Sexual dimorphism and bilateral difference of fingerprint sweat pore among Slovak population

Third level dermatoglyphic markers show a high level of individuality. Despite this fact, the occurrence of individual sweat pore types is still insufficiently studied due to their problematic extraction. The aim of our study was to evaluate the variability of sweat pore types on distal fingertips in the Slovak population and to establish the most uniform method for delineating the evaluated fingerprint area of 1 cm² in size to avoid bias in the obtained data. In this study, the variability of seven sweat pore types (round, rhomboid, elliptical, square, rectangular, triangular, hexagonal) on distal phalanges were investigated in a sample of 60 volunteers (30 females and 30 males) from the Slovak population. The evaluated area was 1 cm². Since none of the previously used definition methods seems to be completely reliable, we developed our own method using individual types of dermatoglyphic patterns. This method allowed an uniform location of the studied fingerprint area. The results suggest that sweat pores, like other dermatoglyphic characteristics, have strong identification potential. Several statistically significant bilateral and intersexual differences were found in both male and female populations. Significant intersexual differences in all categories were found in rhomboid and rectangular sweat pore types. Their use could be applied to partial or otherwise unusable fingerprints. The results of this study could help to incorporate these prints into the identification process, allowing their full use.     

Topological variability and sex differences in fingerprint ridge density in a sample of the Sudanese population

Fingerprints are important biometric variables that show manifold utilities in human biology, human morphology, anthropology, and genetics. Their role in forensics as a legally admissible tool of identification is well recognized and is based on their stability following full development, individualistic characteristics, easy classification of their patterns, and uniqueness. Nevertheless, fingerprint ridge density and its variability have not been previously studied in the Sudanese population. Hence, this study was conducted to analyze the topological variability in epidermal ridge density and to assess the possibility of its application in determining sex of Sudanese Arabs. The data used for this study were prints of all 10 fingers of 200 Sudanese Arab individuals (100 men and 100 women) aged between 18 and 28 years. Fingerprint ridge density was assessed for three different areas (radial, ulnar and proximal) for all 10 fingers of each subject. Significant variability was found between the areas (p < 0.01). Women showed significantly higher ridge density in the three areas for all and each fingers. Men and women showed similar patterns of densities with distal areas being denser than proximal ones. Side asymmetry was more evident in distal areas. Ridge density thresholds for discrimination of sexes were developed. Hence, fingerprints found in forensic examinations/crime scenes can be useful to determine sex of Sudanese individuals based on fingerprint ridge density; furthermore, ridge density can be considered a morphological trait for individual variation in forensic anthropology.     

A study of sex differences in fingerprint ridge density in a North Indian young adult population

Fingerprints have considerable value in morphological, biological, anthropological and forensic studies. Fingerprints collected from the crime scene and from the items of evidence of crime have been successfully used to identify suspects, victims or any other person who had touched the surface in question. The thickness of epidermal ridges varies between individuals; females are supposed to have finer ridges than males and therefore a greater ridge density. The present research is an attempt to distinguish sex from fingerprint ridge density in the radial, ulnar and lower areas of a fingerprint in a North Indian population. A total of 194 individuals (97 males and 97 females) aged between 18 and 25 years were included in the study and fingerprints were collected from each finger of the participants. Thus, a total of 1940 fingerprints were obtained and epidermal ridges were counted in the radial, ulnar, and lower areas of each fingerprint. The radial and ulnar areas are the 5 mm × 5 mm areas on the radial and ulnar side of the central core respectively while the lower area is designated as 5 mm × 5 mm area adjoining the flexion crease of the terminal phalanx on a fingerprint. The fingerprint ridge density in radial, ulnar and lower areas and between sexes was compared statistically using t-test. The results indicate that the females tend to have a significantly higher ridge density than males in the three areas analyzed in the study. The fingerprint ridge density in the ulnar and radial areas of the fingerprints is significantly higher than the lower area. The present study suggests that the fingerprint ridge density can be a relevant and useful morphological parameter in distinguishing sex of a latent fingerprint of unknown origin from the scene of crime. The findings can also be useful in identification of mutilated remains when a dismembered hand is brought for medico-legal examination.     

