Forensic science international最新文献

{"title":"Analysis of hair styling wax residues on human hair: A forensic investigation with ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and chemometric interpretation","authors":"Arti Yadav ,&nbsp;Chongtham Nimi ,&nbsp;Sweety Sharma ,&nbsp;Sahil Bhan ,&nbsp;Sunpreet Kaur ,&nbsp;Rajinder Singh","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112308","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112308","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A comparative analysis of hair evidence recovered from the crime scene and the hair of suspects or victims is common in the forensic scenario. However, its evidentiary value increases with cosmetic applications like gel, wax, spray, or other hair treatments. Therefore, after extracting these products from hair strands, they can link the victim and accused to the crime scene and with each other, serving as corroborative evidence. Hair styling wax is one of the daily-wear hair cosmetic products used to manage hairstyles to provide stiffness to the hair strands and offer a high-setting performance. In this work, 19 different brands of hair styling waxes were analyzed using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and chemometrics (principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis). The results showed 96.49 % PCA-LDA training and 94.73 % validation accuracies. A blind test was also performed to test the built model's reliability, which showed 100 % accuracy. Furthermore, a wearing effect study was conducted using human hair samples with hair styling wax where the wax residues were extracted with acetone which showed 100 % matching when visually comparing the spectra of pristine wax samples and wax residues from hair samples. PCA-LDA prediction of the spectra obtained from wax residues from hair samples was also done which showed 87.5 % accuracy. This research presents a rapid and non-destructive method of analyzing hair styling wax products, which may act as corroborative evidence to help criminal investigating agencies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112308"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142747855","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A novel approach using cyanoacrylate ester fuming on surfaces with anti-climb paint","authors":"Maia J. Davatwal ,&nbsp;Andrew Langley ,&nbsp;Laura J. Vera Stimpson","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112306","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112306","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The use of fingermarks as evidence in forensic science remains indispensable with these being used for identification and/or elimination purposes. A wide array of methods and techniques have been developed to enhance, recover, and preserve fingermarks from various surfaces. However, the forensic community continues to encounter challenges when dealing with certain surfaces, among them is anti-climb paint, presenting unique difficulties due to its non-drying nature. This research introduces a systematic methodology, aligned with current forensic practices, to effectively develop and recover fingermarks from surfaces coated with anti-climb paint, addressing a critical gap in forensic science.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112306"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142698424","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Analysing the impact of legal and procedural frameworks on the socio-cultural and political dynamics of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances","authors":"Nicholas Dempsey ,&nbsp;Reena Sarkar ,&nbsp;Richard Bassed","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112305","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112305","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The remains of unlawfully killed individuals can provide evidence concerning human rights violations. The intricate challenges of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances can complicate legal and procedural processes. These cases often present indicators of suspicious circumstances, necessitating specialised investigative approaches to ascertain the circumstance and cause of death as well as potential human rights violations. This review explores the legal and procedural dimensions of handling the remains of individuals who have been unlawfully killed, critically examining the implementation of legal instruments and their impact on the socio-cultural and political landscape regarding cases of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances. This study utilised a Python-based web scraper, with an HTML parsing library to aggregate articles on three themes of 1) <em>International law, humanitarian law and laws protecting human remains 2), protection of human remains in cases of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances and 3), Considerations of socio-cultural, psychosocial factors in the protection of human remains and institutional failures.