Carbon monoxide binding was studied in a collection of de novo heme proteins derived from combinatorial libraries of sequences designed to fold into 4-helix bundles. The design of the de novo sequences was based on the previously reported "binary code" strategy, in which the patterning of polar and nonpolar amino acids is specified explicitly, but the exact identities of the side chains are varied extensively.(1) The combinatorial mixture of amino acids included histidine and methionine, which ligate heme iron in natural proteins. However, no attempt was made to explicitly design a heme binding site. Nonetheless, as reported previously, approximately half of the binary code proteins bind heme.(2) This collection of novel heme proteins provides a unique opportunity for an unbiased assessment of the functional potentialities of heme proteins that have not been prejudiced either by explicit design or by evolutionary selection. To assess the capabilities of the de novo heme proteins to bind diatomic ligands, we measured the affinity for CO, the kinetics of CO binding and release, and the resonance Raman spectra of the CO complexes for eight de novo heme proteins from two combinatorial libraries. The CO binding affinities for all eight proteins were similar to that of myoglobin, with dissociation constants (K(d)) in the low nanomolar range. The CO association kinetics (k(on)) revealed that the heme environment in all eight of the de novo proteins is partially buried, and the resonance Raman studies indicated that the local environment around the bound CO is devoid of hydrogen-bonding groups. Overall, the CO binding properties of the de novo heme proteins span a narrow range of values near the center of the range observed for diverse families of natural heme proteins. The measured properties of the de novo heme proteins can be considered as a "default" range for CO binding in alpha-helical proteins that have neither been designed to bind heme or CO, nor subjected to genetic selections for heme or CO binding.

Les pratiques d'entrevues d'enquête au Canada devraient faire l'objet d'une réforme importante. La formation sur les entrevues avec des témoins et des victimes adultes, qui est offerte aux agents de police canadiens, est souvent superficielle et celle sur l'interrogation de suspects se limite à la controversée technique Reid. Cela pose problème parce que les enquêteurs risquent ainsi de ne pas maximiser la quantité ni la qualité des renseignements obtenus des personnes interrogées. Dans l'article, on décrit la méthode PEACE, un modèle d'interrogatoire inquisitorial jugé à la fois éthique et fondé sur la recherche scientifique. Pour réussir cette réforme des pratiques d'entrevues d'enquête, il faudrait mettre en place un modèle national standardisé qui serait basé sur le modèle PEACE et qui augmenterait les partenariats entre utilisateurs et théoriciens. Mots clés : entrevues d'enquête, technique Reid, modèle PEACE, faux aveux, témoins, suspectsInvestigative interviewing practices in Canada require substantive reform. Adult witness and victim interview training for Canadian police officers is often cursory, and suspect interview training is limited to the much-maligned Reid technique. This state of affairs is troublesome because interviewers may not be maximizing the quality and quantity of information that can be retrieved from interviewees. An inquisitorial interviewing method, known as PEACE, that is ethical and grounded in scientific research is outlined. Investigative interviewing reform can best be achieved through the implementation 6 2010 CJCCJ/RCCJP doi:10.3138/cjccj.52.2.215of a standardized national model that is based on PEACE and through increased practitioner-academic partnerships.

The interrater reliability of an internationally renowned crime linkage system-the Violent Crime Linkage Analysis System (ViCLAS)-was tested. Police officers (N = 10) were presented with a case file and asked to complete a ViCLAS booklet. The level of occurrence agreement between each officer was calculated. Results showed a 30.77% level of agreement across the 106 variables examined. Agreement ranged from 2.36% for weapon variables to 62.87% for administration variables. Only 11 (10.38%) of the variables reached an acceptable level of agreement. Concerns pertaining to the validity of inferences produced using ViCLAS data are discussed, along with potential explanations for the findings, limitations of the study, and future research directions.

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Computerized crime linkage systems are meant to allow the police to determine whether a set of crimes have been committed by the same offender. In this article, we critically assess these systems and identify four assumptions that must hold true if the systems are to be effective. These assumptions are that: (a) data in the systems can be coded reliably; (b) data in the systems are accurate; (c) serial offenders' exhibit consistent, but distinctive patterns of behavior; and (d) analysts have the ability to use the data in the systems to link crimes accurately. We argue that there is currently no compelling empirical support for any of the four assumptions and we outline a research agenda for testing each assumption. Until supportive evidence for these assumptions becomes available, the value of linkage systems will remain open to debate.