GHEP-ISFG collaborative exercise on mixture profiles of autosomal STRs (GHEP-MIX01, GHEP-MIX02 and GHEP-MIX03): results and evaluation.

One of the main objectives of the Spanish and Portuguese-Speaking Group of the International Society for Forensic Genetics (GHEP-ISFG) is to promote and contribute to the development and dissemination of scientific knowledge in the area of forensic genetics. Due to this fact, GHEP-ISFG holds different working commissions that are set up to develop activities in scientific aspects of general interest. One of them, the Mixture Commission of GHEP-ISFG, has organized annually, since 2009, a collaborative exercise on analysis and interpretation of autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) mixture profiles.

A fatally mistaken fruit juice drink: an unordinary way of cocaine intoxication.

Cocaine is one of the drugs of abuse more frequently consumed in Spain. Furthermore, Spain due to its geographical position is used by trafficker's organizations as the port of entrance of cocaine in the European Union. We present here a case of a fatal intoxication caused by a mistake in the cocaine distribution net in our country.

Neutral red uptake assay for the estimation of cell viability/cytotoxicity.

The neutral red uptake assay provides a quantitative estimation of the number of viable cells in a culture. It is one of the most used cytotoxicity tests with many biomedical and environmental applications. It is based on the ability of viable cells to incorporate and bind the supravital dye neutral red in the lysosomes.

Toxicological assessment of indium nitrate on aquatic organisms and investigation of the effects on the PLHC-1 fish cell line.

Indium nitrate is mainly used as a semiconductor in batteries, for plating and other chemical and medical applications. There is a lack of available information about the adverse effects of indium compounds on aquatic organisms. Therefore, the toxic effects on systems from four trophic levels of the aquatic ecosystem were investigated.

A severe case of olanzapine overdose with analytical data.

Introduction: Olanzapine is a second-generation atypical antipsychotic agent approved for the treatment of psychotic disorders and mania. While olanzapine overdoses are common, cases with whole blood concentrations are less so. We describe here a well-documented case of a pure olanzapine overdose in which whole blood concentrations were determined, and compared with other concentrations in the literature.

Ecotoxicological effects of the antioxidant additive propyl gallate in five aquatic systems.

Propyl gallate is an antioxidant widely used in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. The occurrence and fate of additives in the aquatic environment is an emerging issue in environmental chemistry. To date, there is little available information about the adverse effects of propyl gallate on aquatic organisms.

Toxicological effects of the lipid regulator gemfibrozil in four aquatic systems.

Gemfibrozil is a lipid-regulating agent widely used in patients at risk of coronary disease. Pharmaceutical products, such as gemfibrozil, are found in municipal effluents and represent a major source of contamination. To date, there is little available information about the adverse effects of gemfibrozil in aquatic organisms.

Ecotoxicological evaluation of sodium fluoroacetate on aquatic organisms and investigation of the effects on two fish cell lines.

Sodium monofluoroacetate (compound 1080) is one of the most potent pesticides. It is also a metabolite of many other fluorinated compounds, including anticancer agents, narcotic analgesics, pesticides or industrial chemicals. Other sources of water contamination are the atmospheric degradation of hydrofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons.

Investigation of a fatality due to diesel fuel No. 2 ingestion.

This paper presents a simple, rapid, reliable, and validated analytical method suited for forensic examination of diesel fuel No. 2 in biological specimens. The proposed methodology has been applied to the investigation of a forensic case with diesel fuel No.

Ecotoxicological assessment of bromobenzene using a test battery with five model systems.

Bromobenzene (BrB) is used as a solvent for crystallization and as an additive to motor oils and may be released into the environment through various waste streams. However, there is limited available information about the toxic hazard of BrB in the aquatic environment. Consequently, the ecotoxicological effects induced by BrB were investigated using five model systems with representants from four trophic levels.

An unusual case of drug-facilitated sexual assault using aromatic solvents.

This report documents a case of drug-facilitated sexual assault (DFSA) under the influence of solvents. The victim was a 13-year-old female. Upon contact with law enforcement, she was still confused and could hardly explain the facts.

Application of pericardial fluid to the analysis of morphine (heroin) and cocaine in forensic toxicology.