</em> The programming-based method for locating articles is innovative, and the search covered both English and Spanish languages. This review establishes the tension between psychosocial/cultural requirements and legal practice, and describes community mechanisms such as social services, mental health support for affected families, and citizen initiatives. By emphasising the gap between legal standards and practical execution, the study highlights the need to refine legal guidance and strengthen procedural compliance to uphold the dignity of the deceased and ensure accountability for violations of the right to life.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112305"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142695361","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A recommended sampling strategy for genetic identification of Second World War victims in Slovenia","authors":"Jezerka Inkret ,&nbsp;Tomaž Zupanc ,&nbsp;Eva Podovšovnik ,&nbsp;Irena Zupanič Pajnič","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112304","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112304","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Skeletonized human remains from Second World War mass graves in Slovenia are a major challenge in genetic identification, and bones with a high DNA yield must be selected for successful identification. The goal of this study was to construct skeletal sampling strategy recommendations through comparison of the most appropriate groups of skeletal elements. Altogether, 566 bones and teeth from the same mass grave were compared, half analyzed in this study and half in previous studies performed by our group. After anthropological examination, mechanical and chemical cleaning was performed, followed by bone and tooth powdering. Total demineralization of 0.5 g of bone and tooth was followed by extraction and purification of DNA with a Biorobot EZ1 device (Qiagen). The qPCR PowerQuant kit (Promega) was used to measure the amount of DNA, and statistical analysis was performed. Skeletal elements were selected according to known better preservation of DNA in the human body, and they were arranged in seven groups: petrous bone, long bones (femur and tibia), torso bones (first rib and 12th vertebra), metacarpals, metatarsals, short and sesamoid bones (talus, navicular, medial cuneiform, cuboid, calcaneus, and patella), and teeth. Sampling strategy recommendations were constructed based on DNA quantity and quality results. The petrous bone group, metacarpal group, torso bone group, and short and sesamoid bone group produced the highest DNA yields. Accordingly, in addition to standard sampling of long bones (femurs and tibias) and teeth, those additional bone types should be collected for Slovenian Second World War victim identification.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112304"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142692377","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of an experimental model for assessment of palatal tissue decomposition by intraoral scanner","authors":"Sándor Mikó ,&nbsp;Arvin Shahbazi ,&nbsp;Dalma Pellei ,&nbsp;Botond Simon ,&nbsp;János Vág","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112303","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112303","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Intraoral scanning of the palate is considered reliable for human identification; however, its accuracy on postmortem tissue remains dubious. This study aimed to investigate the effect of tissue decomposition on the precision of the intraoral scanner and the deviation of the scan. Ten fresh lamb (<em>Ovies aries</em>) maxillae were either unwashed or washed, selected, and stored at 20.5 °C and 80 % humidity for 20 days. Each palate was scanned three times a day with an Emerald S intraoral scanner. The anterior rugae area was cropped for analysis. The three scans of each day for each lamb were digitally aligned using the iterative closest point algorithm to ensure precision. The day one mesh was compared to each subsequent day to assess the postmortem scan deterioration, and a quadratic curve was fitted to the data. The mesh from different lambs was compared on day one to calculate the differences between the lambs. The length, location, and value of the largest curvatures of five randomly chosen rugae on each specimen were determined. A supervised machine learning procedure using linear discriminant classification assessed the specificity and sensitivity of singular ruga discrimination. Precision was significantly lower (p &lt; 0.001) in the unwashed group (0.025 mm) compared to the washed group (0.013 mm), but the postmortem days had no effect. The deviation curve for the unwashed samples had a significantly higher quadratic term (p &lt; 0.05) compared to the washed sample, indicating a slightly greater deterioration after day 11. The least difference between lambs was 0.484 mm. The deterioration curves crossed the minimum value on day 6 in both groups. The sensitivity of rugae detection was 0.89 on day one and decreased to 0.69 on day 20; the specificity ranged from 0.59 to 0.66. Intraoral scanning is an accurate approach for postmortem palatal imaging. Superimposition of the anterior palatal scan can accurately distinguish between lambs for up to six days. Nevertheless, deteriorated rugae can still be distinguished with moderate accuracy for up to 20 days.