Publications by authors named "X A Conlan"

The terrestrial decomposition of remains and associated insect colonisation have been highly researched, and recently studies have expanded to investigate the aquatic decomposition of remains. However, there are instances where remains may experience both terrestrial and aquatic conditions simultaneously due to partial submersion in tidal areas, or influx or efflux of water caused by flood or drought. Decomposition and post-mortem interval (PMI) research to date has focused on remains wholly exposed to either terrestrial or aquatic environments, with limited consideration of dual simultaneous exposure.

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Article Synopsis
  • Scientists studied how certain types of mushrooms, like Pleurotus, can help break down harmful antibiotics in water, which can happen when waste isn't thrown away properly.
  • They found that the laccase enzyme from these mushrooms can degrade antibiotics like levofloxacin very effectively, with one type of mushroom breaking down up to 77.7% of it in 25 days.
  • The researchers used tests to compare the mushroom extracts with a commercial enzyme and found that the mushrooms were almost just as good at removing the antibiotics, helping protect the environment from these harmful substances.
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Determining the biological source of a stain can be important information for both investigators and the judiciary in criminal cases. Immunochromatographic assays are commonly used in forensic science for the identification of human biological material. It has previously been demonstrated that various environmental, thermal and chemical insults can affect the efficacy of ABAcard® HemaTrace® in the detection of human blood.

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The use of controlled precursors for reaction optimisation is not always practical. One approach to limiting the use of controlled substances is to instead use 'model compounds'. Herein, two model compounds resembling norephedrine and ephedrine were selected based on their (i) structural similarity (i.

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Research into the recovery of DNA from illicit drug samples has shown it is possible to get forensically useful profiles from such substrates. However, it is not yet known if the different physical states that drugs can be found in influences the quantity and quality of DNA that can be recovered or what is the best sampling method to adopt for powdered samples. This research used acetaminophen in four different states - large crystalline, powder, in solution, or residue - to determine the efficacy of current DNA technology in recovery and analysis of the resulting sample.

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