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PubMed1978

[The post mortem alterations of myofibrilar proteins and adenosintriphosphatase activities of the skeletal muscles (author's transl)].

Immediately after the death of rabbits and at different times within 48 hours, we took out a part of the psoas muscle, from which we made myofibrilar preparations. The carcasses providing the muscle samples were held at two different temperatures. One group was held for 48 hours at 25 degrees C, imitating room temperature. The other group was held for 12 hours at 25 C degrees and at 25 C degrees and 12 hours at 10 C degrees, imitating daily temperature changes. Each myofibrilar sample was subjected to SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. In addition we determined the Ca++ activated and the EGTA inhibited ATPase specific activity of the myofibrils. We found that within 48 hours the myofibrilar proteins were subjected to some characteristic proteolytic changes, which were dependant on the environmental temperature. The most interesting change was found in carcasses held constantly at 25 C degrees for 48 hours, where the EGTA inhibited ATPase activity was increased to about seven times its initial value, reflecting impairment of the troponin complex.

Actinin↗

PubMed2005

Ultramicroscopic observations on morphological changes in hair during 25 years of weathering.

Weathering or long-term burial may cause profound morphological and histological changes in hair, which may affect the results of forensic and archaeological investigations. We therefore used ultramicroscopic techniques to assay the changes in weathering hair shafts caused by burial for up to 25 years. We found that the middle portion of hair shafts from living individuals shows the expected histological hair structure, while the cuticle layer was absent from the terminal portion of the same hairs, which may be due to the increased weathering experienced by the terminal portion. In hair samples taken 5 years after death, no significant changes in morphology were observed. By 15 years after death, however, we observed losses in various layers of the hair, including the cuticle layer. At 25 years after death, hair shafts showed a number of pores extending into the medulla, with only some hair shafts retaining their cortical layers. To our knowledge, this is the first ultramicroscopic study on weathering of hair for up to 25 years after death. Our results may therefore provide a basis for similar studies in the fields of forensic science and physical anthropology.

Burial↗

PubMed2005

Electric shock: Cardiac effects relative to non fatal injuries and post-mortem findings in fatal cases.

The documented cardiovascular effects of an electrical shock include acute myocardial necrosis, myocardial ischemia with or without necrosis, heart failure, arrhythmias, haemorrhagic pericarditis, acute hypertension with peripheral vasospasm and anomalous, non specific ECG alterations. Studies documenting the development of acute left ventricular failure and pulmonary oedema sustain that the observed ECG changes are secondary to myocardial injury. The cause of death of victims of instantly fatal electrical accidents is ventricular fibrillation, but it is not clear if this fibrillation is due to purely electrophysiological changes or to identifiable structural abnormalities in the heart. Little is known about the morphological changes in the heart, as differing anatomical alterations are described. Data from such studies may aid in a more accurate comprehension of clinical and morphological alterations of the heart and in the development of therapeutic strategies that could counterbalance such effects.

Electric Injuries↗

PubMed2006

[Role of modern cross-sectional imaging in thanatology: a pictorial essay].

The development of new imaging modalities such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging is a new phenomenon in thanatology. The growing accessibility to these technologies allows, under some conditions, the acquisition of cross-sectional images on cadavers. The authors present a practical pictorial review of post-mortem changes and deadly injuries, illustrating the contributions of modern cross-sectional imaging techniques in thanatology.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Immunohistochemical investigations to demonstrate vital direct traumatic damage of skeletal muscle.

The muscle proteins actin, myosin, desmin and myoglobin were investigated in traumatically damaged human and animal skeletal muscle using an immunohistochemical PAP-method. A depletion of all the proteins investigated was observed in muscle fibres damaged in the antemortem period. The antigens could however also be demonstrated in the otherwise empty sarcolemma, the discoid disintegration zones of the fibres and between the fibres. The depletion begins immediately after the trauma and myoglobin is the first to be affected. No such changes could be observed after post mortem muscle damage. The antigens could be demonstrated until 72 hours post mortem. The demonstration of protein depletion is an important addition to the light microscopical findings in vital muscle alterations.

Actins↗

PubMed1977

Influence of post mortem changes on experimental safety belt injuries.