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112303"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142695374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Culmination of molecular genomic techniques in forensic crime investigation","authors":"Sanmitro Bhattacherjee ,&nbsp;Susmita Mukherjee ,&nbsp;Asmita Podder ,&nbsp;Sonali Paul","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112302","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112302","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The advancements in the sectors of forensic science along with biological sciences has proved to be a cornerstone in serving justice to people across the world. Genes are the coding languages that the body uses to define the definite characteristics of a human being that differentiates that being amongst million others. Now, to distinguish and get hands on the criminals, unique techniques are developed and introduced in the market to be implemented in the real world in order to handout proper verdict by the judicial system. This paper deals with few of those molecular biology techniques that are implemented in forensics to unfold the reality of the cases. The paper discusses the basics, principles, pros, and cons along with the future aspects of the techniques with the reader and aims at clarifying the concept of analysis of the DNA. Techniques such as PCR, STR, mtDNA, NGS along with forensic DNA database CODIS are analysed in the paper which showcase the importance of the presence of a technique with a database for an optimal inference of the results.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112302"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142695366","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Developmental time pattern of Thanatophilus sinuatus at different constant and variable temperatures","authors":"Shipeng Shao ,&nbsp;Gengwang Hu ,&nbsp;Liangliang Li ,&nbsp;Yundi Gao ,&nbsp;Ruonan Zhang ,&nbsp;Siqi Liu ,&nbsp;Hongfei Xu ,&nbsp;Shuixiu Xia ,&nbsp;Yu Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112301","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112301","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As a forensically important species, <em>Thanatophilus sinuatus</em> (Fabricius, 1775) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) is often active and widely distributed on animal and human carcasses. Although there is developmental data available for this species under small-group feeding conditions, there is still a lack of data on the developmental time of this species under aggregate feeding conditions, focusing on each developmental stage. Also, there are no studies on the development of this species under variable temperatures. Thus, this study focused on the aggregate rearing of <em>T. sinuatus</em> in China at seven constant temperatures and three variable temperatures from 16 to 34 °C, recording the developmental duration and accumulated degree days (ADD) of each developmental stage in detail. Additionally, body length, head capsule width and mesonotum width were measured at different times, and the survival rate was calculated for each stage. Based on the above data, an isomorphen diagram, the linear thermal summation models, the curvilinear Optim SSI models, and a survival curve were established and the head capsule width and mesonotum width were cluster analyzed to identify between instars. In addition, differences in total developmental time between constant and variable temperatures under the same mean temperature were compared to provide more comprehensive developmental data for estimating postmortem interval (PMI) using this species.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"366 ","pages":"Article 112301"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142681253","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Detected substance abuse among injecting drug users through analysis of used syringes in Tunisia","authors":"Bilel Moslah ,&nbsp;Omar Smaoui ,&nbsp;Thomas Néfau ,&nbsp;Houyem Boukassoula ,&nbsp;Nadia chaouali ,&nbsp;Meriem Laaribi ,&nbsp;Mohamed Anouar Nouioui ,&nbsp;Dorra Amira ,&nbsp;Abderrazek Hedhili","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112299","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112299","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background and aims</h3><div>Injecting drug use poses significant public health risks due to unsafe practices such as syringe sharing, reuse, and risky sexual behaviors, which increase the transmission of bloodborne viruses. In Tunisia, limited data on injecting drug use hinders the development of informed health and harm reduction policies.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A syringe collection campaign was conducted in Tunis in November 2022. The used syringes were provided by the Tunisian Association for Information and Orientation on AIDS and Addiction (ATIOST), a harm-reduction service. These syringes had been distributed to people who inject drugs (PWID) as part of a mobile syringe exchange program. The objective of the study was to analyze the contents of the used syringes to gain further insights into drug use patterns among PWID. The residual substances in the syringes were examined using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS), in accordance with the standardized protocol of the European Syringe Collection and Analysis Project Enterprise (ESCAPE).