Differential DNA extraction of challenging simulated sexual assault samples: a Swiss collaborative study.

ABSTRACT: In sexual assault cases, autosomal DNA analysis of gynecological swabs is a challenge, as the presence of a large quantity of female material may prevent the detection of the male DNA. A solution to this problem is differential DNA extraction, but as there are different protocols, it was decided to test their efficiency on simulated casework samples. Four difficult samples were sent to the nine Swiss laboratories active in the forensic genetics. They used their routine protocols to separate the epithelial cell fraction, enriched with the non-sperm DNA, from the sperm fraction. DNA extracts were then sent to the organizing laboratory for analysis. Estimates of male to female DNA ratio without differential DNA extraction ranged from 1:38 to 1:339, depending on the semen used to prepare the samples. After differential DNA extraction, most of the ratios ranged from 1:12 to 9:1, allowing the detection of the male DNA. Compared to direct DNA extraction, cell separation resulted in losses of 94-98% of the male DNA. As expected, more male DNA was generally present in the sperm than in the epithelial cell fraction. However, for about 30% of the samples, the reverse trend was observed. The recovery of male and female DNA was highly variable depending on the laboratories. Experimental design similar to the one used in this study may help for local protocol testing and improvement.

Approaches and Strategies to Improve Writing Skills

I believe and, I hope others believe that writing well is not only a personal accomplishment but also a valuable form of social participation and leadership. After reviewing the literature, this work tries to identify the problem and to identify the key issues to EFL writing so as to suggest a remedial procedure that may help the learners to express themselves better in English. It aims at finding areas of difficulty in the writing skill among the students and to work out remedial procedures to help them overcome their weakness. A survey carried out on 12th grade students, regarding their comprehension, shows that organizing idea on paper is one of the factors which influences their ability to write. It also shows that students feel the need to be instructed on strategies of writing success and consequently improving their writing. There are a lot systematic approaches and methods for discerning which skills and type of writing teacher should focus on and meaningful classroom activities and strategies that teacher can use to help students improving their writing.

Survey on batch-to-batch variation in spray paints: a collaborative study

This study represents the most extensive analysis of batch-to-batch variations in spray paint samples to date. The survey was performed as a collaborative project of the ENFSI (European Network of Forensic Science Institutes) Paint and Glass Working Group (EPG) and involved 11 laboratories. Several studies have already shown that paint samples of similar color but from different manufacturers can usually be differentiated using an appropriate analytical sequence. The discrimination of paints from the same manufacturer and color (batch-to-batch variations) is of great interest and these data are seldom found in the literature. This survey concerns the analysis of batches from different color groups (white, papaya (special shade of orange), red and black) with a wide range of analytical techniques and leads to the following conclusions. Colored batch samples are more likely to be differentiated since their pigment composition is more complex (pigment mixtures, added pigments) and therefore subject to variations. These variations may occur during the paint production but may also occur when checking the paint shade in quality control processes. For these samples, techniques aimed at color/pigment(s) characterization (optical microscopy, microspectrophotometry (MSP), Raman spectroscopy) provide better discrimination than techniques aimed at the organic (binder) or inorganic composition (fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) or elemental analysis (SEM - scanning electron microscopy and XRF - X-ray fluorescence)). White samples contain mainly titanium dioxide as a pigment and the main differentiation is based on the binder composition (Csingle bondH stretches) detected either by FTIR or Raman. The inorganic composition (elemental analysis) also provides some discrimination. Black samples contain mainly carbon black as a pigment and are problematic with most of the spectroscopic techniques. In this case, pyrolysis-GC/MS represents the best technique to detect differences. Globally, Py-GC/MS may show a high potential of discrimination on all samples but the results are highly dependent on the specific instrumental conditions used. Finally, the discrimination of samples when data was interpreted visually as compared to statistically using principal component analysis (PCA) yielded very similar results. PCA increases sensitivity and could perform better on specific samples, but one first has to ensure that all non-informative variation (baseline deviation) is eliminated by applying correct pre-treatments. Statistical treatments can be used on a large data set and, when combined with an expert's opinion, will provide more objective criteria for decision making.

Application of the 2008 definitions for invasive fungal diseases to the trial comparing voriconazole versus amphotericin B for therapy of invasive aspergillosis: a collaborative study of the Mycoses Study Group (MSG 05) and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Infectious Diseases Group.

