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28 February 2011, Volume 27 Issue 1 Previous Issue    Next Issue

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Establishment of a 3D Finite Element Model of Human Skull Using MSCT Images and Mimics Software HUANG PING, LI ZHENG-DONG, SHAO YU, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 1-4,8.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.001 Abstract ( 2051 )   Objective To establish a human 3D finite element skull model, and to explore its value in biomechanics analysis. Methods The cadaveric head was scanned and then 3D skull model was created using Mimics software based on 2D CT axial images. The 3D skull model was optimized by preprocessor along with creation of the surface and volume meshes. The stress changes, after the head was struck by an object or the head hit the ground directly, were analyzed using ANSYS software. Results The original 3D skull model showed a large number of triangles with a poor quality and high similarity with the real head, while the optimized model showed high quality surface and volume meshes with a small number of triangles comparatively. The model could show the local and global stress changes effectively. Conclusion The human 3D skull model can be established using MSCT and Mimics software and provides a good finite element model for biomechanics analysis. This model may also provide a base for the study of head stress changes following different forces. Related Articles | Metrics

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Estimation of Early Postmortem Interval Using β-actin mRNA in Rat’s Brain, Heart and Kidney LIU YUE-LIN, MA KAI-JUN, LI WEN-CAN, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 5-8.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.002 Abstract ( 2203 )   Objective To explore the relationship between β-actin mRNA degradation in SD rat’s brain, heart and kidney and early postmortem interval（PMI） in order to find new markers for estimating early PMI. Methods Rats were sacrificed and kept in the place at a temperature of 20 ℃. The total RNA were extracted from the brain, heart and kidney at different PMI points. Real time RT-PCR was applied to determine β-actin mRNA levels in total RNA and the results were given in the form of Ct values. Linear relationships between PMI and Ct values were obtained and the functions of linear regression were established. Results The great decrease of β-actin mRNA level were observed in the three organs. The degradation rate was obviously higher in 24 hours after death in the heart and kidney. However, there were no significant changes in the brain. The changes of Ct values and PMI showed a good linear relationship. Conclusion β-actin mRNA in rat’s brain, heart and kidney degrades obviously after death and can be used for estimating early PMI by its degradation rules. Related Articles | Metrics

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Concentration Changes of Potassium and Hypoxanthine in Vitreous Humor of Swine and Its Application to Postmortem Interval Estimation FANG CHAO, WANG SONG-CAI, SUN LI-MIN, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 9-12,21.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.003 Abstract ( 1986 )   Objective To investigate the relationship between postmortem interval（PMI） and concentration changes of components in swine vitreous humor. Methods Ninety-six porcine eyes from swine dying from acute massive hemorrhage, being randomly divided into 24 groups, were stored in dark situation, at temperature of （15±2） ℃ and humidity of（50±5）% for 2-96 hours separately. The vitreous humor was collected. Concentrations of K+, Na+, Cl- and hypoxanthine（Hx） were analyzed by automatic biochemical analyzer and ultra performance liquid chromatograph（UPLC）. The data were statistically analyzed by SPSS software. Results Linear regression analysis showed that concentrations of vitreous K+ and Hx were positively correlated with PMI（R2=0.767 and R2=0.793, respectively）. Binary linear regression showed a higher correlation for K+ and Hx with PMI estimation（R2=0.866）. PMI was not significantly correlated with vitreous Na+ and Cl- concentrations. Conclusion Vitreous K+ and Hx concentrations can be used as the objective markers for PMI estimation. The binary linear regression functions of vitreous K+ and Hx concentrations with PMI are more accurate for estimating the PMI. Related Articles | Metrics

