Understanding career criminal kidnapping: a study of offending dynamics, subcultural tolerance and policing in Malaysia

I subscribe to the notion that criminology needs to seek information about crime from successful criminals. Alohan is a Malaysian, ethnic Chinese, Triad member, businessman and police informer who also kidnaps people for ransom. He is a serious offender who has, so far, escaped conviction for kidnap, which is a capital offence in Malaysia. This thesis seeks to understand the factors underpinning Alohan’s lengthy and apparently successful criminal career but is subject to methodological constraints imposed by ethical and safety concerns. With methods such as participant observation ruled out, the research is based on a series of life history, narrative interviews, conducted with Alohan in a secure location. These are supplemented by semistructured interviews with: officers from Royal Malaysian Customs; officers from the Specialist Police Kidnap Unit of the Royal Malaysian Police, and ethnic Chinese businessmen. Alohan provides an account that can be examined and compared against influential strands of criminological thought in such areas as criminal careers, cultural criminology, subcultural tolerance of deviance and techniques of neutralisation. Alohan’s story reveals the highly culturally specific nature of most influential criminological theorising, which has almost exclusively been generated from a ‘western’ perspective. It uncovers the need for more comparative research in order to fill gaps and correct faulty assumptions that have arisen from the fairly narrow world-view that currently informs the field

Frontal Electroencephalogram α‑Asymmetry during the Luteal Phase of the Menstrual Cycle in Women with Premenstrual Syndrome

Background: Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a severe form of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) that causes significant distress and interferes with normal functioning. Aim: The aim of this work was to assess the resting frontal electroencephalographic patterns in females who meet criteria for PMS and PMDD. Subjects and Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted on 150 female participants, of which 145 had PMS, and 45 were control women. All cases were counseled about the procedure. Furthermore, a written consent was taken from every patient. Cases were asked about their current phase of the cycle, in order to determine cycle timing. The custom PMDD interview involved asking each woman a series of questions concerning PMDD symptoms. This structured interview was created from the DSM‑IV‑TR criteria for PMDD. Women with PMDD were asked to complete a daily symptom rating checklist for three consecutive cycles. The ensuing methods were undertaken for each patient, including history taking, general, local and fundus examination, and routine investigations, and were submitted to resting electroencephalogram (EEG) examination during both follicular and luteal phases of the cycle. Results: Seventy percent of women with PMS and 75% of women with PMDD exhibited left frontal activity at rest, during the luteal phase of the cycle (P <0.001). Conclusions: We concluded that resting luteal phase of EEG frontal asymmetry must be added to the research criteria for PMDD (DSM‑IV‑TR).Keywords: Electroencephalogram, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, premenstrual tension, premenstrual syndrome, Tanta University Hospita

Occurrence of algal bloom dominated by<em> Fragilariopsis oceanica</em> from the coastal waters of southwest India, off-Kannur

169-172Malabar area is vulnerable to algal blooms because of increased nutrient inputs from terrigenous sources through river run-off. The appearance of bloom in the winter season and its intensification in the summer season in coastal waters may also be due to the stability of the water column and enhanced light penetration. This area is an active fishing zone, and the appearances of blooms of diatoms like Fragilariopsis oceanica are beneficial for the availability of fish like oil sardine

Association of serum fetuin-A and fetuin-A gene polymorphism in relation to mineral and bone disorders in patients with chronic kidney disease

Disorders of bone and mineral metabolism contribute to an increased prevalence of vascular calcification (VC) with its adverse clinical outcomes in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The pathogenesis of VC is not fully understood. Fetuin-A is one of the inhibitors of calcification whose level is lowered in patients with CKD. In addition fetuin-A 256Ser/Ser (allele G) might affect serum fetuin-A levels. The aim of this work was to study the association betweenKeywords: Chronic kidney disease; Fetuin-A; Fetuin-A gene; Vascular calcification; Bone mineral diseas

Interspecies data mining to predict novel ING-protein interactions in human

YesFunding provided by the Open Access Authors Fund

Anatomy, morphology and evolution of the patella in squamate lizards and tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus)