In this study opiates (morphine and codeine) and cocaine and its related metabolites (benzoylecgonine and cocaethylene) were analyzed in pericardial fluid by GC/MS. This is the first study reporting levels of drugs of abuse in this body fluid. The analytical method used has been previously validated and then applied to 54 drug-related deaths in the Barcelona area (Spain).

Investigation of fatalities due to acute gasoline poisoning.

This paper presents a simple, rapid, reliable, and validated method suited for forensic examination of gasoline in biological samples. The proposed methodology has been applied to the investigation of four fatal cases due to gasoline poisoning that occurred in Spain in 2003 and 2004. Case histories and pathological and toxicological findings are described in order to illustrate the danger of gasoline exposure under several circumstances.

Determination of several psychiatric drugs in whole blood using capillary gas-liquid chromatography with nitrogen phosphorus detection: comparison of two solid phase extraction procedures.

A simple and reliable gas chromatographic method with nitrogen-phosphorus detection without derivatization was developed for the detection of several psychiatric drugs in whole blood as part of systematic toxicological analyses (STA). Drugs included mirtazapine, chlorpromazine, methotrimeprazine (levomepromazine), clothiapine, olanzapine, clozapine, haloperidol, and thioridazine. All drugs were studied at concentrations of 100-2,000 microg/L, except haloperidol that was studied at concentrations of 400-8,000 microg/L.

Ecotoxicological evaluation of the antimalarial drug chloroquine.

There is limited information available about the potential environmental effects of chloroquine (CQ), a widely used antimalarial agent and a promising inexpensive drug in the management of HIV disease. The acute effects of CQ were studied using four ecotoxicological model systems. The most sensitive bioindicator was the immobilization of the cladoceran Daphnia magna, with an EC50 of 12 microM CQ at 72 h and a non-observed adverse effect level of 2.

High concentrations of pralidoxime are needed for the adequate reactivation of human erythrocyte acetylcholinesterase inhibited by dimethoate in vitro.

Due to the current controversy about the real effectiveness of the oximes in the treatment of organophosphate poisoning, the reactivation capacity of pralidoxime has been evaluated in vitro on human erythrocyte acetylcholinesterase inhibited by dimethoate. In the in vitro model, a partial recovery of acetylcholinesterase activity was observed with concentrations from 0.066 mM pralidoxime, probably useful enough to prevent death in most cases in vivo.

Challenges of DNA profiling in mass disaster investigations.

In cases of mass disaster, there is often a need for managing, analyzing, and comparing large numbers of biological samples and DNA profiles. This requires the use of laboratory information management systems for large-scale sample logging and tracking, coupled with bioinformatic tools for DNA database searching according to different matching algorithms, and for the evaluation of the significance of each match by likelihood ratio calculations. There are many different interrelated factors and circumstances involved in each specific mass disaster scenario that may challenge the final DNA identification goal, such as: the number of victims, the mechanisms of body destruction, the extent of body fragmentation, the rate of DNA degradation, the body accessibility for sample collection, or the type of DNA reference samples availability.

Ecotoxicological evaluation of diethanolamine using a battery of microbiotests.

In order to investigate the potential ecotoxicity of diethanolamine (DEA), a battery of model systems was developed. DEA is widely used as a chemical intermediate and as a surface-active agent in cosmetic formulations, pharmaceuticals and agricultural products. DEA was studied using ecotoxicological model systems, representing four trophic levels, with several bioindicators evaluated at different exposure time periods.

Modulation of intracellular cytokines in draining lymph node cells following allergen and irritant.

The murine local lymph node assay (LLNA) has been developed as an alternative to guinea pig models for the assessment of the contact sensitization potential. However, there is a need to develop a non-radioisotopic endpoint for the LLNA because of the radioisotopic method's requiring the use of special facilities. In this study, we investigated to evaluate the populations of intracellular cytokine producing cells and to analyze the expression of mRNA levels in the lymph node (LN) cells following allergen and irritant.

Investigation of a fatality due to trazodone poisoning: case report and literature review.

Trazodone is an antidepressant agent used in Spain since 1975. There are few documented reports of fatalities solely attributed to trazodone and none in which the main metabolite is analyzed. A fatal case of self-poisoning following oral ingestion is reported along with a description of the validated analytical methods involved, a discussion of poisoning characteristics, and a review of reports describing trazodone overdose cases with analytical results.