forensic news


Abstract: The STR profile of a phenotipically normal woman typed from blood tissue in a paternity case, revealed more than two alleles in some autosomal loci, result that was interpreted as a chimera due to the coexistence of two genetically distinct cell populations. The aim of this work was to solve the paternity study, elucidate the origin of the chimera, and evaluate its consequence in forensic genetics. Buccal epithelium and hair root tissues showed a single autosomal STR profile. Instead, blood tissue exhibited chimerism in seven out of the twenty autosomal loci tested. The paternity analysis was resolved comparing the unique STR pattern typed from buccal and hair root cells. The detection in blood tissue of the Y allele in Amelogenin locus and typing of a Y-chromosome haplotype confirmed the presence of male cells in the chimeric woman. The deduced male profile cannot be excluded as a son of the alleged father. Based on the results we interpret that the woman subject of the study is a partial or a whole-body chimera. Chimerism may be a pitfall in forensic investigations like paternity testing and crime cases.

Philly Fever

NLN honors Wakefield and welcomes new president at its annual summit

By Tom Kerr


For M. Elaine Tagliareni, EdD, RN, CNE, it ended where it all began.


As the National League for Nursing (NLN) president looked out on the more than 1,500 people – including the city mayor and a high-ranking government healthcare official – who filled the Pennsylvania Con

Nurses at Providence VA Medical Center in Rhode Island care for veterans with substance abuse problems.

With a majestic roll of the drums, inspiring speeches and a ceremonial shoveling of dirt inside a baseball diamond, the expansion dream for Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, Hollywood, became a reality Oct. 5. More than 400 people attended the afternoon event.


The new 160,000-square-foot hospital is expected to meet these increasing demands for pediatric specialty care. Scheduled to open in late 2011, it will feature all private rooms, a pediatric oncology unit and med/surg areas. The

The New York City Health and Hospitals Corp. (HHC) will receive $28 million in healthcare grants from New York state.

With the Health Care Efficiency and Affordability Law (HEAL NY) grant, HHC will expand primary care capacity in Queens; more closely align substance abuse services in the Bronx with primary and preventive healthcare; and support HHC’s efforts to streamline and consolidate services and deliver more efficient and cost-effective services.  

HHC and its Que

How was the vaccine manufactured and tested?

Just 12 months after breaking ground, Gouverneur Healthcare Services, which includes a nursing home and community health center in Manhattan, marked a milestone in its $180 million modernization project.

A ceremony celebrated the placement of the final steel beam on the roof of the future ambulatory care pavilion expected to open in early spring 2011. The project will expand primary care and preventive health services to the Lower East Side and Chinatown communities,

The Agency for Health Care Administration has designated Shands at the University of Florida (UF), Gainesville, as a Comprehensive Stroke Center.


The 2-year designation identifies Shands at UF as a hospital actively participating in the full spectrum of state-of-the-art stroke care and research. It encompasses leading-edge technologies and therapeutics for acute stroke patients as well as system-wide initiatives on stroke prevention, rehabilitation, education, community awareness and

North Florida Regional Medical Center, Gainesville, has received funding approval for the second phase of a comprehensive campus expansion plan. When completed, the project will include the addition of a 46,500-square-foot ICU housing 24 patient rooms, as well as the renovation of 7,700 square feet of existing patient-care area for 12 new telemetry beds.


North Florida Regional officials expect construction on the $35 million project to begin in the first quarter of 2010 and last appro

The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida (TCH), Ft. Myers, has expanded its services with new pediatric facilities at Cape Coral Hospital.


“The extension at Cape Coral Hospital will be fully staffed by TCH employees. That’s what makes it different from being simply a standalone pediatric unit,” said Kathy Bridge-Liles, MS, RN, vice president of women’s and children’s services. “Staff will actually rotate between the two locations. That way, they will stay attuned to the same poli

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