The ReAct (Recovery, Activity) project is an ENFSI (European Network of Forensic Science Institutes) supported initiative comprising a large consortium of laboratories. Here, the results from more than 23 laboratories are presented. The primary purpose was to design experiments simulating typical casework circumstances; collect data and to implement Bayesian networks to assess the value (i.e., likelihood ratio) of DNA results given activity level propositions. Two different experimental designs were used to simulate a robbery, where a screwdriver was used to force a door or window. Propositions and case information were chosen following laboratory feedback listing typical casework circumstances (included in the paper). In a direct transfer experiment, the defendant owned and used the screwdriver, but he did not force the door/window in question. An unknown person used the defendant's stolen screwdriver. In an indirect transfer experiment, the defendant neither owned, saw, nor used the screwdriver, nor did they force the door or window. For the second experiment, given the defence view, the defendant never held the screwdriver. We envisaged the situation where an object manipulated by the defendant (or the defendant himself/herself) would be touched by the unknown offender who would then force the window. It was found for the direct transfer experiment that unless a single contributor profile aligning with the known person's of interest profile was retrieved, the results did not allow to discriminate between propositions. On the other hand, for the indirect transfer experiment, both single and major contributor profiles that aligned with the person of interest (POI) supported the proposition that the person used the tool rather than an unknown person who had touched an object, when indeed the former was true. There was considerable variation in median recoveries of DNA between laboratories (between 200pg-5ng) for a given experiment if quantities are taken into account. These differences affect the likelihood ratios given activity level propositions. More than 2700 samples were analysed in the course of this study. Two different Bayesian Networks are made available via an open source application written in Shiny R: Shiny_React(). For comparison, all datasets were analysed using a qualitative method categorised into absent, single, major or other given contributors. The importance of standardising methods is emphasised, alongside the necessity of developing new approaches to assign the probability of laboratory-dependent DNA recovery. Freely accessible open databases play a crucial role in supporting these efforts.

• MeSH
• Bayes Theorem * MeSH
• DNA Fingerprinting * MeSH
• DNA * genetics   MeSH
• Laboratories * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Microsatellite Repeats MeSH
• Likelihood Functions MeSH
• Forensic Genetics methods   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH

BACKGROUND: Secure forensic hospital treatments are resource-intensive, aiming to rehabilitate offenders and enhance public safety. While these treatments consume significant portions of mental health budgets and show efficacy in some countries, their effectiveness in Czechia remains underexplored. Previous research has highlighted various factors influencing the likelihood of discharge from these institutions. Notably, the role of sociodemographic variables and the length of stay (LoS) in the context of forensic treatments has presented inconsistent findings across studies. METHODS: The study, part of the 'Deinstitutionalization project' in Czechia, collected data from all inpatient forensic care hospitals. A total of 793 patients (711 male, 79 female and 3 unknown) were included. Data collection spanned 6 months, with tools like HoNOS, HoNOS-Secure, MOAS, HCR-20V3 and AQoL-8D employed to assess various aspects of patient health, behaviour, risk and quality of life. RESULTS: The study revealed several determinants influencing patient discharge from forensic hospitals. Key assessment tools, such as HoNOS secure scores and the HCR-20 clinical subscale, showed that higher scores equated to lower chances of release. Furthermore, specific diagnoses like substance use disorder increased discharge odds, while a mental retardation diagnosis significantly reduced it. The type of index offense showed no influence on discharge decisions. CONCLUSION: Factors like reduced risk behaviours, absence of mental retardation diagnosis, social support and secure post-release housing plans played significant roles. The results underscored the importance of using standardized assessment tools over clinical judgement. A standout insight was the unique challenges faced by patients diagnosed with mental retardation, emphasizing a need for specialized care units or tailored programmes.

