Journal of forensic sciences最新文献

Micro-CT for the differentiation between live birth and stillbirth: A pilot study. 显微ct鉴别活产和死产：一项初步研究。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-26 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70113

Giovanni Botta, Tullio Genova, Alessandro Bonsignore, Francesca Buffelli, Davide Mussano, Francesco Lupariello

{"title":"Micro-CT for the differentiation between live birth and stillbirth: A pilot study.","authors":"Giovanni Botta, Tullio Genova, Alessandro Bonsignore, Francesca Buffelli, Davide Mussano, Francesco Lupariello","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70113","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.70113","url":null,"abstract":"The distinction between live births and stillbirths is crucial for determining the appropriate legal consequences. Historically, researchers have operated under the principle that an infant's lungs will be filled with air upon death, whereas a fetus's lungs will not. The flotation test for the lungs is the primary method still used in many jurisdictions. However, there are concerns regarding its reliability. For this reason, we conducted a pilot study to evaluate the feasibility of postmortem micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) for differentiating between formalin-fixed aerated and nonaerated lungs. Lung samples from aerated (Group 1) and nonaerated (Group 2) subjects were scanned using micro-CT. We calculated the gas volume percentage (GV%) in each sample. Group 1 (aerated lungs) showed a mean GV% of 9.52 ± 6.77, while Group 2 (nonaerated lungs) showed a mean GV% of 0.58 ± 0.66. These findings suggest that micro-CT can qualitatively and quantitatively detect pulmonary aeration and may serve as a valuable tool in forensic investigations involving suspected neonaticide, feticide, and intrauterine fetal demise.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144510070","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Phosphatidylethanol in post-mortem blood: A comparative study of blood matrices and its stability at routine storage conditions. 死后血液中的磷脂酰乙醇：血液基质及其在常规储存条件下稳定性的比较研究。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-26 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70106

Jeremai Hose, Hilke Andresen-Streichert, Mario Thevis, Markus A Rothschild, Martin Juebner

{"title":"Phosphatidylethanol in post-mortem blood: A comparative study of blood matrices and its stability at routine storage conditions.","authors":"Jeremai Hose, Hilke Andresen-Streichert, Mario Thevis, Markus A Rothschild, Martin Juebner","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70106","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.70106","url":null,"abstract":"Determination of alcohol markers in post-mortem cases can be useful to classify drinking habits and potential alcohol habituation prior to death. Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is a direct alcohol marker and is already commonly used in a variety of contexts. However, its use in the field of post-mortem toxicology has been scarcely investigated so far. To evaluate its validity, PEth was determined in routinely collected post-mortem heart blood and femoral vein blood. The stability of PEth under routine storage conditions (-20°C) for a period of 60 days was examined. Post-mortem blood was collected during medicolegal autopsies and aliquoted. Parts of the samples were used to create dried blood spots (DBS) directly after collection. Further DBS were created using aliquots stored at -20°C on days 1, 2, 7, 14, 30, and 60. LC-MS/MS was used for quantitative PEth analysis, and initial blood alcohol was determined using GC-FID. Blood was collected from 50 different post-mortem cases. The heart blood/femoral blood ratio of PEth concentrations varied from 0.32 to 2.36 (mean = approx. 1.00), indicating a good comparability in total but a strong interindividual variation. In all PEth-positive samples, the PEth concentrations increased by approximately 20% after 24 hours and 70% after 60 days. Post-sampling formation of PEth was also found in blood samples without detectable amounts of ethanol. Neither storage at -80°C nor the addition of sodium metavanadate led to satisfactory stability of PEth. Based on our findings, the (sole) use of PEth for post-mortem toxicology caseworks is not recommended.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144510071","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Authentication of forged inked fingerprints utilizing silicone molds. 利用硅胶模具伪造墨水指纹鉴定。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-26 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70111

Shuo Zhang, Hanze Man, Luchuan Tian, Shaohui Xu, Ya-Bin Zhao

{"title":"Authentication of forged inked fingerprints utilizing silicone molds.","authors":"Shuo Zhang, Hanze Man, Luchuan Tian, Shaohui Xu, Ya-Bin Zhao","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70111","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.70111","url":null,"abstract":"Although the use of forged inked fingerprints is not common in criminal cases, it is gradually increasing in civil cases. This study introduces a rapid and nondestructive method for detecting forged inked fingerprints using Raman spectral, morphology, and deep learning. To develop an effective method to detect forged inked fingerprints, thereby enhancing the reliability of forensic evidence in judicial settings. The study explored Raman spectroscopy for differentiating genuine from forged inked fingerprints. The signals were examined by similarity and Hotelling T2 tests. Morphological analysis was conducted on 3600 inked fingerprints, focusing on external contours, ridge widths, and ridge discontinuity. Chi-square and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to evaluate the effectiveness of these features. A deep learning model (ResNet50_AuI) was developed by integrating Feature Pyramid Network (FPN) and multi-head self-attention (MHSA) into the residual network (ResNet). This model was trained and tested using a custom database. Raman spectroscopy alone could not distinguish between genuine and forged fingerprints. Morphological analysis showed that external contours were most useful for authentication, followed by ridge discontinuity. The ResNet50_AuI model achieved 98.88% accuracy, emphasizing the importance of external contours. This study evaluates three methods for authenticating inked fingerprints, highlighting the potential and limitations of each method in improving the integrity of forensic evidence.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144510069","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Digitally Captured Signature solution errors revealed by calibration and testing: Two examples. 校准和测试显示的数字捕获签名解决方案错误：两个示例。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-24 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70100

