mROS‑calcium feedback loop promotes lethal ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death in early myocardial ischemia.

Lethal ventricular arrhythmia‑sudden cardiac death (LVA‑SCD) occurs frequently during the early stage of myocardial ischemia (MI). However, the mechanism underlying higher LVA‑SCD incidence is still poorly understood. The present study aimed to explore the role of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mROS) and Ca crosstalk in promoting LVA‑SCD in early MI.

Conventional HE staining combined with two special staining methods to identify antemortem stab wound in case with highly decomposed mutilated corpses.

This study aims to identify an antemortem neck stab wound on a highly decomposed, headless and mutilated body by conventional hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining combined with Ponceau-Victoria blue B staining (P-VB staining) and Masson staining. Specifically, a tissue sample was excised from the skin and muscle tissue at the junction of the normal and brownish discolored areas around the suspected stabbing tract of the left neck, in the upper and lower wound-clavicle-shoulder region. Conventional HE staining only provides a morphological and structural outline of the tissue, with both the injury hemorrhage and local connective tissue appearing eosinophilic pink.

Long-term exposure to ephedrine leads to neurotoxicity and neurobehavioral disorders accompanied by up-regulation of CRF in prefrontal cortex and hippocampus in rhesus macaques.

Drug addiction continues to threaten the health and welfare of people worldwide, and ephedrine abuse is a serious drug problem in many areas of the world. Ephedrine toxicity is thought to induce behavioral effects primarily through actions on the central nervous system. The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) system plays an important role in regulating behavioral effects induced by addictive drugs, but whether CRF is related to ephedrine toxicity remains unclear.

Effects of Chronic Ephedrine Toxicity on Functional Connections, Cell Apoptosis, and CREB-Related Proteins in the Prefrontal Cortex of Rhesus Monkeys.

Ephedrine abuse has spread in many parts of the world, severely threatening human health. The mechanism of ephedrine toxicity is still unclear. To explore the possible neural mechanisms of ephedrine toxicity, this study established a non-human primate model of ephedrine exposure, analyzed the functional connectivity changes in its prefrontal cortex through resting state BOLD-fMRI, and then inspected the pathophysiological changes as well as the expression of the cyclic adenosine monophosphate response element-binding protein (CREB), phosphorylated CREB (P-CREB), and CREB target proteins (c-fos and fosB) in the prefrontal cortex.

Behavioral Changes and Neuronal Damage in Rhesus Monkeys after 10 Weeks of Ketamine Administration Involve Prefrontal Cortex Dopamine D2 Receptor and Dopamine Transporter.

The dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) and dopamine transporter (DAT) play a regulatory role in dopaminergic neurotransmission and thus play an important role in drug addiction. The prefrontal cortex (PFC), a critical part of the mesencephalic dopaminergic system, is thought to be involved in the development and maintenance of drug addiction. The addiction to ketamine is thought to induce behavioral effects primarily through actions on the central nervous system.

Changes of serum trace elements in early stage trauma and its correlation with injury severity score.

Background: Severe trauma can cause secondary multiple organ dysfunction syndrome and death. The absolute and relative concentrations of trace elements in both critical care and conventional treatment, which can lead to acute trace element deficiency, constitute an important mechanism of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS)/multiple organ failure (MOF).

Methods: We investigated the changes in serum Cu, Zn, and Fe in early stage trauma of patients with the high injury severity score (ISS) and correlated the change in trace elements with ISS.

cAMP Response Element Binding Protein Expression in the Hippocampus of Rhesus Macaques with Chronic Ephedrine Addiction.

Background: Drug addiction is classified as a chronic relapse nature brain disease with complicated neurobiology mechanisms. There are an increasing number of researchers that are investigating the possible mechanisms for solving the thorny problem.

Methods: The model of chronic addiction of rhesus monkey ephedrine was established, where changes in body weight and behavior were monitored.

Serum lipid feature and potential biomarkers of lethal ventricular tachyarrhythmia (LVTA) induced by myocardial ion channel diseases: a rat model study.