A comparative study of topological and sex differences in fingerprint ridge density in Argentinian and Spanish population samples

Although several studies have recently assessed sex differences in fingerprint ridge density and its variability in human populations from different origins, such a study has not been carried out yet in the Amerindian population. The goal of this study was to determine the topological and sexual differences in fingerprint ridge density (RD) in native subjects from two samples of northwestern Argentina (Jujuy province) living at different altitudes. The results were compared with those obtained from a Spanish population sample. The study was based on data from all 10 fingerprints of 393 adult Argentinian men and women, 193 from the Puna-Quebrada region (more than 2500 m above sea level) and 200 from Ramal (500 m above sea level). Ridge density was assessed for three different areas (radial, ulnar and proximal) for all 10 fingers of each subject. In both samples, significant differences between areas were obtained, so radial RD > ulnar RD > proximal RD. No significant differences were found between samples in males, while females from both samples significantly differed in the radial and proximal areas. Females have higher RD, so narrower ridges, than men, in all areas and all fingers. Application of Bayes' theorem allowed us to obtain a ridge density threshold for discrimination of sexes in Argentinian samples and the threshold for discrimination of populations between Argentinian and Spanish samples. These results can be useful for forensic use.     

Predicting biogeographical ancestry in admixed individuals – values and limitations of using uniparental and autosomal markers

When microsatellite profiles generated from crime scene samples do not match a known person, or eye-witness information is unreliable, highly informative uniparental and autosomal markers can help unveil biogeographical ancestry. However, as genetic admixture is becoming increasingly common in cosmopolitan societies, concern arises with their accuracy and suitability when dealing with samples from admixed individuals. Here we assess the ability to detect biogeographical ancestry in 85 individuals from self-declared Asian and European admixed families using a set of uniparental (Y and mitochondrial DNA) and autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms, specifically selected to distinguish between these two biogeographical ancestries. Haplogroups and autosomal genotypes were investigated using STRUCTURE to detect levels of admixture. All haplogroups were characteristic of self-declared populations of origin. Overall, the autosomal markers inferred biogeographical ancestry more accurately in admixed individuals, showing no significant differences between observed and expected contribution from each population studied according to level of admixture, although some outliers were observed. We suggest a panel of highly informative autosomal and uniparental markers should be employed to infer biogeographical ancestry of an individual to help detect admixed ancestries.     

Determination of sex from the patella in a contemporary Spanish population

The skull and pelvis have been used for the determination of sex for unknown human remains. However, in forensic cases where skeletal remains often exhibit postmortem damage and taphonomic changes the patella may be used for the determination of sex as it is a preservationally favoured bone. The goal of the present research was to derive discriminant function equations from the patella for estimation of sex from a contemporary Spanish population. Six parameters were measured on 106 individuals (55 males and 51 females), ranging in age from 22 to 85 years old, from the Granada Osteological Collection. The statistical analyses showed that all variables were sexually dimorphic. Discriminant function score equations were generated for use in sex determination. The overall accuracy of sex classification ranged from 75.2% to 84.8% for the direct method and 75.5%–83.8% for the stepwise method. When the South African White discriminant functions were applied to the Spanish sample they showed high accuracy rates for sexing female patellae (90%–95.9%) and low accuracy rates for sexing male patellae (52.7%–58.2%). When the South African Black discriminant functions were applied to the Spanish sample they showed high accuracy rates for sexing male patellae (90.9%) and low accuracy rates for sexing female patellae (70%–75.5%). The patella was shown to be useful for sex determination in the contemporary Spanish population.     

Estimation of sex from index and ring finger in a North Indian population

Estimation of sex is an important parameter in the examination of unknown dismembered and commingled remains. The present study explores the possibility of estimation of sex from length of index and ring finger and the index and ring finger ratio in 140 individuals (70 boys and 70 girls) from North India. Index finger length (IFL) and ring finger length (RFL) of the participants were measured following standard procedures and landmarks. Sex differentiation in the present study was based on sectioning point analysis. The ‘sectioning point’ for the IFL, RFL and the index and the ring finger ratio was estimated from the average of the mean of male and female values. Binary logistic regression (BLR) analysis was employed to derive a predicting equation for estimation of sex. The results of the present study indicate that significant sex differences exist in the IFL and RFL and index and ring finger ratio. Among finger lengths, RFL is a better predictor of sex than IFL. It is further concluded that the index and ring finger length is of limited utility in estimation of sex in forensic casework and should be employed only in cases when no other means of sexing are available. The study suggests that the index and ring finger ratio should not be employed in estimation of sex in forensic casework due to considerable overlap in male and female values.     