• MeSH
• Deinstitutionalization MeSH
• Length of Stay * MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Mental Disorders * therapy   MeSH
• Quality of Life MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Young Adult MeSH
• Patient Discharge * MeSH
• Forensic Psychiatry MeSH
• Hospitals, Psychiatric * MeSH
• Criminals psychology   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Adult MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Young Adult MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic MeSH

Tento prehľadový článok zdôrazňuje kľúčovú úlohu hmotnosti a rozmerov orgánov ako základných ukazovateľov pri diagnostike v súdnom lekárstve a pato- lógii. Zmeny hmotnosti orgánov slúžia ako základné markery patologických stavov a pomáhajú súdnym lekárom a patológom pri interpretácii nálezov z pitvy. Prehľad zdôrazňuje dôležitosť presnosti pri stanovovaní referenčných hodnôt orgánov, berúc do úvahy faktory, ako sú špecifické referenčné hodnoty pre po- puláciu a rovnako tak korelácie s telesnými parametrami. Okrem toho skúma vplyv obezity na hmotnosti orgánov, pričom zdôrazňuje potrebu aktualizovania databáz, ktoré presne odrážajú rôzne populácie. Článok podčiarkuje nedostatočnosť spoliehania sa na zastarané zdroje a obhajuje vytvorenie komplexnej a aktualizovanej databázy hmotností a rozmerov orgánov pre lokálnu populáciu, ktorá je nevyhnutná pre presnú forenznú interpretáciu výsledkov pitvy.

This review article highlights the crucial role of organ weights and dimensions as key indicators in forensic diagnosis. Organ weight changes serve as valuable markers for pathological conditions, aiding forensic doctors in interpreting autopsy findings. The review emphasizes the importance of precision in establish- ing organ reference values, considering factors like population-specific norms and correlations with body parameters. Furthermore, it explores the impact of obesity on organ weights, emphasizing the need for updated databases that accurately reflect diverse populations. The article underscores the inadequacy of relying on outdated sources and advocates for creating a comprehensive and updated database of organ weights and dimensions for the local population, essential for accurate forensic interpretations.

• MeSH
• Obesity pathology   MeSH
• Autopsy * methods   MeSH
• Reference Values MeSH
• Body Weights and Measures classification   MeSH
• Organ Size * MeSH
• Publication type
• Review MeSH

Nepředpokládáme, že by pan profesor Barek páchal trestnou činnost, ale pokud bychom jeho pachovou stopu přesto odebrali a provedli detailní chemickou analýzu, mohli bychom se přesvědčit o tom, že je to muž, že je europoidní rasy a případně zjistit, jaká v jeho žilách koluje krev, zda patří do skupiny A, B nebo 0. Pachová stopa je zdroj informací, který orgány činné v trestním řízení prostřednictvím speciálně cvičených psů používají pro individuální identifikaci již desítky let. Nyní je snaha vytvořit instrumentální metodu pro detailní chemickou analýzu pachové stopy tak, aby pachová identifikace mohla být objektivizována a používána jako důkazní prostředek a samozřejmě, aby poskytovala řadu dalších informací o poskytovateli pachu.

We do not presume that professor Barek has committed any criminal act, but, if we nevertheless collect his scent sample and conduct a detailed chemical analysis, we could confirm that he is male, of the Caucasian race, and perhaps determine which blood type flows in his veins, whether it is A, B, or 0. Scent evidence is a source of information that prosecuting authorities have been using for decades to identify individuals through specially trained canines. There is now an effort to create an instrumental method for a detailed chemical analysis of the scent trace so that scent identification can be objectified and used as an evidence in court, and of course, to provide a range of additional pieces of information about the scent provider.

• Keywords
• olfaktronika,
• MeSH
• Biomarkers analysis   MeSH
• Chromatography, Gas MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Odorants * analysis   MeSH
• Forensic Sciences MeSH
• Body Odor MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH

UNLABELLED: Human age estimation from trace samples may give important leads early in a police investigation by contributing to the description of the perpetrator. Several molecular biomarkers are available for the estimation of chronological age, and currently, DNA methylation patterns are the most promising. In this study, a QIAGEN age protocol for age estimation was tested by five forensic genetic laboratories. The assay comprised bisulfite treatment of the extracted DNA, amplification of five CpG loci (in the genes of ELOVL2, C1orf132, TRIM59, KLF14, and FHL2), and sequencing of the amplicons using the PyroMark Q48 platform. Blood samples from 49 individuals with ages ranging from 18 to 64 years as well as negative and methylation controls were analyzed. An existing age estimation model was applied to display a mean absolute deviation of 3.62 years within the reference data set. KEY POINTS: Age determination as an intelligence tool during investigations can be a powerful tool in forensic genetics.In this study, five laboratories ran 49 samples and obtained a mean absolute deviation of 3.62 years.Five markers were analyzed on a PyroMark Q48 platform.

• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH

Skeletal remains are among the most difficult types of samples encountered in forensic DNA casework and historical investigations due to prolonged exposure to environmental insults. DNA extracted from bone often is degraded, in low quantities, and contains co-purified inhibitors from the surrounding soil and/or burial vault material. When sexually dimorphic skeletal elements are not recovered, determining the sex of a decedent can be challenging. With unidentified human skeletal remains, genetic data often are evaluated in concert with anthropological analyses, as well as other types of metadata, to improve confidence in making associations or for positive identifications. This study evaluated a multi-faceted molecular genetic approach to increasing the amount of data that can be recovered from degraded skeletal remains. Results demonstrate that using a newer-generation multiplex (GlobalFiler™) with an expanded set of highly discriminatory DNA markers - combined with co-amplification of three different sex-determining loci, one additional PCR cycle, and testing multiple cuttings from the same bone or multiple regions within a skeleton - can improve reliability and accuracy in skeletal remains identifications by providing data concordance.

• MeSH
• Anthropology MeSH
• DNA Fingerprinting * MeSH
• DNA * isolation & purification   MeSH
• Consensus MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Microsatellite Repeats MeSH
• Reproducibility of Results MeSH
• Body Remains * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH

BACKGROUND: Tetranucleotide Short Tandem Repeats (STRs) for human identification and common use in forensic cases have recently been used to address the population genetics of the North-Eastern Mediterranean area. However, to gain confidence in the inferences made using STRs, this kind of analysis should be challenged with changes in three main aspects of the data, i.e. the sizes of the samples, their distance across space and the genetic background from which they are drawn. AIM: To test the resilience of the gradients previously detected in the North-Eastern Mediterranean to the enlargement of the surveyed area and population set, using revised data. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: STR genotype profiles were obtained from a publicly available database (PopAffilietor databank) and a dataset was assembled including >7000 subjects from the Arabian Peninsula to Scandinavia, genotyped at eight loci. Spatial principal component analysis (sPCA) was applied and the frequency maps of the nine alleles which contributed most strongly to sPC1 were examined in detail. RESULTS: By far the greatest part of diversity was summarised by a single spatial principal component (sPC1), oriented along a SouthEast-to-NorthWest axis. The alleles with the top 5% squared loadings were TH01(9.3), D19S433(14), TH01(6), D19S433(15.2), FGA(20), FGA(24), D3S1358(14), FGA(21) and D2S1338(19). These results confirm a clinal pattern over the whole range for at least four loci (TH01, D19S433, FGA, D3S1358). CONCLUSIONS: Four of the eight STR loci (or even alleles) considered here can reproducibly capture continental arrangements of diversity. This would, in principle, allow for the exploitation of forensic data to clarify important aspects in the formation of local gene pools.

• MeSH
• Gene Frequency * MeSH
• Genetic Variation * MeSH
• Genotype * MeSH
• Microsatellite Repeats * MeSH
• Genetics, Population MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Africa, Northern MeSH
• Middle East MeSH
• Mediterranean Region MeSH

A collaborative effort was carried out by the Spanish and Portuguese Speaking Working Group of the International Society for Forensic Genetics (GHEP-ISFG) to promote knowledge exchange between associate laboratories interested in the implementation of indel-based methodologies and build allele frequency databases of 38 indels for forensic applications. These databases include populations from different countries that are relevant for identification and kinship investigations undertaken by the participating laboratories. Before compiling population data, participants were asked to type the 38 indels in blind samples from annual GHEP-ISFG proficiency tests, using an amplification protocol previously described. Only laboratories that reported correct results contributed with population data to this study. A total of 5839 samples were genotyped from 45 different populations from Africa, America, East Asia, Europe and Middle East. Population differentiation analysis showed significant differences between most populations studied from Africa and America, as well as between two Asian populations from China and East Timor. Low FST values were detected among most European populations. Overall diversities and parameters of forensic efficiency were high in populations from all continents.

