The effect of different EDTA concentrations on the DNA content of urine samples was examined and compared to untreated urine at various storage temperatures and times. The results indicate that adding EDTA increases the DNA stability for long time storage especially at low temperatures.

A solid-phase extraction method routinely used for serum samples was improved and applied to the qualitative and quantitative determination of paracetamol in different body fluids, e.g. blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid, synovial fluid, vitreous humor, and in tissue samples. A very simple method showed best results: Body fluids were mixed with phenacetine as internal standard and phosphate buffer (pH 6.8). Then protein was precipitated using acetonitrile. After strong centrifugation the supematant was transferred to a preconditioned Bakerbond C18-SPE-column. Elution with methanol without a prior washing step showed best recovery rates. The extracts were investigated using high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection, a photometrical and an immunochemical method.

A chimera is an organism whose cells derive from two or more distinct zygote lineages. and therefore two different blood cell populations circulate in one individual. To point out the potential pitfalls in forensic analysis, a set of triplets (a girl and two boys) who revealed blood chimerism was investigated with four STR systems using PCR. The results indicated that a DNA profile based on DNA extracted from blood can lead to a false determination because the band pattern of each triplet contained a mixture of the original genotype and the genotype of the siblings. Additional investigations on biological materials other than blood must be made in order to find out the real genetic characteristics of each child.

Background and Purpose: In previous investigations, Weissella confusa was shown to lack the metabolic pathway from fructose to mannitol and to produce ethanol when cultivated in the presence of fructose. Hence, we assessed the effect of oral administration of W. confusa (strain NRRL-B-14171) on blood and fecal ethanol concentrations, glucose and lipid metabolism and traits of the metabolic syndrome in Wistar rats (n=27) fed diets with two different fat and fructose levels and with or without the addition of W. confusa during a total intervention time of 15 weeks (105 days). Materials and Methods: From week 1 to 6, rats were given a medium fructose and fat (MFru-MF) diet containing 28% fructose and 10% fat without the addition of W. confusa (control group, n=13) or mixed with 30 g per kg diet of lyophilized W. confusa (10.56 ± 0.20 log CFU/g; W. confusa group, n=14). From week 7 to 15, the percentage of dietary fructose and fat in the control and W. confusa group was increased to 56% and 16%, respectively (high fructose-high fat (HFru-HF) diet). Results: In HFru-HF-fed rats, W. confusa was detected in feces, regardless of whether W. confusa was added to the diet or not, but not in rats receiving the MFru-MF diet without added W. confusa or in an additional control group (n=10) fed standard rat food without fructose, increased fat content and W. confusa. This indicates that fecal W. confusa may be derived from orally administered W. confusa as well asin the case of high fructose and fat intake and obesity of ratsfrom the intestinal microbiota. As shown by multifactorial ANOVA, blood ethanol, the relative liver weight, serum triglycerides, and serum cholesterol as well as fecal ethanol, ADH, acetate, propionate and butyrate, but not lactate, were significantly higher in the W. confusacompared to the control group. Discussion: This is the first in vivo trial demonstrating that heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria lacking the mannitol pathway (like W. confusa) can increase fecal and blood ethanol concentrations in mammals on a high fructose-high fat diet. This may explain why W. confusa resulted in hyperlipidemia and may promote development of NAFLD in the host.

More than 60 years after an illicit love affair had occurred between Erika H, wife of a Wehrmacht soldier, and a Polish slave worker during World War II, we could clarify the blood relationships of her daughter Uta. When Erika H had become pregnant both of the men could have fathered the child. Erika H was found guilty of fraternization and imprisoned at Ravensbrück concentration camp. She gave birth to Uta and died there in 1944. Uta survived the war as did Erika's husband Gustav, who accepted Uta as his child. Blood samples from family members were taken and DNA extracted. A panel of 16 short tandem repeat (STR) loci were amplified and separated by capillary electrophoresis and the likelihoods calculated using the MLINK software. The combined genotypes yielded a cumulative likelihood ratio of over 200,000 against paternity of Gustav H. This case serves to illustrate the utility of STR profiles for complex deficiency kinship analysis.