Nikolaos Kalantzis, Sarah Fieldhouse

引用次数: 0

Study on efficiency of the half-volume GlobalFiler™ PCR protocol: Internal validation, degraded trace analysis, and comparison with full-volume protocol using casework samples. 半体积GlobalFiler™PCR协议效率的研究：内部验证，降解痕量分析，并与使用案例样品的全体积协议进行比较。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-24 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70110

Tamás Cseppentő, Katalin A Rádóczy, Eszter É Lőrincz, Gábor Bihari, Norbert Mátrai, Bálint Megadja, Attila Heinrich, Sándor Füredi, Nóra M Magonyi

{"title":"Study on efficiency of the half-volume GlobalFiler™ PCR protocol: Internal validation, degraded trace analysis, and comparison with full-volume protocol using casework samples.","authors":"Tamás Cseppentő, Katalin A Rádóczy, Eszter É Lőrincz, Gábor Bihari, Norbert Mátrai, Bálint Megadja, Attila Heinrich, Sándor Füredi, Nóra M Magonyi","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70110","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.70110","url":null,"abstract":"Due to its versatility, the GlobalFiler™ PCR Amplification Kit is commonly used in forensic analyses. The half-volume protocol used in our laboratory was validated by manually and automatically assembled PCRs involving increased number of PCR cycles. Validation parameters included tests of sensitivity, stability, reproducibility, repeatability, and casework study, in accordance with the guidelines of the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods and the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes. To examine the efficiency of our custom half-volume and the manufacturer's full-volume protocol, we also compared the results of 266 casework samples amplified two times with both protocols. Our results demonstrated the high discriminatory power and robustness of the kit, as all the studied parameters provided appropriate results when the optimal 0.5 ng DNA input was used, regardless of the PCR preparation method. In the case of undegraded samples, DNA inputs in a range of 1-0.075 ng produced DNA profiles in an optimal RFU range without significant allelic dropout for both PCR preparation methods. Regarding the tests on degraded casework samples, the average locus dropouts for lowly, moderately, and highly degraded samples were 12.05%, 19.2%, and 33.79%, respectively, proving again the kit's abilities even in half-volume reaction mix. This protocol caused no loss of information, as comparing its results to the full-volume protocol's, the recovery of alleles showed no statistical difference. Based on our results, the GlobalFiler™ kit's numerous positive properties proved valid in the case of our half-volume protocol as well.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144487544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Probabilistic genotyping replicate analysis of FaSTR clustered single sperm aSTR haplotypes reconstitutes probative diploid DNA genotypes from complex semen mixtures. FaSTR聚类单精子的概率基因分型重复分析。aSTR单倍型从复杂混合精液中重建证明的二倍体DNA基因型。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-24 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70103

Morgan Peters, Kaitlin Huffman, Jack Ballantyne, Erin Hanson

{"title":"Probabilistic genotyping replicate analysis of FaSTR clustered single sperm aSTR haplotypes reconstitutes probative diploid DNA genotypes from complex semen mixtures.","authors":"Morgan Peters, Kaitlin Huffman, Jack Ballantyne, Erin Hanson","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70103","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.70103","url":null,"abstract":"Analysis of individual single sperm can assist in mixture deconvolution when there are multiple perpetrators to a sexual assault or instances in which limited sperm are available for analysis. This not only allows for reconstitution of the sperm donor's genotype but also allows for microscopic confirmation that the cell typed was a sperm cell. Single sperm analysis can be challenging due to sperm's low DNA template amount (~3.3 pg) and haploid nature, allowing for only half the donor's genotype to be detected in a single sperm cell. This can make clustering single sperm by donor difficult, as each sperm sample results in a different multilocus haplotype; although, some degree of allele sharing is expected between single sperm from the same donor. In the present work, FaSTR™ was validated for single sperm analysis. The database matching and sample-to-sample matching features of FaSTR™ were used to develop a clustering method to group autosomal short tandem repeat (aSTR) genotyped single sperm by donor. Once clustered, probabilistic genotyping replicate analysis (STRmix™) was conducted in a proof-of-concept investigative manner, resulting in highly probative single source 99% component diploid DNA genotypes which could be used for database (e.g., known offender database) searching when a reference is unavailable. This approach was applied to two different 2-, 3-, and 4-person semen mixtures (total of 6 mixtures) resulting in the recovery of highly probative single source genotypes.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144487543","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Manipulation of vulnerable person via transformation of volunteer service to religious proselytism: Case report and methodical approach. 通过将志愿服务转变为宗教传教来操纵弱势群体：案例报告和系统方法。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-20 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70115