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>A total of 261 syringes from five collection sites were analyzed. Among these, 87 % contained at least one psychoactive substance, while 32 % contained more than two psychoactive substances. The most frequently identified psychoactive substances were buprenorphine (50.28 %), amphetamine (11.65 %) and tramadol (9.66 %). No substances were detected in 34 syringes.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>This method provides rapid data on drug use trends in specific regions and timeframes, revealing differences that can inform tailored prevention and harm reduction strategies. Such analyses are valuable for comparative studies across countries in the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP-South) region.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"365 ","pages":"Article 112299"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142643421","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Findings of synthetic cathinones in post-mortem toxicology","authors":"Pirkko Kriikku ,&nbsp;Ilkka Ojanperä","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112297","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112297","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Synthetic cathinones (SCs) are a group of new psychoactive substances with amphetamine-like effects but generally higher potency. The aim of this study was to assess the incidence and significance of SCs in post-mortem (PM) investigations in Finland, focusing on the three most prevalent substances: α-PVP, α-PHP, and α-PiHP. All PM cases positive for SCs during 2018–2023 were investigated with respect to cause and manner of death, PM blood and urine concentrations, and concomitant use of other drugs of abuse. There were 136 findings of α-PVP, α-PHP, or α-PiHP in 118 death cases, in which the median age at death was 35 years and 82 % were males. Concomitant opioids, stimulants, or sedatives were found in 69–92 % of cases, and cannabis in 39–47 %. In two cases (1.7 %), SCs were the only findings of abused drugs. Thirty-four fatal poisonings (29 %) were identified in which at least one of the three SCs was implicated in the cause of death. The median (range) femoral blood concentrations of α-PVP, α-PHP, and α-PiHP in these poisoning cases were 0.18 (0.03–2.6) mg/L, 0.16 (0.02–0.58) mg/L, and 0.14 (0.03–2.1) mg/L, respectively. α-PVP, α-PHP and α-PiHP were found in 4.0 % of all drug abuse cases and in 2.7 % of all fatal poisonings related to drug abuse, while for amphetamine/methamphetamine, these figures were 44 % and 21 %, respectively. Despite their lower prevalence in PM cases, SCs appear to have similar abuse liability and similar drug use patterns to amphetamine.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"365 ","pages":"Article 112297"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142675512","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Outside-in hair contamination by blood containing opiates and opioids","authors":"Alexandre Czech ,&nbsp;Julien Scala-Bertola ,&nbsp;Elise Pape ,&nbsp;Allan Kolodziej ,&nbsp;Nathalie Tscheiller ,&nbsp;Jean-Yves Jouzeau ,&nbsp;Elodie Marchand ,&nbsp;Nicolas Gambier","doi":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112298","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112298","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Hair analysis for drugs has become extensively used for forensic investigation in recent years. To best interpret hair drug content in post-mortem conditions, the extent of external contamination by biological fluids, such as blood, must be taken into account to avoid false positive results. The present study evaluated opiates and opioids incorporation into hair from blood containing different concentrations of morphine (MOR), 6-mono-acetyl morphine (6-AM), codeine (COD), dihydrocodeine (DHC), tramadol (TRA), oxycodone (OXY), methadone (MET), 2-ethylidene-1,5-dimethyl-3,3- diphenyl pyrrolidine (EDDP), buprenorphine (BUP) and norbuprenorphine (NBUP). The hair strands contaminated by brief soaking into blood were stored at room temperature (RT) or at 4°C during 6 hours, 1, 3, 7 or 14 days. After decontamination by extensive washing, we show that all opiates and opioids were incorporated into hair within a few hours at RT and 4°C, without significant changes over time. The concentrations of opiates and opioids in hair reached the cut-off levels established by the Society of Hair Testing (SoHT) for therapeutic (MET, COD), or toxic or lethal (all other molecules) blood concentrations. The metabolite to parent drug concentration ratios were determined for NBUP/BUP, MOR/6-AM and EDDP/MET and could be helpful as indicators of blood external contamination.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12341,"journal":{"name":"Forensic science international","volume":"365 ","pages":"Article 112298"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142647371","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}