As court challenges associated with doping in sports increase, implementation of an international standard for the official testing laboratories become an integral part of their quality system. The most common international standard for calibrating laboratories is ISO17025. In many countries, ISO17025 is adapted also for forensic and police laboratories. This paper describes the recent movement of international harmonization of doping analysis in sports.

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  The adhesives of seventeen acrylic pressure sensitive cloth adhesive tapes and seventeen kraft adhesive tapes were analyzed by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry(Py-GC/MS) at 500°C. The main pyrolysates were butyl acrylate (BA), 2-ethylhexyl acrylate(2EHA), ethyl acrylate(EA), methyl methacrylate(MMA), tolylenediisocyanate(TDI) and the pyrolysates of an aromatic petroleum resin(C9 Resin). The acrylic adhesives were classified into twelve groups according to their pyrolysates.

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  The brain of cocaine administrated rats was histopathologically investigated by light and electron microscopy. The examined regions were the nucleus accumbens core and shell, and the striatum pars dorsolateral. Morphometric analyses concerning the density of dendritic spines and the number of large aspiny neurons were also performed. A total of 15 male rats, 8-week-old, were used as experimental animals. Cocaine HCL was intraperitoneally injected into the rat at a dose of 15 mg/kg/day for 2 weeks. These rats were divided into three groups based on examination purposes such as staining techniques for histology and electron microscopy. As a control group, a total of 15 rats were injected with 0.9% saline solution. In the cocaine administrated rats, the density of dendritic spines on medium spiny neurons in the above three regions were increased compared with that of the control group. At the ultrastructure level, the dendritic spines were frequently observed in the experimental group. The large aspiny neurons of the striatum pars dorsolateral in the experimental group showed a tendency to increase in number. These findings were statistically supported by morphometric analyses. From these obtained results, it is suggested that the increase of dendritic spines and of large aspiny neurons might be induced by cocaine administration, and these facts might cause the alteration of synaptic connectivity pattern in mesocorticolimbic dopmine circuitry.

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  We developed a simple colorimetric method which can separately determine paraquat and diquat utilizing automatic reduction property of diquat under existence of tetramethylammonium hydroxide. In the first step, diquat in the sample was automatically reduced by adding tetramethylammonium hydroxide, and UV/VIS spectrum (λ_max=430 nm) and absorbance at 430 nm were measured for confirmation and determination of diquat. In the second step, paraquat in the sample was also reduced by adding sodium hydrosulfite, and UV/VIS spectrum (λ_max=396 nm, 600 nm.) and absorbance at 600 nm were measured for confirmation and determination of paraquat. The calibration curves were linear in the concentration range from 1-100 ppm for both compounds. The herbicide containing both paraquat and diquat, Preeglox-L^®, showed typical UV/VIS spectra of each compound, and there was a good correlation between herbicide concentration and paraquat and diquat concentrations. The established method was successfully applied to forensic samples, gastric content and heeltap solution.

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  We have developed a new, advanced multi-purpose digital polygraph system, composed in 16 channels of bio-amplifier and a Windows 2000 or XP based personal computer to control the system. Added to the conventional polygraph examination indices of respiration movements, electrodermal responses and finger plethysmogram, the new system is capable of measuring, recording and analyzing electroencephalogram, electromyogram, electrooculogram, eye blinks, heart rate, skin potential activities, skin conductance level, normalized pulse volume and other psychophysiological responses. The circuit for skin conductance measurement conforms to the recommendations of SPR. Since this system is used for polygraph examination in criminal investigation, the system's data acquisition program is equipped with the functions to support the tester, as well as the functions to prevent tampering of the data, along with the general functions of a digital polygraph system.