Belt protected car occupants involved on head-on collisions do not seem to suffer as severe injuries as unembalmed cadavers subjected to comparable simulated head-on collisions. Therefore it has been questioned if cadavers constitute adequate test specimens for study of thoracic tolerances. This investigation compares injuries in safety belt wearing living and dead pigs which have been subjected to simulated head-on collisions on an acceleration tract. Tests were performed on all 20 pigs (10 living and 10 dead). The arterial side of the circulatory system of the dead pigs was infused. The force in the safety belts, the intraaortic pressure, the impact velocity and the deceleration of the sled were recorded. The tests were high speed filmed. Post mortem examination of the pigs revealed differences in injury severity. Dead pigs more easily suffered rib fractures. Deformation of the rib cage due to stripping of the periosteum and laceration of surrounding tissue occurred mainly in the dead pigs. Laceration of intrathoracic blood vessels was seen in dead pigs while isolated heart lesions were seen only in living animals. The main cause of these differences in tolerance level seems to be post mortem changes of the mechanical properties of the different tissues. The results are valid for pigs but indicate that great care has to be exercised when results obtained from cadaver experiments are evaluated concerning thoracic tolerance.

Acceleration↗

PubMed2005

Autopsy standards of body parameters and fresh organ weights in nonmacerated and macerated human fetuses.

Standards for body parameters and organ weights are important tools in fetal and perinatal pathology. Previously there has been only a weak emphasis on the effect of maceration on dimensions and weights. This study provides autopsy standards for body weight, body dimensions, and fresh organ weights for nonmacerated fetuses and for mildly, moderately, and markedly macerated fetuses at 12 to 43 weeks of gestation. Cases were selected from a consecutive series of 1800 fetal and perinatal autopsies. Cases with malformations, hydrops, infection, or chromosomal abnormality, fetuses from multiple births, and infants who lived longer than 24 h were excluded. In each case the maceration was graded and body weight and 4 body dimensions were recorded before organ examination. Organs were weighed immediately and before fixation. Growth curves were fitted according to appropriate mathematical methods and the effects of maceration on each value were tested statistically. We found that weights of the liver, thymus, and spleen markedly decrease with increasing maceration. The weights of the lungs, kidneys, and adrenals decreased modestly, whereas weights of the heart and brain changed only slightly. Body length increased slightly with maceration, whereas body weight and head circumference were unaffected. User-friendly charts and tables of mean values and standard deviations for nonmacerated and macerated fetuses are provided.

Anthropometry↗

PubMed1993

Estimation of local vital reactions in severely burned tissues of guinea pig skin using C3a or C3a desArg as a marker.

We observed changes in levels of anaphylatoxin C3a and/or its desArg (C3a/C3a desArg) peptides in the local site of severely burned skin tissues of guinea pigs using immuno-Western blotting methods. The C3a/C3a desArg peptides, which were probably generated during complement activation, were detected at significant levels from 30 min to 72 h following burn injury in an area limited to 3 mm from the wound edge. Levels of these peptides showed a tendency to be highest in that area 24 h after burn infliction. In postmortem injuries, C3a/C3a desArg peptides could not be detected. These peptides were detected in antemortem wounds up to at least 2 days at 22 degrees C and up to 3 days at 4 degrees C after death, although decreases in levels were found. Lower concentrations of these peptides were also found in postmortem burns in which postmortem hypostasis appeared strongly. These results suggest that, except for injuries of the area with obvious postmortem hypostasis, detection of C3a/C3a desArg can be useful for estimation of vital reactions in many kinds of wounds during inflammation.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Vascular cerebral malformations in an adult with internal hydrocephalus and great cerebral vein varix undiagnosed in childhood].

Our material consists of the analysis of the results obtained during the postmortem angiologic research of the brain in a deceased 36-years-old woman treated in Neurosurgical Department of Medical university in Lódz. The patient was diagnosed as follows: Arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in the central region of the brain with giant "aneurysm" of the vein of Gallen. Internal hydrocephalus. The anatomical and angiological investigations were concerned mainly with the vessels of the Willis circle, choroid arteries and their branches both in subarachnoid space and in brain parenchyma--and those regions of the brain where pathological changes were detected angiologically. The reason for the comparative evaluation of the vascular changes was the material prepared earlier in the laboratory and literature data concerning: vascularization od choroid plexus of lateral and III ventricles of the brain and vascular deformities in brains of deceased adult and senile patients. This paper is also an attempt at comparing of the vascular changes in postmortem injection examination to results of radiological studies obtained in living patient (angiography of the internal carotid and vertebral arteries) and CT examination.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Post-mortem changes in gene expression of the muscle tissue of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss.