• MeSH
• Databases, Nucleic Acid MeSH
• DNA Fingerprinting MeSH
• Ethnicity genetics   MeSH
• Gene Frequency MeSH
• Genotype MeSH
• Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide * MeSH
• Laboratories statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Microsatellite Repeats MeSH
• INDEL Mutation * MeSH
• Genetics, Population * MeSH
• Racial Groups genetics   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH

Parish priest Josef Toufar died as a direct consequence of torture committed by Communist State Security Service agents, forcing him to confess that "miraculous" movement of crucifix above the main altar during the Holy Mass held in the Roman-Catholic church in Číhošť was staged by using a technical equipment. Josef Toufar was presumably buried in a mass grave at the cemetery in Prague-Ďáblice under a false name Josef Zouhar. In 2013 the Czech Bishops' Conference grant an approval to begin the process of his beatification. However, the beatification required the exhumation and identification of the remains. In this case report, we describe the process of searching, exhumation, and the combined A-STR/Y-STR DNA analysis of remains of Pater Josef Toufar. His identification was feasible due to kinship analysis: buccal swabs of three family members (niece, grand-niece, and grand-nephew) were available for testing.

• MeSH
• DNA Fingerprinting methods   MeSH
• Clergy MeSH
• Exhumation MeSH
• Communism MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Chromosomes, Human, Y * MeSH
• Microsatellite Repeats * MeSH
• Torture MeSH
• Crime Victims * MeSH
• Burial MeSH
• Pedigree MeSH
• Body Remains * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Case Reports MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic MeSH

BACKGROUND: Genomic methods can provide extraordinary tools to explore the genetic background of wild species and domestic breeds, optimize breeding practices, monitor and limit the spread of recessive diseases, and discourage illegal crossings. In this study we analysed a panel of 170k Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms with a combination of multivariate, Bayesian and outlier gene approaches to examine the genome-wide diversity and inbreeding levels in a recent wolf x dog cross-breed, the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog, which is becoming increasingly popular across Europe. RESULTS: Pairwise FST values, multivariate and assignment procedures indicated that the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog was significantly differentiated from all the other analysed breeds and also well-distinguished from both parental populations (Carpathian wolves and German Shepherds). Coherently with the low number of founders involved in the breed selection, the individual inbreeding levels calculated from homozygosity regions were relatively high and comparable with those derived from the pedigree data. In contrast, the coefficient of relatedness between individuals estimated from the pedigrees often underestimated the identity-by-descent scores determined using genetic profiles. The timing of the admixture and the effective population size trends estimated from the LD patterns reflected the documented history of the breed. Ancestry reconstruction methods identified more than 300 genes with excess of wolf ancestry compared to random expectations, mainly related to key morphological features, and more than 2000 genes with excess of dog ancestry, playing important roles in lipid metabolism, in the regulation of circadian rhythms, in learning and memory processes, and in sociability, such as the COMT gene, which has been described as a candidate gene for the latter trait in dogs. CONCLUSIONS: In this study we successfully applied genome-wide procedures to reconstruct the history of the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog, assess individual wolf ancestry proportions and, thanks to the availability of a well-annotated reference genome, identify possible candidate genes for wolf-like and dog-like phenotypic traits typical of this breed, including commonly inherited disorders. Moreover, through the identification of ancestry-informative markers, these genomic approaches could provide tools for forensic applications to unmask illegal crossings with wolves and uncontrolled trades of recent and undeclared wolfdog hybrids.

• MeSH
• Principal Component Analysis MeSH
• Bayes Theorem MeSH
• Circadian Rhythm genetics   MeSH
• DNA isolation & purification   metabolism   MeSH
• Genome * MeSH
• Gene Ontology MeSH
• Hybridization, Genetic MeSH
• Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide MeSH
• Catechol O-Methyltransferase genetics   MeSH
• Lipid Metabolism genetics   MeSH
• Genetics, Population MeSH
• Dogs genetics   MeSH
• Linkage Disequilibrium MeSH
• Wolves genetics   MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Check Tag
• Dogs genetics   MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czechoslovakia MeSH