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  The color reaction for detection of lactic acid was investigated for application to a preliminary test for demonstration of sweat stains. The detection of lactic acid was employed with the commercially available “Determiner-LA” kit (KYOWA medics).
  The positive reaction was indicated by the development of a red-purple color. The positive results could be observed in sweat stains and also seminal stains. The weak positive reaction could be seen in only one of 20 salivary stains but all urinary stains gave negative results.
  Therefore, it is possible to discriminate sweat stains from urinary and salivary stains by using this preliminary test. However, for the distinction between sweat and seminal stains, the acid phosphatase test (SM-test reagent) should be examined. This preliminary test was detectable from sweat stains stored for 6 months at room temperature and from stains of 16-fold diluted human sweat. This preliminary test is very useful for the demonstration of sweat stains in forensic practice.

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  Gas chromatographic mass-spectrometric analysis was performed for chemical warfare agents and related compounds including sarin, soman, tabun, VX, mustard gas, lewisite 1, 2-chloroacetophenone, o-chlorobenzilidenemalononitrile and capsaicin, under electron ionization and methane chemical ionization conditions using apolar and polar capillary columns. It was possible to identify the tested compounds with respects to their retention indices and mass spectra. Under the analytical conditions of split ratio (50:1), electron ionization and scan mode data aquisition, the limit of detection ranged from 0.06 to 7 μg/ml, except for the low detection sensitivity of lewisite 1.

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  Tackifiers marketed for pressure sensitive adhesives were analyzed by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The tackifiers studied were two coumarone-indene resins, nine C5 petroleum resins, three C9 petroleum resins, a C5/9 petroleum resin, four kinds of terpene resin, six kinds of rosin ester and a hydrogenated hydrocarbon resin. Their typical total ion chromatograms, characteristic pyrolysates and size exclusion chromatograms were reported.
  A rubber-based pressure sensitive adhesive was extracted with acetone and viscous substance was obtained after evaporating the solvent. The viscous substance was then analyzed by Py-GC/MS and SEC. Comparing the obtained chromatograms with the chromatograms of the tackifiers, a C5 petroleum resin and a rosin ester were identified.

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  Foods and their related materials found in gastric contents or illegal industrial wastes sometimes play important roles in cases of murder, industrial and environmental crimes. Though the observation of starch by the light transmitted microscope has been frequently carried out for the forensic purpose, the shape of starch is sometimes diminished by putrefaction or digestion. Seed coats are considered to remain in their shapes against the operation of decomposition in comparison to starch and their textures may be preserved in such severe conditions. Nevertheless, detail examinations had not been carried out from the forensic point of view. For the forensic discrimination of beans, cross section morphology of seed coats was examined using the scanning electron microscope (SEM).
  In this examination, the morphology of seed coat textures of nine kinds of beans obtained in eastern Japan were observed. The cross sections of seed coats were prepared using a razor blade and coated with gold for the observation by SEM. Palisade parenchyma and hourglass cells of hypodermis were observed using XL30 scanning electron microscope (FEI, USA). Thicknesses of these cells were measured, and they were characteristic to each species. Inter-species discrimination among these samples was possible by comparing the ratio of thickness of palisade parenchyma and hourglass cell. Intra-species variation was recognized in four different kinds of soybean samples by the comparison of the ratio of cells and the shapes of hourglass cells.
  As a result, discrimination among the samples, except two soybeans, was possible by the morphological comparison of seed coat of beans. All samples discriminated each other by the combination with macrographical observation of their color.
  By these results, the morphological comparison of textures of seed coats by SEM was useful for forensic discrimination of beans.

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  We examined the utility of an immunohistochemical method, which uses commercially available anti-A and anti-B monoclonal antibodies and biotinylated tyramide, for ABO blood grouping from nails. Nail samples were obtained from 164 healthy adult volunteers whose ABO blood groups were known (group A: n=72, group B: n=35, group O: n=43, group AB: n=14), and from 14 autopsy cases with postmortem intervals of 10 days to 6 months. In all of the nail samples from the volunteers, ABO blood group was accurately determined by the immunohistochemical method. In the postmortem samples, no discrepancy was observed between the results of ABO phenotyping by this method and those of ABO genotyping by PCR-RFLP. The present method is highly sensitive and needs no standard erythrocytes; results can be obtained within 3 to 4 hours. Our method may be more advantageous than conventional absorption-elution test for ABO blood grouping from nails for forensic science.

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