The patella (kneecap) is the largest and best-known of the sesamoid bones, postulated to confer biomechanical advantages including increasing joint leverage and reinforcing the tendon against compression. It has evolved several times independently in amniotes, but despite apparently widespread occurrence in lizards, the patella remains poorly characterised in this group and is, as yet, completely undescribed in their nearest extant relative Sphenodon (Rhynchocephalia). Through radiography, osteological and fossil studies we examined patellar presence in diverse lizard and lepidosauromorph taxa, and using computed tomography, dissection and histology we investigated in greater depth the anatomy and morphology of the patella in 16 lizard species and 19 Sphenodon specimens. We have found the first unambiguous evidence of a mineralised patella in Sphenodon, which appears similar to the patella of lizards and shares several gross and microscopic anatomical features. Although there may be a common mature morphology, the squamate patella exhibits a great deal of variability in development (whether from a cartilage anlage or not, and in the number of mineralised centres) and composition (bone, mineralised cartilage or fibrotendinous tissue). Unlike in mammals and birds, the patella in certain lizards and Sphenodon appears to be a polymorphic trait. We have also explored the evolution of the patella through ancestral state reconstruction, finding that the patella is ancestral for lizards and possibly Lepidosauria as a whole. Clear evidence of the patella in rhynchocephalian or stem lepidosaurian fossil taxa would clarify the evolutionary origin(s) of the patella, but due to the small size of this bone and the opportunity for degradation or loss we could not definitively conclude presence or absence in the fossils examined. The pattern of evolution in lepidosaurs is unclear but our data suggest that the emergence of this sesamoid may be related to the evolution of secondary ossification centres and/or changes in knee joint conformation, where enhancement of extensor muscle leverage would be more beneficial.Sophie Regnault, Marc E. H. Jones, Andrew A. Pitsillides, John R. Hutchinso

Pralidoxime in Acute Organophosphorus Insecticide Poisoning-A Randomised Controlled Trial

Background: Poisoning with organophosphorus (OP) insecticides is a major global public health problem, causing an estimated 200,000 deaths each year. Although the World Health Organization recommends use of pralidoxime, this antidote's effectiveness remains unclear. We aimed to determine whether the addition of pralidoxime chloride to atropine and supportive care offers benefit. Methods and Findings: We performed a double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trial of pralidoxime chloride (2 g loading dose over 20 min, followed by a constant infusion of 0.5 g/h for up to 7 d) versus saline in patients with organophosphorus insecticide self-poisoning. Mortality was the primary outcome; secondary outcomes included intubation, duration of intubation, and time to death. We measured baseline markers of exposure and pharmacodynamic markers of response to aid interpretation of clinical outcomes. Two hundred thirty-five patients were randomised to receive pralidoxime (121) or saline placebo (114). Pralidoxime produced substantial and moderate red cell acetylcholinesterase reactivation in patients poisoned by diethyl and dimethyl compounds, respectively. Mortality was nonsignificantly higher in patients receiving pralidoxime: 30/121 (24.8%) receiving pralidoxime died, compared with 18/114 (15.8%) receiving placebo (adjusted hazard ratio HR] 1.69, 95% confidence interval CI] 0.88-3.26, p = 0.12). Incorporating the baseline amount of acetylcholinesterase already aged and plasma OP concentration into the analysis increased the HR for patients receiving pralidoxime compared to placebo, further decreasing the likelihood that pralidoxime is beneficial. The need for intubation was similar in both groups (pralidoxime 26/121 21.5%], placebo 24/114 21.1%], adjusted HR 1.27 95% CI 0.71-2.29]). To reduce confounding due to ingestion of different insecticides, we further analysed patients with confirmed chlorpyrifos or dimethoate poisoning alone, finding no evidence of benefit. Conclusions: Despite clear reactivation of red cell acetylcholinesterase in diethyl organophosphorus pesticide poisoned patients, we found no evidence that this regimen improves survival or reduces need for intubation in patients with organophosphorus insecticide poisoning. The reason for this failure to benefit patients was not apparent. Further studies of different dose regimens or different oximes are required

Analysis of IL28B Variants in an Egyptian Population Defines the 20 Kilobases Minimal Region Involved in Spontaneous Clearance of Hepatitis C Virus

Spontaneous clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) occurs in ∼30% of acute infections. Host genetics play a major role in HCV clearance, with a strong effect of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the IL28B gene already found in different populations, mostly infected with viral genotypes 1 and 3. Egypt has the highest prevalence of HCV infection in the world, which is mostly due to viral genotype 4. We investigated the role of several IL28B SNPs in HCV spontaneous clearance in an Egyptian population. We selected nine SNPs within the IL28B genomic region covering the linkage disequilibrium (LD) block known to be associated with HCV clearance in European populations. These SNPs were genotyped in 261 HCV-infected Egyptian subjects (130 with spontaneous clearance and 131 with chronic infection). The most associated SNPs were rs12979860 (P = 1.6×10−7) and the non-synonymous IL28B SNP, rs8103142 (P = 1.6×10−7). Interestingly, three SNPs at the two bounds of the region were monomorphic, reducing the size of the LD block in which the causal variants are potentially located to ∼20 kilobases. HCV clearance in Egypt was associated with a region of IL28B smaller than that identified in European populations, and involved the non-synonymous IL28B SNP, rs8103142