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Forensic Identification by Coding of Frontal Sinus Characteristics of CT ZHANG HONG-XIA, YANG CHUN-BO, GUO LI, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 13-16.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.004 Abstract ( 1985 )   Objective To explore observing parameters of frontal sinus using reconstructive coronal nose bone sections of the head CT images and to establish the special identification codes. Methods CT images of the frontal sinus were analyzed by using distance measurement and morphological description. The discrimination codes of frontal sinus identification were： the number of right partial septa, shape-the location of the central septa, shape-the number of left partial septa, shape; the number of arches of right upper scalloping （the location of the right highest scalloping, the location of the right lowest scalloping）-the number of arches of left upper scalloping （the location of the left highest scalloping, the location of the left lowest scalloping）; the width, height of the right sinus-the total width of sinus-the width, height of the left sinus. Results The identification codes of the frontal sinus were highly variable individually, but the codes were not statistically differences between males and females（P＞0.05）. Conclusion The identification codes of frontal sinus could be used for forensic individual identification, but not for sex determination. Related Articles | Metrics

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A Primary Study for Criteria of Full Sibling Determination with Identifiler System ZHAO SHU-MIN, ZHANG SU-HUA, LI CHENG-TAO 2011, 27(1): 17-21.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.005 Abstract ( 2212 )   Objective To investigate the criteria of the number of identical allele（IAn） and the number of matched STR locus with 2 identical alleles（A2） for full sibling（FS） determination with Identifiler system. Methods According to the limited distribution of IAn and A2, all of the 31 potential values of IAn were substituted into the published discriminant functions to obtain the cut-off values of IAn and A2 for FS determination, and then 4 different criteria were determined to distinguish 280 FS pairs from 2 283 individual pairs, respectively, which had been genotyped with Identifiler system. Cumulative full sibling index （CFSI） of the samples were calculated with ITO method, and 4 different criteria of CFSI（>1, ≥5, ≥20 and ≥100） were also utilized to determinate FS, respectively. Indices including sensitivity（SEN）, specificity（SPE）, accuracy（AC）, positive predictive value（PPV） and negative predictive value（NPV） of the 8 different criteria for FS determination were calculated, respectively. Concordance of FS determination between the criteria based on IAn and A2 and that of CFSI were statistically tested with Kappa index. Results All the individual pairs, which meet the requirement of （Ⅰ） IAn≥15 and A2≥4, or （Ⅱ） IAn≥16 and A2≥3, or （Ⅲ） IAn≥17 and A2≥3, or （Ⅳ） IAn≥18 and A2≥3, could been concluded as FS. AC, SPE and NPV of the 4 criteria mentioned above and the 4 criteria of CFSI were all over 0.950 0 in FS determination. Indices between criterion Ⅱ and CFSI≥5, criterion Ⅲ and CFSI≥20, criterion Ⅳ and CFSI≥100 were similar with each other and the Kappa indexes of the 3 groups were 0.904 9, 0.920 4 and 0.908 3, respectively. PPV and NPV of criterion Ⅲ and CFSI≥20 were all over 0.950 0. Conclusion The criterion of IAn≥17 and A2≥3 was feasible and efficient for FS determination with Identifiler system, power of which was similar with the criterion of CFSI≥20. Related Articles | Metrics

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Relationship between Cholecystokinin Gene -45C/T Polymorphism and Schizophrenia and Its Application in Forensic Medicine YANG JUN, DING MEI, SUN YING, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 22-24.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.006 Abstract ( 1627 )   Objective To investigate the polymorphism of cholecystokinin（CCK） gene -45C/T of schizophrenia and its application in forensic medicine. Methods Bidirectional allele specific PCR was used to detect CCK gene -45C/T polymorphisms in 207 schizophrenic patients （case group） and 202 healthy individuals （control group） of the Han population in northern China. The χ2 test was used to identify Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium of the genotype distribution in control group. The differences of genotype and allele frequencies distributions were compared between two groups. Results Distributions of the genotype frequencies satisfied the law of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium in control group. The differences between genotypic frequencies and allele frequencies were not statistical significance in case group and control groups（P＞0.05）. Gender-stratified analysis showed that frequency of allele T in female case group was statistically higher than that in female control group（P=0.044）. Conclusion CCK gene -45C/T locus T allele may be positively associated with schizophrenia in female population and useful in schizophrenia identification. Related Articles | Metrics

