The aim of this study is to explore several possible uses of RNAs in forensic science, including body fluid identification using LAMP (loop-mediated isothermal amplification) technology and dating the plucked hair by real-time PCR. A novel application of real-time reverse transcription LAMP to identify the presence of a specific body fluid using blood and saliva is reported as a proof-of-concept model in this study. In comparing with other recently developed methods of body fluid identification, the RT-LAMP assay is more rapid and requires only one simple heating-block maintained at a single temperature, circumventing the need of dedicated equipment. The 18S rRNA locus was used as the internal control, and haemoglobin beta (HBB) and histatin 3 (HTN3) as the blood-specific and saliva-specific marker respectively. The data showed that the specificity and the limit of detection was a minimum of 10-5 ng total RNA for detection of both 18S rRNA and HBB, whereas it was 1.25ng total RNA for detection of HTN3. The detection of RT-LAMP products was performed by separation of the products using gel electrophoresis and collecting the fluorescence of calcein. The data collected indicated complete concordance with the body fluid tested regardless of the detection method used. This is the first application of real-time RT-LAMP to detect body fluid-specific RNA and demonstrates the use of this method in forensic biology. The determination of the time since a hair was plucked was estimated by the analysis of 18S rRNA and ß-actin mRNA using real-time PCR. The difference of average Cq value (dCq between the Cq values of 18S rRNA and ß-actin mRNA was monitored over a period of 8 weeks. The data presented that the age of the plucked hair could be approximately estimated using a liner polynomial: the time since the hair was plucked (TSP)= 0.168 × dCq + 13.406 (r=0.99) with a limitation of 21 days. It was also noticed that some factors, such as the uncertainty of the actual phase of the plucked hairs, chemicals used for hair dye or perm, and other uncontrolled environmental conditions, may impact the estimation.

No description available.

