Search results for "Forensic"

Reprocessed polylactide: Studies of thermo-oxidative decomposition

2012

The combustion process of virgin and reprocessed polylactide (PLA) was simulated by multi-rate linear non-isothermal thermogravimetric experiments under O2. A complete methodology that accounted on the thermal stability and emission of gases was thoroughly developed. A new model, Thermal Decomposition Behavior, and novel parameters, the Zero-Decomposition Temperatures, were used to test the thermal stability of the materials under any linear heating rate. The release of gases was monitored by Evolved Gas Analysis with in-line FT-IR analysis. In addition, a kinetic analysis methodology that accounted for variable activation parameters showed that the decomposition process could be driven by …

Histological and immunohistochemical findings in a fatal case of thrombotic thrombocytopenia after ChAdOx1 nCov-19 vaccination

2021

This case report describes a fatal case of a young woman with superior sagittal, transverse and sigmoid sinus thrombosis after administration of the ChAdOx1 nCov-19 vaccination. Eleven days post-vaccination she was found unconscious and transferred to the Emergency Department. Blood parameters showed low platelets, and a CT scan showed an extensive left intracranial hemorrhage and the presence of an occlusive thrombus of the superior sagittal sinus. She under-went a craniectomy, but after the intervention, she remained in a comatose state. After a few days, her clinical conditions worsened, and she died. A complete autopsy was performed which showed a thrombosis of the cerebral venous distr…

Detectability of cannabinoids in the serum samples of cannabis users: Indicators of recent cannabis use? A follow‐up study

2021

Forensic toxicologists are frequently required to predict the time of last cannabis consumption. Several studies suggested the utility of minor cannabinoids as indicators of recent cannabis use. Because several factors influence blood cannabinoid concentrations, the interpretation of serum cannabinoid concentrations remains challenging. To assess the informative value of serum cannabinoid levels in cannabis users (in total N = 117 patients, including 56 patients who stated an exact time of last cannabis use within 24 h before blood sampling), the detectability of cannabinoids, namely delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC), 11-hydroxy-delta-9-THC, 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta-9-THC, cannabichr…

Audiologic profile of OSAS and simple snoring patients: the effect of chronic nocturnal intermittent hypoxia on auditory function

2016

The objective of this work was to study the effect of nocturnal intermittent hypoxia on auditory function of simple snoring patients and subjects affected by OSAS; we compared the audiologic profile with the severity of OSAS to detect early signs of cochlear damage. One hundred-sixty patients underwent overnight polysomnography, micro-otoscopy, multi-frequency audiometry, acufenometry, TEOAE recording and d-ROMs test. All subjects were divided in four groups, based on presence/absence of AHI (simple snoring without OSAS, mild OSAS, moderate OSAS, severe OSAS). Sixty (37.5 %) patients were not affected by OSAS, 58 (36.25 %) presented a mild OSAS, 18 (11.25 %) a moderate OSAS and 24 (15 %) a …

Improved section bonding using silanated glass slides--application protocol.

1992

Silanated slides provide excellent tissue adhesion for routine histology, immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization of frozen, paraffin embedded material or cell smears. An easy and inexpensive method of treating glass microscope slides with triethoxysilylpropylamine is reported.

Steroid fingerprints: Efficient biomarkers of human decomposition fluids in soil

2018

Abstract The decomposition of animal and human cadavers can lead to comprehensive chemical and biochemical changes in soil, which can provide helpful information for the analysis of archaeological and crime scenes. The current study focused specifically on the concentration and distribution patterns of steroids in soil with the aim of assessing their suitability for demonstrating the presence of human decomposition products. Soil samples were collected from a forensic site where a human corpse had been lying on the soil surface for 18 days. Total organic carbon (TOC) and steroid concentrations were analysed in soil samples taken from beneath the body at the time the corpse was removed and a…

Classrooms, Salons, Academies, and Courts: Mateu Orfila (1787–1853) and Nineteenth-Century French Toxicology

2014

AbstractThis paper analyses the connections between nineteenth-century courtrooms, academies, and laboratories by focusing on the life and works of Mateu Orfila (1787–1853), one of the most famous nineteenth-century toxicologists. At the apex of his career, Orfila moved regularly between his laboratory and his chair at the Paris Faculty of Medicine to meetings of the Academy of Medicine, and the courtrooms in which he was frequently called upon as an expert witness in murder trials. Tracing Orfila's biographical path, this paper deals with four main sites of nineteenth-century toxicology: classrooms, salons, academies, and courtrooms. These sites are understood as both tangible places, whos…

When a virus (Covid-19) attacks human rights: The situation of asylum seekers in the medico-legal setting

2020

The Covid-19 pandemic is a global health emergency that requires immediate, effective action by governments to protect the health and basic human rights of everyone’s life. Refugees and migrants are potentially at increased risk because they typically live in overcrowded conditions often without access to basic sanitation. Since the beginning of the official lockdown for Covid-19, the medico-legal assessment of physical violence related to obtaining status or other forms of human protection has been frozen.

Temporary Employment in the Nordic Countries: A `Trap' or a `Bridge'?

1993

Analysis of p53 and mdm2 proteins in malignant fibrous histiocytoma in absence of gene alteration: prognostic significance.

2000

TP53 and MDM2 genes and their protein expression were evaluated in frozen and paraffin-embedded tissue from 27 patients with malignant fibrous histiocytoma to elucidate the relationship between them, their implication in tumor progression mechanisms and their possible diagnostic-prognostic value in malignant fibrous histiocytoma. Single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis and direct sequencing of polymerase chain reaction-amplified DNA were used to establish two TP53 mutations (7.4%): a point mutation and a 63-bp duplication. Amplification of the MDM2 gene was observed in two tumors (7.4%) by means of Southern-blot analysis, one of them also carrying the TP53 point mutation. Immunohis…