BACKGROUND: Strict definition of invasive aspergillosis (IA) cases is required to allow precise conclusions about the efficacy of antifungal therapy. The Global Comparative Aspergillus Study (GCAS) compared voriconazole to amphotericin B (AmB) deoxycholate for the primary therapy of IA. Because predefined definitions used for this trial were substantially different from the consensus definitions proposed by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer/Mycoses Study Group in 2008, we recategorized the 379 episodes of the GCAS according to the later definitions. METHODS: The objectives were to assess the impact of the current definitions on the classification of the episodes and to provide comparative efficacy for probable/proven and possible IA in patients treated with either voriconazole or AmB. In addition to original data, we integrated the results of baseline galactomannan serum levels obtained from 249 (65.7%) frozen samples. The original response assessment was accepted unchanged. RESULTS: Recategorization allowed 59 proven, 178 probable, and 106 possible IA cases to be identified. A higher favorable 12-week response rate was obtained with voriconazole (54.7%) than with AmB (29.9%) (P < .0001). Survival was higher for voriconazole for mycologically documented (probable/proven) IA (70.2%) than with AmB (54.9%) (P = .010). Higher response rates were obtained in possible IA treated with voriconazole vs AmB with the same magnitude of difference (26.2%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 7.2%-45.3%) as in mycologically documented episodes (24.3%; 95% CI, 11.9%-36.7%), suggesting that possible cases are true IA. CONCLUSIONS: Recategorization resulted in a better identification of the episodes and confirmed the higher efficacy of voriconazole over AmB deoxycholate in mycologically documented IA.

Outpatient prescriptions practice and writing quality in a paediatric university hospital.

BACKGROUND: The writing of prescriptions is an important aspect of medical practice. This activity presents some specific problems given a danger of misinterpretation and dispensing errors in community pharmacies. The objective of this study was to determine the evolution of the prescription practice and writing quality in the outpatient clinics of our paediatric university hospital.¦METHODS: Copies of prescriptions written by physicians were collected from community pharmacies in the region of our hospital for a two-month period in 2005 and 2010. They were analysed according to standard criteria, including both formal and pharmaceutical aspects.¦RESULTS: A total of 597 handwritten prescriptions were reviewed in 2005 and 633 in 2010. They contained 1,456 drug prescriptions in 2005 and 1,348 in 2010. Fifteen drugs accounted for 80% of all prescriptions and the most common drugs were paracetamol and ibuprofen. A higher proportion of drugs were prescribed as International Nonproprietary Names (INN) or generics in 2010 (24.7%) compared with 2005 (20.9%). Of the drug prescriptions examined, 55.5% were incomplete in 2005 and 69.2% in 2010. Moreover in 2005, 3.2% were legible only with difficulty, 22.9% were ambiguous, and 3.0% contained an error. These proportions rose respectively to 5.2%, 27.8%, and 6.8% in 2010.¦CONCLUSION: This study showed that fifteen different drugs represented the majority of prescriptions, and a quarter of them were prescribed as INN or generics in 2010; and that handwritten prescriptions contained numerous omissions and preventable errors. In our hospital computerised prescribing coupled with advanced decision support is eagerly awaited.

Adapting the Process Writing Approach to English Language Learners with Special Needs: Using Visuals

The available literature on the writing characteristics and best practices to teach writing to English Language Learners who also present some disability is scarce. In order to understand and provide some insight on the developments in this field, I propose an adaptation of the Process Writing Approach based on a literature review of the existing bibliography about the writing characteristics of English Language Learners, Special Needs Learners, and English Language Learners with Special Needs’ writing, the effects of the Process Writing Approach in teaching writing to these groups, and the use of visuals in writing instruction. The main assumptions of this study are: a) The Process Writing Approach provides an opportunity to differentiate instruction to ELLs with special needs and gives them additional opportunities to bring their funds of knowledge to the classroom, improving their writing, and b) By allowing students to rely on visuals in different phases of the writing process teachers will be addressing the needs of both visual and verbal learners, therefore allowing students more options to develop writing skills. The main pedagogical implication is that by dividing writing in recursive stages and inserting visuals as scaffolding throughout the entire writing process, teachers will provide an alternative approach to writing instruction that may be more effective to English Language Learners with Special Needs.

Treatment strategies in primary vitreoretinal lymphoma: a 17-center European collaborative study.