The ability to objectify ballistic evidence is a challenge faced by firearms examiners around the world. A number of researchers are trying to improve bullet-identification systems to address the deficiencies in this regard and which were detailed within the National Academy of Sciences report (2009). Bullet to bullet comparisons have largely relied on the supposition that the rifling marks within the barrel of a weapon have class characteristics that identify a weapon type and individual characteristics that identify a specific weapon. Such characteristics are impressed onto projectiles when they are fired through a particular weapon and an examination of specific regions displaying striated marks on the projectiles allows for identification and comparison to be undertaken. This premise has been the foundation for comparative firearms examination for many decades. In many cases only small portions of striated regions of the projectile are examined and the process is essentially subjective. More recently focus has turned to making use of more sophisticated imaging modalities to view entire regions of the projectile and the development of automated systems for the comparison of the topographical surfaces recorded. Projectiles from a fired series of 609 pellets were examined using an Alicona infinite focus microscope. A mathematical methodology was developed to pre-process the resultant topographical maps generating point data for comparison. Comparisons between different data sets were undertaken using chemometric techniques (principal component analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis and linear discriminant analysis) to assess (1) the repeatability and reproducibility of the method, (2) the variability of land engraved areas (LEAs) in repetitively fired projectiles over a series of test fires, (3) the ability of the developed method to distinguish between different classes of weapons (pistols and rifles) and weapons within the same class (rifles) and (4) the ability of the method to correctly associate distorted projectiles to the weapon that fired them. The developed objective method still requires an operator to identify the LEAs to be scanned; however the mathematical alignments were objectively achieved. The discrimination of weapons by class was achieved although weapons within the same class could not be easily separated from each other. The LEAs on a single projectile varied in terms of distinction from each other and, while there was some variation with use of the same weapon over time, this was not pronounced. Generally the LEAs with more distinguishing features across the entire region created a better discriminating surface and in particular facilitated the correct association for distorted projectiles.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-30T10:50:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 tese_8860_Elisangela Coco Dissertação de Mestrado.pdf: 1861745 bytes, checksum: 670c8e26d28a52277d8df5bd52ac88d3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-04-27 / O espaço legítimo, utilizado no processo de negociação do trabalho entre gestores e trabalhadores do SUS é a Mesa de Negociação Permanente do Sistema Único de Saúde (MNP-SUS). O objetivo desse estudo é analisar o processo de negociação coletiva entre os componentes da Mesa Municipal de Negociação Permanente do SUS implantada em 2007 no município de Vitória-ES. Essa pesquisa é de caráter qualitativo do tipo exploratório, realizada em dois momentos: a) pesquisa bibliográfica: com o emprego dos descritores reestruturação produtiva, negociação coletiva em saúde e mesa de negociação permanente na saúde. b) pesquisa documental: através do regimento interno, leis e decretos municipais e atas de reuniões disponibilizadas no hotsite da Prefeitura de Vitória. O período de realização da coleta de dados do estudo compreendeu aos anos de 2007 a 2013. Para análise dos informações extraída das 53 atas disponibilizadas realizamos análise de conteúdo. A Mesa Municipal de Vitória contra com representação de 12 gestores da Secretaria de Administração e Saúde e 12 representantes dos sindicatos de trabalhadores da saúde. Os resultados evidenciam que a representação dos gestores foi mais expressiva. Entre os representantes dos trabalhadores destacamos a presença do SINODONTO e SISMUV. Os pontos de pauta de maior relevância estavam relacionados ao Programa de Melhoria do Acesso e da Qualidade implantado pelo município e a evolução funcional dos servidores efetivos e incorporação da gratificação salarial. Reconhecemos e destacamos a importância do fortalecimento do espaço de negociação coletiva no SUS como forma de garantir a permanência e vinculação de profissionais no serviço público. / The legitimate space, used in the labor negotiation process between managers and workers of SUS, is the Permanent Negotiation Roundtable of the Trading Unified Health System (SUS-MNP). The aim of this study is to analyze the process of collective bargaining between the components of the Municipal Negotiation Roundtable of SUS established in 2007 in Vitória-ES. This research is qualitative exploratory held in two stages: a) literature: with the use of descriptors productive: restructuring, collective bargaining on health system and permanent negotiation roundtable on health system. b) documentary research: internal regulament of roundtable, municipal laws, municipal ordinances and meeting minutes available on Vitória‟s Council hot site. The study‟s data collection comprised the years 2007 to 2013 and the content of 53 meeting minutes available were analyzed. The Vitória‟s Negotiation Roundtable consists of 12 managers of the Health and Administration Secretariats‟ and 12 health workers' unions representatives. The results shows an expressive representation of managers. Between workers' representatives was relevant the presence of SINODONTO and SISMUV. The most important agenda points were related to Improvement Program Access of Quality, implemented by the municipality, and The Functional Evolution of the Civil Servant and Salary Bonus. We recognize the importance of strengthening the collective negotiation space at SUS in order to ensure continuity and civil servants‟ approximation in the public service.

No description available.

This research conducted a two-pronged approach to study the effects of taphonomic processes by conducting analysis of experimental burials of porcine femora and parallel analysis of ancient human archaeological remains from geologically distinct cemeteries. The aim of this study was to identify the major degradative factors from depositional environments that affect the bone composition and the retention and retrieval of nucleic DNA from archaeological bone. Four different experimental burial environments of clay, compost, lime and sand were designed, displaying different properties of soil type, pH, water content and organic content. Analysis of the burial mediums and bones were conducted at regular intervals over an 18 month period. Observations of changes in the burial medium, comparisons of the rates and degree of soft tissue decomposition, bone diagenesis from compositional assessment, and bone colour change were made and analysed in correspondence with the different environments. The analytical data collected on the diagenesis of the archaeological bone from both studies, was compared to the DNA profiling success rates. The research and optimisation of sample preparation and DNA analysis enabled the most cost-effective and appropriate methods to be identified and utilised in accordance with the preservation state of the bone samples. This allowed the analysis of ancient archaeological bone to be analysed in-line with forensic protocols, to enable a uniform accessible approach to produce comparable results across different laboratories. Drawing together the results from the various analytical techniques made it possible to identify the variables that affect bone diagenesis and the survival of nuclear DNA, and provide evidence that the rate of decomposition and bone degradation is affected more significantly by the burial environment than duration of burial, as stated in the research hypothesis. The presence of water, sand and the level of organic content were found to be the most degradative variables within the experimental burial conditions; causing changes in bone crystallinity, and infiltration of contaminants into the bone. The presence of lime, chalk or limestone in an environment was found to have preserving properties in both the porcine and human burials, by retarding the rate and degree of soft tissue decomposition, and reducing the diagenetic changes in bone composition evident from the other environments. Despite previous reports of success using analytical techniques as predictive models for DNA and bone preservation, no correlations with DNA survival could be established. However the use of a multi-disciplinary approach enabled the detection and identification of soil contaminants affecting the bone structure and the ability to amplify DNA, in relation to burial environments. This research highlighted the importance of utilising multiple analytical techniques, such as colourimetry, ATR-FTIR, XRF and genetic analysis in order to avoid misinterpretation and false reporting of the state of bone diagenesis or preservation and the survival of DNA, due to environmental contaminants within the hard tissue. The research confirms the idea that in order to establish optimised sampling and DNA analysis of archaeological bone, it is imperative that certain protocols are adhered to. Precautions must be implemented from excavation through to laboratory analysis to avoid contamination; and correct recording of burial environment is essential to enable consideration of extrinsic factors and contaminants when reporting results.