Determination of sex from the hyoid bone in a contemporary White population

Six discriminant functions, developed from an historic White population, were tested on a contemporary White population for determination of sex from the hyoid. One hundred and thirty four fused and unfused hyoids from a contemporary White population were used. Individuals ranged between 20 and 49 years old. Six historic White discriminant functions were applied to the fused and unfused hyoids of the pooled contemporary White population, i.e. all males and females and all age ranges combined. The overall accuracy rates were between 72.1% and 92.3%. Correct sex determination for contemporary White males ranged between 88.2% and 96.3%, while correct sex determination for contemporary White females ranged between 31.3% and 92.0%. Discriminant functions were created for the contemporary White population with overall mean accuracy rates between 67.0% and 93.0%. The multivariate discriminant function overall accuracy rates were between 89.0% and 93.0% and the univariate discriminant function overall accuracy rates were between 67.0% and 86.8%. The contemporary White population data were compared to other populations and showed significant differences between many of the variables measured. This study illustrated the need for population-specific and temporally-specific discriminant functions for determination of sex from the hyoid bone.     

Biometric sex assessment from the femur and tibia in a modern Greek population

Forensic anthropologists assess sex by analysing quantitative and qualitative characters of the human skeleton. In general, the pelvis and skull are the skeletal regions used most often, but in many cases, they are missing or fragmentary. In such circumstances, where only limb bones are present, it is necessary to use techniques based on other skeletal elements. Metric traits of the long bones of the lower extremities have been reported as reliable indicators of sex. This study was designed to determine whether the two main long bones of the leg, the femur and tibia, can be used for the assessment of sex on a Greek skeletal population. The skeletal sample used in this study comes from the modern human skeletal collection that is currently housed at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and is known as The Athens Collection. It consists of 371 femora and 372 tibiae corresponding to 200 adult individuals (111 males and 89 females). The age range is 19–96 years for males and 20–99 years for females. The maximum lengths and epiphyseal widths were measured for the present study, and it was found that the discriminant analysis of the metrical data of each long bone provided high sex discrimination accuracies. The rate of correct sex discrimination based on different long bones ranged from 91.50 % (left femur) to 93.40 % (left tibia). Our results suggest that lower limb bones can be used effectively for sexing in forensic contexts, in addition to other sex assessment techniques.     

The frequency of bifid mandibular condyle in a Turkish patient population

Objective

The objective of this study was to investigate the frequency and pattern of bifid mandibular condyles (BMCs).

Methods

A retrospective study was performed using panoramic radiographs from 10 200 patients undergoing dental treatment in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology (Erzurum, Turkey) between 1996 and 2008.

Results

Of the 10 200 patients, 32 (0.3%) had BMCs, of whom 17 were female (53.1%) and 15 were male (46.9%). The age range of the patients with BMCs was 5 to 71 years (mean age 30.0±0.40). Of these 32 patients, 24 (75.0%) had unilateral and 8 (25.0%) had bilateral BMCs, none of the patients had a history of trauma. No symptoms associated with bifid condyles were observed in any of the patients with BMCs.

Conclusions

It is possible that BMC is a more frequent condition than is commonly perceived. However, because of the minimal symptoms associated with this condition, the authors believe that it will remain an incidental finding upon routine radiographic examination, rather than a clinical observation. Nevertheless, in symptomatic cases or in cases where surgical treatment is planned, panoramic radiographs should be supplemented with CT.     

Changes in physical activity patterns in the United States, by sex and cross-sectional age

PURPOSE: To determine sex-specific, age-related changes in physical activity patterns. METHODS: We examined cross-sectional data from the National Health Interview Survey, using the 1992 Youth Risk Behavior Survey supplement for adolescents and the 1991 Health Promotion/Disease Prevention supplement for adults. Physical activity patterns were modeled after Healthy People 2000 objectives. RESULTS: Among adolescents, physical activity patterns generally eroded most from ages 15 through 18. The "regular, vigorous activity" and strengthening patterns declined consistently from ages 12 through 21. Young adulthood (18-29 yr) often marked continuing erosion of activity patterns, whereas middle adulthood (30-64 yr) often revealed relatively stable patterns. At retirement age (65 yr), there was a stabilizing, or even an improving, tendency in activity patterns, usually followed by further erosion through the final period of life. Strengthening behavior eroded dramatically with advancing age among adults, especially among men. Among adolescents, differences between female and male respondents were large for regular, vigorous activity (11.3 percentage points greater for male respondents). In comparison with female adolescents and adults, male respondents reported much higher rates of regular, sustained activity (5.5 and 5.9 percentage points, respectively), and strengthening (18.2 and 11.3 percentage points, respectively). Among adults, levels of physical inactivity among women were moderately greater (5.5 percentage points) than for men. Absolute rates of change per year were mostly large to very large (3.0-8.0 percentage points x yr(-1)) during ages 15-18 yr, but, for adults, they were small (<0.5 percentage points x yr(-1)) for 33 of 40 sex, age, and pattern groupings. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that early and continued intervention will be necessary to offset these declines in physical activity throughout adolescence and adulthood.     