To determine the cause of death in myocardial ion channel diseases (MICD)-induced sudden cardiac death (SCD) cases is a difficulty in forensic identification practices. The majority of MICD-induced SCD cases would experience lethal ventricular tachyarrhythmia (LVTA) before deaths; thus, confirming the occurrence of LVTA in bodies can offer a key evidence to identify these cases. Several lipids in the myocardia were found disturbed after LVTA; yet, whether serum lipidome would be disrupted by LVTA is not clear.

Metabolic Characterization of Myocardial Infarction Using GC-MS-Based Tissue Metabolomics.

Understanding the metabolic features of myocardial infarction (MI) is critical to its prevention and treatment. Here, we aimed to characterize the metabolic features of early MI using a tissue metabolomics method based on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Thirty-four pairs of infarcted myocardia and their matched non-infarcted myocardia were collected from 34 rats that underwent coronary artery ligation (CAL); their metabolic profiles were compared by GC-MS-based tissue metabolomics to characterize the metabolic features of MI.

Intramedullary schwannoma of the upper cervical spinal cord: a case study of identification in pathologic autopsy.

Intramedullary schwannoma of the upper cervical spinal cord is rarely reported in forensic medicine. We herein report a case involving a patient who died of compression from an intramedullary schwannoma in the upper cervical spinal cord. A 30-year-old man initially presented with a five-day history of pain in the left chest that progressed to weakening in the left arm.

Anterior wrist and medial malleolus as the novel sites of tissue selection: a retrospective study on electric shock death through the hand-to-foot circuit pathway.

Our previous work demonstrated that characteristic changes could occur in the anterior wrist and medial malleolus in electric deaths through the hand-to-foot electric circuit pathway in an electric shock rat model. However, whether the same phenomenon occurs in humans is unknown. The aim of the present retrospective study was to ascertain whether the anterior wrist and medial malleolus could also be selected as the promising and significant sites in electric death through the hand-to-foot circuit pathway.

Predictable weathering of puparial hydrocarbons of necrophagous flies for determining the postmortem interval: a field experiment using Chrysomya rufifacies.

Preadult development of necrophagous flies is commonly recognized as an accurate method for estimating the minimum postmortem interval (PMImin). However, once the PMImin exceeds the duration of preadult development, the method is less accurate. Recently, fly puparial hydrocarbons were found to significantly change with weathering time in the field, indicating their potential use for PMImin estimates.

Anterior wrist and medial malleolus: the optimal sites for tissue selection in electric death through hand-to-foot circuit pathway.

Specific morphological changes may be absent in some cases of electrocution shocked by the voltage of 220 V or lower. In this study, we attempted to demonstrate that the anterior wrist and medial malleolus were the optimal sites with promising and significant changes in electric death through the hand-to-foot circuit pathway. We established an electric shock rat model and observed histopathologic changes in the anterior wrist and medial malleolus.

Non-targeted metabolomics identified a common metabolic signature of lethal ventricular tachyarrhythmia (LVTA) in two rat models.

Lethal ventricular tachyarrhythmia (LVTA) is the predominant underlying mechanism of sudden cardiac death (SCD). The aim of this study is to characterize the metabolic features of myocardia following LVTA, and identify potential biomarkers to diagnose LVTA. We developed two LVTA rat models induced by aconitine injection or coronary artery ligation, which represent cardiac ion channel disease-related and cardiac ischemia-related SCD, respectively.

Trace Element Concentrations in Human Tissues of Death Cases Associated With Secondary Infection and MOF After Severe Trauma.

Proper trace element level is crucial for the organs in maintaining normal physiological functions. Multiple organ failure (MOF) might be added to critically ill patients due to a lack of trace elements. Alterations of trace element levels in brain, heart, liver, and kidney after severe trauma, however, have been little studied so far.

Analysis of blood trace elements and biochemical indexes levels in severe craniocerebral trauma adults with Glasgow Coma Scale and injury severity score.

We aimed to investigate the correlation between the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), the injury severity score (ISS) and serum levels of trace elements (TE) in severe trauma patients to analyze alteration of the levels of trace elements and serum biochemical indexes in the period of admission from 126 adult cases of severe brain trauma with traffic accidents. Multi-trace elements for patients in the trauma-TE groups were used. The results indicated that all patients presented an acute trace elements deficiency syndrome (ATEDs) after severe trauma, and the correlation between ISS and serum levels of Fe, Zn, and Mg was significant.