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Simultaneous Determination of Sixteen Antibiotics in Human Urine with Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry CHEN CONG, YAN HUI, SHEN BAO-HUA, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 25-29.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.007 Abstract ( 1622 )   Objective To develop a method for simultaneous determination of sixteen antibiotics in human urine by ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry（UPLC-MS/MS）. Methods With Piperacillin as an internal standard, the target antibiotics in urine samples were enriched and purified by Oasis HLB solid phase extraction（SPE） cartridges, then separated in a ZORBAX SB-C18 column with a gradient elution of mobile phase of 0.1% formic acid water and acetonitrile, finally analyzed with multiple reaction monitoring（MRM） mode. Results The limits of detection（LOD） for these sixteen antibiotics were in the range of 0.05-10.0 ng/mL and the limits of quantification（LOQ） in the range of 0.25-20.0 ng/mL. Within the related linear range, the related coefficient （r） of sixteen antibiotics were all more than 0.995. Accuracies for these antibiotics were ranged from 82.0％-119.3%, the within-day precision were less than 13.9％. Conclusion The developed method is sensitive, specific and appropriate for the analysis of antibiotics in forensic toxicology and therapeutic drugs monitoring. Related Articles | Metrics

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Analysis of 158 Forensic Identification Cases Involved with Peripheral Nerve Injury ZHANG XIN-YUAN, XU XIAO-MING, LIU JI-HUI, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 30-32.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.008 Abstract ( 1647 )   Objective To study the characteristics of forensic identification cases involved with peripheral nerve injury, and to discuss how to apply the clinical information, forensic examination and neurophysiological testing. Methods One hundred and fifty-eight cases which were diagnosed peripheral nerve injury in clinic, were collected. Then the individual characteristics, injuries, identification results, exaggeration or camouflage were analysed. Results The male, the unemployed, and the young and middle-aged were common in our cases. The main reasons of “peripheral nerve injury” were traffic accidents and sharp injuries. Most wounded parts were in limbs. Also the exaggeration and camouflage accounted for a considerable proportion in our cases. Conclusion The forensic identification of “peripheral nerve injury” cases should be evaluated with clinical information, forensic examination and electrophysiological testing comprehensively. Related Articles | Metrics

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Isolating Sperm Cells by Laser Capture Microdissection Technique from Mixture Sample LIU FANG, WANG JING, YU LI-JUAN, ET AK 2011, 27(1): 33-35,42.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.009 Abstract ( 1709 )   Objective To assess the application value of laser capture microdissection（LCM） technique for isolating a small number of sperm cells from mixture sample. Methods Mixture samples were prepared with sperm cells and vaginal epithelia at different concentrations. Both LCM technique and the differential lysis method were employed to obtain sperm cells from the mixture samples, and DNA was extracted by magnetic beads method. STR genotyping was determined using IdentifilerTM kit． Results The successful STR genotype rate of sperm cells isolated from mixture samples with LCM technique was 92.86%（13/14）. The rate of differential lysis method was 7.14%（1/14）. The successful rates between the two methods were statistically different（P<0.05）. Conclusion LCM technique can effectively exclude the interference of female cell component and isolate a small number of sperm cells to obtain a single male STR genotyping. LCM technique is obviously better than the differential lysis method. Related Articles | Metrics