The presence of invertebrates on decomposing animal matter has been used extensively by forensic entomologists to estimate time of death for over 100 years. The presence of toxins such as drugs and pesticides on carrion can affect the behaviour and life cycle of such invertebrates. The aim of this thesis was to examine the effects of nicotine upon the colonisation of carrion by invertebrates; nicotine was used because of its historical use as an insecticide and its ubiquitous use in society. The investigations aimed to examine these possible effects both in situ in field-based testing and ex situ in a controlled laboratory environment and to work towards an empirically testable correction factor for the estimation of Postmortem interval estimates in the presence of nicotine. The field-based testing was done using Sus domestica (Linnaeus) carrion with a solution of nicotine injected into the cadaveric throat of the animal. The carrion was protected from feeding and removal by vertebrate scavengers. It was found that nicotine affected the time taken for Diptera to colonise the carrion as well as affecting the behaviour of feeding. Diptera larvae showed avoidance of the nicotine treated throat sites on the carrion, which is the normal site of oviposition. It was determined that the rove beetle Creophilus maxillosus (Linnaeus) was exclusively found on the higher dose nicotine carrion. The rare hoverfly Rhingia rostrata (Linnaeus) was discovered on the control animal; this is the first specimen reported in Nottinghamshire. The investigation also found the first record of the Soldierfly Sargus bipunctatus breeding in carrion; the late breeding period of this species and its significance to the forensic entomologist is considered. The experiments were conducted in the Autumn/Winter months and Spring/Summer months. Nicotine appeared to have a differing effect with the season as the autumnal fauna varied from that of the spring fauna. The presence of nicotine appeared to prevent the animal carcass from drying out, typified by mycophagus beetles in autumn and semi-liquid habitat breeding flies in the summer. The laboratory based investigation examined the effects of nicotine upon the life cycle of Calliphora vomitoria including the effects upon oviposition, rate of development and survivablity. It was found that nicotine significantly affects rate of development of this forensically important fly. This study has shown that a careful study of a single chemical compound and its interaction with carrion and entomology has profound effects upon the alteration of the normal activity of a range of forensically important invertebrates. It will assist in improving the evidential usefulness of entomology to the Forensic Science and Policing communities in criminal investigations.

Expert witnesses employ bloodstain pattern analysis (BPA), to provide objective analysis of bloodstain evidence in criminal cases. This thesis added to the scientific understanding of BPA by generating and analysing a large data set of 785 horse blood experiments. The experiments produced impact velocities, u0, of 2:89ms-1 to 6:54ms-1, with impact angles, [theta]f , 90°, 72°, 54°, 36°, and 18°. Different surface roughnesses were investigated: conditioned and unconditioned paper, smooth steel, and three roughened steel substrates with roughness values, Ra, 1:6x10-6 m, 3:2x10-6m, and 6:3x10-6 m. To analyse the data, two computational tools were developed. The first tool extracted the diameter and velocity of a droplet from high-speed videos. The second tool measured stain properties and counted spines of stains resulting from 90° and 72°. The results of these experiments are investigated, extracting relationships between impact properties of droplets to stain properties. Each of the stain properties were related to some combination of a non-dimensional number (Bond number, Bo, Froude number, Fr, or Reynolds number, Re) and impact angle. It was found that the stain area and stain perimeter are proportional to Bo(sin[theta]f )-1. The numberof spines and/or tails on a stain is dependent on Fr(sin[theta]f )2. The major diameter is proportional to Re(sin[theta]f )2 and conversely the minor diameter is proportional to Re(sin[theta]f)2. The full length of the stain is proportional to Bo(sin[theta]f)-2. The results showed that increased surface roughness, promotes increased variability in the bloodstains, up to a limit of Ra = 6:3x10-6m. The roughest steel is statistically the same as paper in almost all stain properties. The results proved a need to account for surface roughness in modelling the spreading of a droplet on a substrate. Starting from the laws of conservation of energy, a new model for predicting spread factor was derived which accounts for the impact angle and substrate roughness. This model uses a coefficient based on properties from the stain and is able to predict the experimental spread factors in this thesis more accurately than the spread factor models in literature. Two new equations were derived that calculate the impact velocity and droplet diameter using only stain properties, not experimental fitting constants, making the expressions more robust.

