Faculty Bibliography

The 'humane killer' or captive-bolt gun, is the tool/weapon widely used in meat industry and private farmer households for slaughtering animal stock. Out of 17,250 autopsies performed at the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Novi Sad during the 15-year period (1991-2005), 29 cases of suicides and two homicides were committed by captive-bolt pistols. Wounds inflicted by captive-bolt guns have specific morphological features, distinctive from wounds made by other kinds of hand firearms. Selected features of the captive-bolt wounds (punched round entrance and a double pattern of smoke soiling) depend on distance and angle of instrument at the time of firing. Autopsy findings were compared with an experimental model consisting of 20 domestic pigs. Obtained results confirmed that the appearance of the entrance hole and soot deposits, along with differences in shape, location, extent, and density of soot blackening, could be useful in identification of weapon, direction of discharge, shooting distance, and angle of the muzzle to the frontal and sagittal planes of the head at the moment of fire

Detailed histopathologic examination remains to be the basis for the diagnosis of hydatidiform mole (HM). However, poor sampling, necrosis, and earlier uterine evacuation can lead to uncertainty in the diagnosis. Also, the criteria are subjective, resulting in considerable interobserver variability. The p57(KIP2) gene is paternally imprinted and maternally expressed, and the presence of its protein product serves as a surrogate marker for the nuclear maternal genome. Because a complete HM (CHM) is the only type of conceptus lacking a maternal contribution, p57(KIP2) immunostaining is correspondingly absent, whereas it is present in CHM mimics. Although analysis of DNA microsatellite polymorphisms is a reliable method for the diagnosis and classification of HM, it is not universally available. To assess the relative accuracy of p57(KIP2) immunostaining and molecular diagnosis by nuclear DNA microsatellite polymorphisms in discriminating CHM from its mimics, we analyzed archival tissue from 33 case patients (7 with a definitive diagnosis of CHM, 16 with a possible diagnosis of HM, and 10 with normal placentas) by both methods. Concordant results were obtained in all cases, and p57(KIP2) immunostaining accurately identified all cases of CHM from the groups with a definitive or possible diagnosis of HM. p57(KIP2) immunohistochemistry is a time- and cost-effective means of distinguishing CHM from its mimics in challenging cases

OBJECTIVE: Melanocytomas of the eye are typically benign tumors that may be associated with nevi and melanomas. In this study, we assessed the genetic data of melanocytomas and compared them with nevi and melanomas of both the eyes and the skin. DESIGN: We microdissected 8 melanocytomas, 13 uveal melanomas, and 10 cutaneous melanomas and analyzed loss of heterozygosity markers on chromosome bands 1p36, 6q22-23.3, 9p21, and 10q23, which represent genetic loci associated with advanced dermal melanocytic lesions. RESULTS: There was no loss of heterozygosity in any of the melanocytomas. However, many loss of heterozygosity events were found in uveal and cutaneous melanomas, most frequently involving chromosome 1 damage followed by chromosome 9 and 10 alterations. CONCLUSION: Based on the absence of loss of heterozygosity in melanocytomas, specifically the locus that is lost most often in dysplastic nevi of the skin, we conclude that melanocytomas represent an entity that is different from melanomas or may be similar to that of dermal benign nevi. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Our results confirm that melanocytomas represent nonagressive lesions that do not demand radical surgery

AIM: To report on the successful use of Laser Capture Microdissection (LCM) as a tool for isolation of human chorionic villi from admixed maternal tissue. Subsequent DNA isolation for forensic short tandem repeat (STR) analysis for parentage testing was performed in two cases of alleged sexual assault of female victims. We also performed validation of the LCM instrument platform, using archival formalin-fixed human fetal products of conception (POC), for which microdissection was utilized to separate maternal (decidua) and fetal (chorionic villus) components. METHODS: To isolate DNA from placental chorionic villi admixed with maternal decidua recovered after spontaneous or therapeutic abortion, LCM was used to separate fetal from maternal cells. In contrast to the relatively crude conventional microdissection performed using a narrow pipette, needle, or scalpel blade, LCM allows cell- or tissue-specific isolation of placental chorionic villi from archival paraffin-embedded tissue sections, leaving the maternal tissue intact. RESULTS: After polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of villi after LCM of 9-15 STR loci, the quantity and quality of DNA yielded from fetal cells isolated by LCM was sufficient for PCR analysis and successful forensic parentage testing. The validation data obtained on two sets of formalin-fixed archival POC tissues from anonymous donors demonstrated the encouraging reproducibility of these protocols and procedures. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated the reliability and utility of LCM for forensic applications when high specificity of a particular analyzed cell population or tissue is required. Care must be taken during routine pathology procedures to avoid contamination of tissues with admixture of extraneous DNA