Allele frequency distributions of 13 PCR-based systems in a population from North-East Spain

Population data studies were carried out on a Caucasian population from North-East Spain (n = 129– 292 individuals) for 13 PCR-based polymorphic DNA loci: six short tandem repeat loci (HumTH01, HumTPOX, HumCSF1PO, HumF13A01, HumFES/FPS, HumvWFA31), the six PM loci (HLA-DQα, LDLR, GYPA, HBGG, D7S8, GC) and one variable number tandem repeat locus (D1S80).The genotypes distributions were in accordance with Hardy-Weinberg expectations. The combined use of the 13 polymorphic systems provides a high power of discrimination and power of exclusion for use in forensic casework and paternity testing. Received: 18 November 1996 / Received in revised form: 19 February 1997     

Sport, age, and sex specific incidence of sports injuries in Western Australia

OBJECTIVE: To describe the trends in recreational sports injury in Perth, Western Australia. DESIGN: A prospective cohort study of sports injuries during the 1997 winter season (May to September). SETTING: Sample of Australian football, field hockey, basketball, and netball players from the Perth metropolitan area, Western Australia. METHODS: A cohort of sports participants was followed over the five month winter sports season. Before the season, participants completed a baseline questionnaire and during the season were interviewed every four weeks by telephone. RESULTS: Overall, 92% of participants (n = 1391) who completed a baseline questionnaire completed at least one follow up telephone interview. About half (51%) of the cohort sustained one or more injuries during the winter season accounting for a total of 1034 injuries. Most injuries were of moderate (58%, n = 598) or minor (40%, n = 412) severity, with only 3% (n = 24) requiring emergency department treatment or a hospital stay. The injury incidence rate was greatest for football (20.3/1000 hours of participation), similar for field hockey and basketball (15.2/1000 hours and 15.1/1000 hours respectively), and lowest for netball (12.1/1000 hours). The incidence of injury was greatest in the first four weeks of the season, and participants aged between 26 and 30 years had about a 55% greater risk of injury than those aged less than 18 years. CONCLUSIONS: This is one of the first studies to show that recreational sports are safe. Although the likelihood of injury was greatest in the first month of the season, few injuries required admission to hospital or emergency department treatment. A greater emphasis on prevention in the early part of the season should help to reduce the elevated incidence of injury found at this time.     

Age and sex estimation by metric measurements and fusion of hyoid bone in a Turkish population

The hyoid bone is of great importance in forensic medicine practice and it has been studied for various forensic purposes; however, there have been few studies dealing with age and sex estimation using the hyoid bone. Using discriminant function analysis this study attempts to determine the utility of metric measurements and non-metric variations of the hyoid bone in terms of estimation of sex and age in a Turkish population and to find out differences with other populations by comparison of obtained results with the literature. For this purpose, the hyoid bones of 85 cadavers of known sex and age were extracted and 33 measurements were made with a computer program following photography with a camera. In addition to these measurements, the degree of fusion of the greater cornua to the hyoid corpus was examined. Out of 33 measurements, 18 showed significant sex-related differences.There was a sharp rise in hyoid bone fusion in both males and females after the age of 60 years. However, no marked sex-related differences were observed regarding fusion. The unstandardised canonical discriminant function was estimated based on three variables, and the correct classification ratio was 77.4% for males and 81.3% for females. The obtained findings suggest that measurements of hyoid bone can be used for sex estimation in the Turkish population.     

Psychosocial consequences and severity of disclosed incidental findings from whole-body MRI in a general population study

Objectives

Little is known about the psychosocial impact and subjective interpretation of communicated incide ntal findings from whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (wb-MRI). This was addressed with this general population study.

Methods

Data was based on the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP), Germany. SHIP comprised a 1.5-T wb-MRI examination. A postal survey was conducted among the first 471 participants, aged 23–84 years, who received a notification about incidental findings (response 86.0 %, n?=?405). The severity of incidental findings was assessed from the participants’ and radiologists’ perspective.