The 'everyday experiences' of anger of three groups of men were compared. The groups were comprised of a sample of: 1) male outpatients of a forensic psychology service whose anger was seen as being 'disordered', 2) male outpatients of a forensic psychology service whose anger was not seen as being 'disordered' and 3) a group of men who were not clients of a forensic service. The tendency of the three groups to break the rules of anger (as outlined by Averill's social constructivist theory of disordered anger) was compared. This was done using a semi-structured questionnaire based on one devised by Averill for use in an study of 'everyday anger experiences' and the State Trait Anger Expression Inventory (Spielberger et al, 1985). The results indicated that the forensic-angry group, in comparison to the other two groups, was angry more frequently, that their anger was more intense, that they became more physically aroused and that they were more likely to become physically aggressive and/or take their anger out on a third party. Also, the forensic-angry group made less attempt to control their anger. The findings are discussed in relation to a social constructivist theory of 'disordered' anger.

The aim of this thesis is to assess the impact of long term non-contemporaneity on the strength of forensic speech evidence. Speakers experience age-related changes to the voice over long delays and this time also presents the opportunity for social factors to vary. These changes are shown to impact on speech parameters used in forensic analyses. Using longitudinal data from the Up documentary series, this thesis analyses the effects of aging on forensically useful acoustic parameters in eight speakers at five seven-year intervals between ages 21 and 49. The investigation reveals significant age-related changes in real-time across adulthood. Frequencies of the first three formants in monophthongs /i: ɪ e a ɑ: ʌ ɒ ʊ & u:/ and diphthongs /eɪ & aɪ/ show comprehensive reduction. For monophthongs, F1 exhibits mean change of 8.5%, greater than F2 and F3 at 3.7% and 2.2% respectively. Vowel quality also impacts on magnitude of change in each formant. Estimations based on this data suggest that vocal tract extension and restricted articulator movement are probable drivers for acoustic change, operating on different timelines. Counter-examples to this aging pattern can generally be explained by social factors, as a result of mobility or in accordance with mainstream changes in a variety. Strength of evidence estimates for these non-contemporaneous data are calculated using a numerical likelihood ratio (LR) approach. Age-related changes result in weaker and fewer correct LRs with greater length delays. Cubic coefficients of diphthong formants are investigated in line with a formant dynamic approach. These LR tests show promising results and resilience to aging, especially in F1; tentatively suggesting that, for these speakers, some speaker-specific behaviour pervades in spite of physiological changes. This analysis raises several questions with regards to applying an overtly numerical LR approach where there is apparent mismatch between forensic samples. The effect of aging on an ASR system (BATVOX) is also tested for six male subjects. The system measures Mel-frequency cepstral coefficient (MFCC) parameters that reflect the physical properties of the vocal tract. Predicted degradation of the system’s performance with increasing age is apparent. The reduction in performance is significant, varies between speakers, and is striking in longer delays for all speakers. The degradation in strength of evidence for acoustic data from monophthongs and formant dynamic coefficients, as well as that for the ASR system, demonstrates that aging presents a real problem for forensic analysis in non-contemporaneous cases. Furthermore, aging also presents issues for speech databases for the purpose of assessing strength of evidence, where further research into distributions of parameters in different age groups is warranted.