Designations at D2S1338 and D19S433 Loci as Influenced by Various Multiplex STR Kits

European forensic laboratories are replacing the STR multiplex kits with the new generation 16/17 STR kits. This study examines the influence of the new generation kits and the new Applied Biosystems 3500xL Genetic Analyzer on the designation of long D2S1338 and D19S433 off‐ladder alleles. Different allele calls were obtained using the new NGM? (Applied Biosystems) and PowerPlex^® ESI? (Promega) kits compared with AmpF?STR^® SGM Plus? kit (Applied Biosystems). Sequence analysis was used to determine accurate allele designation. The new multiplex kits and the 3500xL Genetic Analyzer improved accuracy of long allele designations. DNA databases worldwide include countless profiles obtained by previous kits. Discrepancies between the new and former technologies may cause failure to detect hits. Discordance is expected due to primer sequence differences between various kits. An additional discordance, occurring in long alleles, independent of primer sequence is reported in this study.     

论信息素质与科学决策

急剧增长的信息流与信息分布的不对称,给决策的科学性、时效性带来了困难和风险。将致力于弱化信息不对称的信息素质引入科学决策中,则有着重要的现实意义。     

D5S818 Typing Discrepancy Between PowerPlex® Fusion and Other STR Kits Including GlobalFiler® Caused by a One‐base Deletion in 31 Nucleotides Upstream of the Repeat Region

Short tandem repeat (STR) typing is widely used in forensic investigation. When the same DNA sample is analyzed with different STR typing kits, a typing discrepancy is occasionally observed. In this study, we examined the cause of a typing discrepancy in a sample at D5S818 locus. This sample was designated as 10, 12 using Identifiler^®, Identifiler^® Plus, GlobalFiler^®, PowerPlex^® 16HS, and PowerPlex^® 18D, but as 9.3, 12 using PowerPlex^® Fusion. Sequencing results indicated that the shorter allele in the sample had a deletion (U31Tdel) at 31 nucleotides upstream of the repeat region (AGAT)₁₀. This deletion was located in the binding site of the published D5S818 forward primer in PowerPlex^® 16 and was only 9 and 11 nucleotides downstream of our estimated 5′ end position of D5S818 forward primer in GlobalFiler^® and PowerPlex^® 18D, respectively. We also examined the effect of primer length on the heterozygous peak balance in this sample.