[Genetic polymorphisms of 10 STR (AmpFlSTR SGM Plus system) loci in Gypsy population from Poland]. / Genetyczny polimorfizm 10 loci STR (AmpFlSTR SGM Plus system) w populacji Romów z obszaru Polski.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of the paper was to create a database of the allele distribution at 10 STR loci (D3S1358, vWA, D16S539, D2S1338, D8S1179, D21S11, D18S51, D19S433, TH01, FGA). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The DNA were isolated from samples collected from 222 unrelated individuals of the Gypsy population from Poland. Amplification was performed using a commercial multiplex FlSTR SGM Plus kit. The amplified fragments were resolved by electrophoresis in a 5% denaturing polyacrylamid gel using tne ABI Prism 377 DNA sequencer. The expected performance of the analyzed loci for personal identification testing was estimated. RESULTS: All loci met the Hardy-Weinberg assumption. The combinated values of the matching probability (MP) and of the power exclusion (PE) are 3.95 x 10(-13) and 0.9999641. CONCLUSIONS: Statistical parameters (PIC, MP, PE) showed that the examined systems are useful for forensic medicine.

La huella perdida. Identificación personal utilizando un dedo parcialmente amputado encontrado en la escena de un robo / The "lost fingerprint". Personal identification using a partially amputated finger found at the scene of a robbery

Las huellas dactilares han sido usadas durante siglos para identificar a las personas y tienen un alto valor como evidencia física que permite identificar al autor de un hecho violento. Usualmente, se encuentran en la escena del hecho como impresiones visibles o invisibles que deben ser encontradas, reveladas y fijadas con las adecuadas técnicas policiales. A pesar de que en los últimos años la identificación mediante técnicas de ADN es considerada el paradigma de la investigación criminal, las huellas dactilares continúan siendo un método fácil y barato para la identificación personal. Presentamos la investigación médico forense y policial de una huella dactilar "perdida" durante un robo. El ladrón sufrió una amputación del pulpejo del dedo que fue una prueba fundamental para su identificación posterior. Se revisan los problemas relacionados con las huellas dactilares como una herramienta adecuada para la identificación física

Fingerprints have been used during centuries for identifying people and they have a high value as an identifying evidence of the author of a crime. It is usual to find them at the scene of the crime as invisible or visible traces that must be looked for, developed and fixed with suitable police techniques. Although in the last years, DNA is considered the paramount in criminal investigation, fingerprints continue to be a very easy and inexpensive technique for personal identification. We present the forensic and police investigation of a fingerprint "lost" during a robbery attempt. A thief suffered an amputation of the finger's pulp that was a fundamental proof to identify him. Problems related to fingerprints as a reliable physical identification tool are reviewed

Rapid fingerprinting of Helicobacter pylori by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.

A simple and reliable technique was developed for differentiating Helicobacter pylori strains by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified DNAs. Oligonucleotide primer pairs developed to the urease, 48-kDa stress protein (htrA), and 26-kDa antigen-encoding genes were used to amplify fragments of the appropriate size from crude boiled cell preparations. The PCR-amplified products were digested with Sau3A, HaeIII, MspI, AluI, MluI, HinfI, and XbaI restriction endonucleases. Restriction fragment length polymorphisms were particularly evident within the urease and htrA genes and were easily detected by Sau3A, HaeIII, MspI, and AluI restriction endonuclease analysis. Double digestion of these separately amplified products or restriction analysis of multiple PCR-amplified fragments was found to discriminate 17 of 17 (100%) H. pylori strains which had unique genomic DNA fingerprints. Results of an investigation of multiple isolate sets obtained from patients before and after therapy was consistent with the hypothesis that treatment failures were due to the persistence of the same strain but did not discount the possibility that the patients were reinfected with a strain shared by family members or close contacts. The results indicate that the PCR-restriction endonuclease analysis method can be applied directly to biopsy samples, has the potential to fingerprint H. pylori isolates rapidly, and may permit detailed epidemiological investigations on the transmission of this important pathogen.