Cristiano Barbieri, Maria Grazia Violante, Roberta Risola, Andrea De Leo, Kimberly Pagani, Anna Cassano, Caterina Bosco, Ignazio Grattagliano, Giancarlo Di Vella

引用次数: 0

Reporting the value of biological findings given activity level propositions: A discussion of published recommendations. 在活动水平命题下报告生物学发现的价值：对已发表建议的讨论。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-20 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70112

John Buckleton, Duncan Taylor, Paul Stafford Allen, James Curran, Tim Kalafut

{"title":"Reporting the value of biological findings given activity level propositions: A discussion of published recommendations.","authors":"John Buckleton, Duncan Taylor, Paul Stafford Allen, James Curran, Tim Kalafut","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70112","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1556-4029.70112","url":null,"abstract":"Evaluation of DNA given activity propositions (EGALP) is a widely discussed topic at this time, particularly in the United States. There is concern about opinions given in testimony that are not properly founded. Guidance on evaluative reporting given alleged activities can be found in published papers, official documents, and specialized textbooks. In this work, we aim to align and compare recommendations on evaluative reporting of DNA results. Some of these recommendations are explicitly stated while others are woven into the text. All documents pertain to evaluative reporting; they agree on the use of likelihood ratios and the need to avoid the transposed conditional. There is some disagreement such as whether a quantitative or qualitative LR should be reported. However, the majority situation is that one topic is covered explicitly by one document but only implicitly covered or not mentioned in the others. We identify 19 consensus recommendations and highlight five gaps or areas of disagreement for which we offer suggestions. It is our hope that this will encourage conversations that will lead to a more uniform set of guidelines, perhaps during a periodic updating of existing documents.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144340714","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Microbial succession patterns for postmortem interval estimation in decomposed mouse cadavers: A comparative study of mechanical asphyxia and hemorrhagic shock. 微生物演替模式在分解小鼠尸体的死后间隔估计：机械性窒息和失血性休克的比较研究。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-16 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70108

Qin Su, Xingchun Zhao, Xinbiao Liao, Xiaohui Chen, Qingqing Xiang, Yadong Guo, Quyi Xu, Chengdong Ma, Zhilei Chen, Fei Gao, Chao Liu, Jian Zhao

{"title":"Microbial succession patterns for postmortem interval estimation in decomposed mouse cadavers: A comparative study of mechanical asphyxia and hemorrhagic shock.","authors":"Qin Su, Xingchun Zhao, Xinbiao Liao, Xiaohui Chen, Qingqing Xiang, Yadong Guo, Quyi Xu, Chengdong Ma, Zhilei Chen, Fei Gao, Chao Liu, Jian Zhao","doi":"10.1111/1556-4029.70108","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.70108","url":null,"abstract":"Estimating the postmortem interval (PMI) is crucial in forensic science. Recent studies suggest microbial community succession patterns as a promising tool for PMI inference. This study examines how the cause of death, specifically mechanical asphyxia and hemorrhagic shock, influences microbial succession. By utilizing 16S amplicon sequencing, the study characterizes the succession patterns of microbial communities in different body parts (facial skin and cecal tissue) and applies random forest regression to develop PMI inference models. The results revealed significant differences in the decomposition processes between mechanical asphyxia and hemorrhagic shock. Determining the PMI based solely on postmortem phenomena proved challenging. Microbial communities in facial skin and cecal tissue-two distinct body parts from a decomposing corpse with the same cause of death-showed considerable variation, and the microbial composition in cecal tissue also differed between the two causes of death. The regression model, based on microbiota data at the family level, demonstrated the best performance. Specifically, eight bacterial families, including Enterobacteriaceae and Corynebacteriaceae, in facial skin were identified as predictors of PMI in corpses decomposed due to mechanical asphyxia, with an average absolute error of 2.15 ± 0.85 days. In contrast, 28 bacterial families, such as Lachnospiraceae and Clostridiales_NA, in cecal tissue were found to predict the PMI of corpses decomposed due to hemorrhagic shock, with an average absolute error of 2.52 ± 0.74 days. These findings provide a valuable microbial dataset for advancing forensic PMI studies.","PeriodicalId":94080,"journal":{"name":"Journal of forensic sciences","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144311115","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

A murder in Boston. 波士顿发生了一起谋杀案。

Journal of forensic sciences Pub Date : 2025-06-16 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.70097

Tim Kalafut, James Curran, John Buckleton

引用次数: 0