Results

In total, 394 participants (97.3 %) wanted to learn about their health by undergoing wb-MRI. Strong distress while waiting for a potential notification of an incidental finding was reported by 40 participants (9.9 %), whereas 116 (28.6 %) reported moderate to severe psychological distress thereafter. Strong disagreement was noted between the subjective and radiological evaluation of the findings’ severity (kappa?=?0.02). Almost all participants (n?=?389, 96.0 %) were very satisfied with their examination.

Conclusions

Despite the high satisfaction of most participants, there were numerous adverse consequences concerning the communication of incidental findings and false expectations about the likely potential benefits of whole-body-MRI.

Key Points

? Disclosed incidental findings from MRI may lead to substantial psychosocial distress. ? Subjective and radiological evaluations of incidental findings’ severity differ strongly. ? Disclosing incidental findings is strongly endorsed by study volunteers. ? Study volunteers tend to have false expectations about potential benefits from MRI. ? Minimizing stress in study volunteers should be a key aim in MRI research.     

The prevalence of mixed DNA profiles in fingernail samples taken from individuals in the general population

The fingernail hyponychium is an isolated area where biological material may accumulate and can provide a valuable source of evidential material in police investigations. DNA transfer between the victim and suspect frequently occurs during violent crimes and in court there is often reasonable doubt that a mixed DNA profile in a fingernail sample has originated from the assault as the profile may be attributed to previous contact between the two individuals. The purpose of this study was to assess background levels of foreign DNA under the fingernails of individuals from the general population in order to provide data that may help to determine whether DNA transfer occurred during or prior to the assault. Fingernail swabs sampled from 100 volunteers were processed by Qiagen™ extraction and amplified using AMPFlSTR^® SGM Plus™ to obtain DNA profiles. Foreign DNA was detected in 13% of samples, with only 6% of these giving reportable mixed DNA profiles, suggesting the incidence of foreign DNA under the fingernails was low. A significant proportion of the mixed DNA profiles came from male donors; the majority had experienced physical contact within the 24 h time period prior to sampling.     

A web application for sex and stature estimation from radiographic proximal femur for a Thai population

In both forensic and archaeological domains, the discovery of incomplete human remains is a frequent occurrence. Nevertheless, the estimation of biological profiles from such remains presents a challenge due to the absence of crucial skeletal elements, such as the skull and pelvis. This study aimed to assess the utility of the proximal femur in the forensic identification process by creating a web application for osteometric analysis of the proximal femur. The aim was to determine the sex and stature of an individual from radiographs of the left anteroposterior femur. To accomplish this, an automated method was developed for acquiring linear measurements from radiographic images of the proximal femur using Python tools. The application of Hough techniques and Canny edge detection was utilized to generate linear femoral dimensions from radiographs. A total of 354 left femora were radiographed and measured by the algorithm. The sex classification model employed in this study was the Naïve Bayes algorithm (accuracy = 91.2 %). Results indicated that Gaussian process regression (GPR) was the most effective method for estimating stature (mean error = 4.68 cm, SD = 3.93 cm). The proposed web application holds the potential to serve as a valuable asset in the realm of forensic investigations in Thailand, particularly in the estimation of biological profiles from fragmentary skeletal remains.     

Morphometric research and sex estimation of lumbar vertebrae in a contemporary Spanish population

Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology - In the identification and reconstruction of the biological profile of skeletal remains in physical and forensic anthropology, sex estimation is a...     

Cranium asymmetry in a modern Greek population sample of known age and sex

The aim of this paper is to evaluate and quantify cranium asymmetry, sexual differences in the set of individual asymmetry scores, and the relationship between fluctuating asymmetry and age, in a modern Greek population sample. In addition, we test for the developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis by assessing the correlation between fluctuating asymmetry and cause of death. The study sample consisted of 173 crania of known sex and adult age (92 males, 81 females) belonging to individuals who lived in Greece during the twentieth century. The three-dimensional coordinates of 77 ectocranial landmarks were digitized using a Microscribe 3DX contact digitizer and landmark configurations were analyzed using the generalized least-squares Procrustes method. Regarding directional asymmetry, the results show that the human skull has a tendency for a left-side excess for the Greek population. No significant directional asymmetry differences between the sexes are found. The highest levels of fluctuating asymmetry for both sexes are located on the skull base. The levels of fluctuating asymmetry in all cranial regions appear higher for males than females. Nevertheless, these differences do not present any statistical significance between sexes. Additionally, there is no relationship between fluctuating asymmetry scores and age for both males and females. Finally, the results of this study could not confirm that early development has a significant impact on adult health outcomes.