Severe diffuse axon injury in chronic alcoholic rat medulla oblongata following a concussion blow.

Aims: We investigated the axonal morphological changes and expression of both tau protein and β-APP following concussion to the medulla oblongata, in a rat model of chronic alcoholism.

Methods: Fifty-nine male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into EtOH, EtOH-TBI and control groups (water group, water-TBI group). To establish chronic alcoholic rats, rats were intragastrically given edible spirituous liquor twice daily.

Time of death revealed by hydrocarbons of empty puparia of Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) (Diptera: Calliphoridae): a field experiment.

Determination of the postmortem interval (PMI) is crucial for investigating homicide. However, there are currently only limited methods available. Especially, once the PMI exceeds the duration of pre-adult development of the flies with the adult emergence, its determination is very approximate.

Chronic alcoholism-mediated impairment in the medulla oblongata: a mechanism of alcohol-related mortality in traumatic brain injury?

Alcohol-related traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common condition in medical and forensic practice, and results in high prehospital mortality. We investigated the mechanism of chronic alcoholism-related mortality by examining the effects of alcohol on the synapses of the medulla oblongata in a rat model of TBI. Seventy adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to either ethanol (EtOH) group, EtOH-TBI group, or control groups (water group, water-TBI group).

The densities of visceral organs and the extent of pathologic changes.

In this study, we designed a new device to measure the density of internal organs and correlated with their pathologic changes. The densities of hearts, livers, lungs and brains from 169 autopsy cases were measured with different extent of pathologic changes by an integrated volume-density meter. All samples were divided into 2 groups: intact and pathologic groups.

Haplotype diversity of 22 Y-chromosomal STRs in a southeast China population sample (Chaoshan area).

In this study, 22 Y-specific STR loci (DYS19, DYS389I/II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS385, DYS437, DYS438, DYS439, DYS461, DYS481, DYS504, DYS505, DYS508, DYS533, DYS576, DYS588, DYS607, DYS634, and DYS643) were analyzed in 216 unrelated male individuals from southeast China (Chaoshan area) by three multiplex PCR systems. The haplotype diversity using the classical set of Y-STRs (DYS19, DYS389I/II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS437, DYS438, DYS439, and DYS385; PowerPlexY Systems) was 0.9908.

[Twenty Y-STR locus multiplex amplification and genetic polymorphism analysis in Han population in Chaoshan area].

Objective: To study genetic polymorphisms of 20 Y-chromosomal short tandem repeats (STR) in Chaoshan Han population, and to evaluate their value in forensic science.

Methods: Twenty Y-specific STR loci (DYS434, Y-GATA-A10, Y-GATA-H4, DYS438, DYS439, DYS443, DYS444, DYS446, DYS447, DYS448, DYS456, DYS458, DYS460, DYS520, DYS531, DYS557, DYS622, DYS630, DYS635 and DYS709) were amplified by using three fluorescence-labeled multiplex PCR systems and were analyzed by ABI310 genetic analyzer. One hundred and fifty-eight unrelated male individuals of Han population in Chaoshan area were investigated to determine the distribution of allele frequencies and haplotype.

Genetic polymorphism of 14 non-CODIS STR loci for forensic use in southeast China population.

We investigated 14 polymorphic STR loci (D1S2142, D2S1360, D3S1545, D7S1517, D10S2325, D12S391, D13S1492, D14S306, D15S659, D16S3253, D18S1270, D19S253, D20S470, D21S1437) which are not included in the standard sets of forensic loci (CODIS) in a sample of 216 unrelated healthy southeast Chinese individuals. The studied loci were highly informative and did not show departures from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The accumulated powers of discrimination and power of exclusion for the 14 loci were 99.

Allele frequencies for six miniSTR loci of two ethnic populations in China.

Allele frequencies and forensic parameters for the six miniSTR loci D1S1677, D2S441, D4S2364, D10S1248, D14S1434, and D22S1045 were investigated in two ethnic China populations. Allele frequencies for each locus are reported along with nomenclature based on sequence analysis. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products contained within the six loci were less than 125 bp in size.