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Genetic Polymorphisms of 21 Non-CODIS STR Loci SHAO WEI-BO, ZHANG SU-HUA, LI LI 2011, 27(1): 36-38.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.010 Abstract ( 2084 )   Objective To investigate genetic polymorphisms of 21 non-CODIS STR loci in Han population from the east of China and to explore their forensic application value. Methods Twenty-one non-CODIS STR loci, were amplified with AGCU 21+1 STR kit and DNA samples were obtained from 225 unrelated individuals of the Han population from the east of China. The PCR products were analyzed with 3130 Genetic Analyzer and genotyped with GeneMapper ID v3.2 software. The genetic data were statistically analyzed with PowerStats v12.xls and Cervus 2.0 software. Results The distributions of 21 non-CODIS STR loci satisfied the Hardy-Weinberg equilibration. The heterozygosity（H） distributions were 0.596-0.804, the discrimination power（DP） were 0.764-0.948, the probability of exclusion of duo-testing（PEduo） were 0.176-0.492, the probability of exclusion of trios-testing（PEtrio） were 0.334-0.663, and the polymorphic information content（PIC） were 0.522-0.807. The cumulative probability of exclusion（CPE） of duo-testing was 0.999 707, the CPE of trios-testing was 0.999 999 4, and the cumulated discrimination power（CDP） was 0.999 999 999 999 999 999 94. Conclusion Twenty-one non-CODIS STR loci are highly polymorphic. They can be effectively used in personal identification and paternity testing in trios cases. They can also be used as supplement in the difficult cases of diad paternity testing. Related Articles | Metrics

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Comparison of Four Imaging Examinations of Shoulder Joint Injury in Forensic Expertise ZHANG WU, WANG JIAN-WEN, HU YONG-LIANG, ET AL 2011, 27(1): 39-42.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.011 Abstract ( 1624 )   Objective To compare the value of four imaging examinations, including the X-ray, CT, MRI and gas-iodine double contrast CT analyses, in the forensic expertise of shoulder joint injury． Methods Imaging data of shoulder joint injury, by the X-ray, CT, MRI and gas-iodine double contrast CT were retrieved and analyzed. Results The correct diagnosis rates of fracture and soft tissue injury by X-ray, CT and MRI were 52.8%, 72.0% and 63.2%, as well as 0.0%, 32.9% and 82.5%, respectively. The correct diagnosis rate of soft tissue injury by gas-iodine double contrast CT was 100%. Conclusion X-ray is a useful screening method, CT is better for diagnosis of fracture, and MRI is fit for diagnosis of soft tissue injury. Gas-iodine double contrast CT can reflect not only the soft tissue injury but also its severity. Thus, combined application of X-ray, CT, MRI and gas-iodine double contrast CT can provide important imaging information for forensic expertise in shoulder joint injury． Related Articles | Metrics

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Advancement in Methods of Evaluation on Bone Fracture Healing and Its Application in Forensic Medicine LI YU-FEI 2011, 27(1): 43-46.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.012 Abstract ( 1627 )   It is frequently encountered to identify the time of bone fracture in forensic medicine. Hence it is important to develop the methods for evaluating the time of bone fracture. This article reviews the applications and values of the methods such as ultrasonic evaluation, impulse measurement, digital imaging technology and bone mineral density testing technology, etc. It is proposed that to use these methods jointly may provide more scientific evidence in determine the time of bone fracture. Related Articles | Metrics

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Progress on DNA Quantification in Estimation of Postmortem Interval LIN XU, YIN YA-SHA, JI QIANG 2011, 27(1): 47-49,53.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.014 Abstract ( 1968 )   Estimation of postmortem interval（PMI） is one of the difficult problems in forensic medicine. With the development of molecular biological techniques, DNA quantification methods were widely applied in estimating PMI. The postmortem degradation of DNA in different tissues and organs was discussed in this article and the recent DNA quantitative techniques being used for estimating PMI were reviewed. These techniques included single cell gel electrophoresis, Feulgen staining image analysis, flow cytometry. Related Articles | Metrics

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Application of Nucleic Acids and Proteins in Estimation of Postmortem Interval LI WEN-CAN, ZHANG PING, CHEN LONG 2011, 27(1): 50-53.  DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5619.2011.01.015 Abstract ( 1923 )   Accurate estimation of postmortem interval（PMI） is one of the most important and difficult issues in forensic medicine. After death, the tissues autolyze and biomacromolecules degrade. DNA concentration decreases gradually with linear relationship with PMI. The housekeeping gene mRNA, for example β-actin, GAPDH, has certain stability and can be used to PMI estimation as internal standard. This paper reviews the research progress and problems about DNA, RNA and proteins in the estimation of PMI in order to provide guidance for forensic pathology. Related Articles | Metrics