IMPORTANCE: The best treatment option for primary vitreoretinal lymphoma (PVRL) without signs of central nervous system lymphoma (CNSL) involvement determined on magnetic resonance imaging or in cerebrospinal fluid is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the outcomes of treatment regimens used for PVRL in the prevention of subsequent CNSL. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at 17 referral ophthalmologic centers in Europe. We reviewed clinical, laboratory, and imaging data on 78 patients with PVRL who did not have CNSL on presentation between January 1, 1991, and December 31, 2012, with a focus on the incidence of CNS manifestations during the follow-up period. INTERVENTIONS: The term extensive treatment was used for various combinations of systemic and intrathecal chemotherapy, whole-brain radiotherapy, and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. Therapy to prevent CNSL included ocular radiotherapy and/or ocular chemotherapy (group A, 31 patients), extensive systemic treatment (group B, 21 patients), and a combination of ocular and extensive treatment (group C, 23 patients); 3 patients did not receive treatment. A total of 40 patients received systemic chemotherapy. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Development of CNSL following the diagnosis of PVRL relative to the use or nonuse of systemic chemotherapy and other treatment regimens. RESULTS: Overall, CNSL developed in 28 of 78 patients (36%) at a median follow-up of 49 months. Specifically, CNSL developed in 10 of 31 (32%) in group A, 9 of 21 (43%) in group B, and 9 of 23 (39%) in group C. The 5-year cumulative survival rate was lower in patients with CNSL (35% [95% CI, 50% to 86%]) than in patients without CNSL (68% [95% CI, 19% to 51%]; P = .003) and was similar among all treatment groups (P = .10). Adverse systemic effects occurred in 9 of 40 (23%) patients receiving systemic chemotherapy; the most common of these effects was acute renal failure. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In the present series of patients with isolated PVRL, the use of systemic chemotherapy was not proven to prevent CNSL and was associated with more severe adverse effects compared with local treatment.

El Misterio de la biblioteca Mil.lènium o cómo promover relaciones colaborativas desde la participación del alumnado = The Mystery of the Mil.lènium Library: How to Promote Collaborative Relationships Through Student Participation

La pedagogía crítica acentúa la falta de neutralidad de la escuela respecto a las relaciones de poder que existen en la sociedad. Su propuesta consiste en modificar las relaciones de poder en el aula en el sentido de transformar las relaciones coercitivas –las que reproducen las relaciones existentes– en relaciones colaborativas partiendo del reconocimiento y la participación de los alumnos en las actividades escolares. Desde esta perspectiva, uno de los objetivos de las actividades es que los niños produzcan «textos identitarios», entendidos como artefactos que los alumnos se pueden apropiar para promover su desarrollo cognitivo. El artículo muestra el trabajo educativo integrado desde Educación Infantil hasta 6.º de Primaria de una escuela de la provincia de Girona en la que el 97% de los alumnos es de origen extranjero y cuyo propósito es incrementar las habilidades lingüísticas orales y escritas en la lengua escolar, así como la utilización de otros lenguajes multimedia. La unidad didáctica consiste en la elaboración de un cuento a lo largo de un curso escolar por parte de todo el alumnado con la ayuda de los profesores, de dos autores y de tres ilustradores. Cada ciclo escolar decide los personajes y el escenario y explicita textualmente el transcurso de la acción. Los ilustradores producen las imágenes y los autores posibilitan la transición de aquello que ha elaborado un ciclo al producto del siguiente. La actividad basada en la participación y la utilización de procedimientos democráticos de decisión se inserta en la propuesta educativa y lingüística de la escuela, así como en sus concreciones curriculares. Los resultados muestran que los textos construidos por los niños se apoyan en sus «fondos de conocimiento» sociales y familiares y constituyen una fuente de progreso en la consecución de las competencias básicas y en la construcción de valores democráticos

A clinical pattern-based etiological diagnostic strategy for sensory neuronopathies: a French collaborative study.

Sensory neuronopathies (SNNs) encompass paraneoplastic, infectious, dysimmune, toxic, inherited, and idiopathic disorders. Recently described diagnostic criteria allow SNN to be differentiated from other forms of sensory neuropathy, but there is no validated strategy based on routine clinical investigations for the etiological diagnosis of SNN. In a multicenter study, the clinical, biological, and electrophysiological characteristics of 148 patients with SNN were analyzed. Multiple correspondence analysis and logistic regression were used to identify patterns differentiating between forms of SNNs with different etiologies. Models were constructed using a study population of 88 patients and checked using a test population of 60 cases. Four patterns were identified. Pattern A, with an acute or subacute onset in the four limbs or arms, early pain, and frequently affecting males over 60 years of age, identified mainly paraneoplastic, toxic, and infectious SNN. Pattern B identified patients with progressive SNN and was divided into patterns C and D, the former corresponding to patients with inherited or slowly progressive idiopathic SNN with severe ataxia and electrophysiological abnormalities and the latter to patients with idiopathic, dysimmune, and sometimes paraneoplastic SNN with a more rapid course than in pattern C. The diagnostic strategy based on these patterns correctly identified 84/88 and 58/60 patients in the study and test populations, respectively.