A subtracted cDNA library was used to identify specific genes that increase in post-mortem muscle of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) during on-ice storage. Of the 200 cDNAs analyzed, 82 had significant homologies to previously identified genes from salmonids and other species such as homologues of troponin I, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), and so on, whereas 40 had no significant homologies and were designated as unknown. Comparison of gene expression profiles by dot blot hybridization confirmed an increase or induction of mRNA in the muscle after 3 h of on-ice storage compared to that at 0 h after death. Real-time reverse transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction analysis showed that troponin I and GAPDH mRNAs were increased by 24 h and, in particular, that the change in troponin I mRNA was greater than that of GAPDH mRNA. These results suggest that the increased mRNAs in rainbow trout muscle occurred by transcription immediately after death.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1999

Angiotensin-converting enzyme in non-neoplastic kidney diseases.

BACKGROUND: The angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE, CD143, kininase II) plays a critical role in controlling the level of vasoactive peptides such as angiotensins and kinins in the local circulations and tissue interstitium. Because recent work has documented a vessel-, organ-, and species-specific pattern of endothelial ACE expression in the vascular system, we have analyzed whether or not changes of this pattern occur in vessels, tubules, and interstitium of the human kidney that is affected by different non-neoplastic diseases. METHODS: Using a set of well-characterized monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), ACE was assessed on renal tissue of 135 patients by immunohistochemistry, including an additional analysis at the ultrastructural level. A semiquantitative evaluation allowed the estimation and comparison of ACE content in different renal compartments. These data were compared with several clinical findings, diagnosis, therapeutic modalities, and histological features. RESULTS: In contrast to the normal human kidney, where ACE is abundant in the brush border of the proximal tubule but is usually absent in endothelial cells of any vessel type, an endothelial neoexpression of ACE was observed in different diseases. In general, this neoexpression was associated with histological sites of interstitial fibrosis and showed some selectivity for glomerular endothelial cells in diabetes mellitus and chronic arterial hypertension. There was also a loss of epithelial ACE in the proximal tubule in certain pathological conditions, for example, in chronic fibroplastic processes, acute pyelonephritis, and different stages of acute renal failure. CONCLUSIONS: Neoexpression of ACE by renal endothelial cells, as well as changes of the tubular ACE content, is a common finding in diseased human kidneys. As associated with certain tissue sites, clinical and/or morphological features, these changes may be involved in parenchymal remodeling and renal pathophysiology.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

[Changes in skeletal muscles in death caused by hypothermia].

The review of 32 deaths resulting from hypothermia yielded mostly the common pathological findings as bright red livores, haemolytic frost marks of the skin and Wichnewski erosions of the gastric mucosa. In addition the muscle system of the body core (musc. ileopsoas) showed hemorrhages and histologically necrosis of its fibres in form of segmental and discoid sarcoplasmatic alteration. These changes are a quite specific sign of death due to hypothermia, as far as mechanical injury can be excluded. For best result however a special autopsy technique and an appropriate histological staining are advisable.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Neuropsychological results and neuropathological findings at autopsy in a case of mild traumatic brain injury.

Autopsy studies were undertaken in a 47-year-old college-educated male patient who, 7 months prior to an unexpected death, had sustained a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) as manifested by brief loss of consciousness and an initial Glasgow Coma Scale score of 14. The patient died from cardiac arrest secondary to an undiagnosed and unknown arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease as assessed by the coroners office at the time of autopsy. Gross inspection of the brain at autopsy was normal; however, microscopic analysis demonstrated what were considered trauma findings of hemosiderin-laden macrophages in the perivascular space and macrophages in the white matter, particularly the section taken from the frontal lobe. The patient had partially returned to work at the time of death, but had encountered problems with diminished cognitive performance in his work as an appraiser. Neuropsychological studies were generally within normal limits although several tests of either speed of processing or short-term memory showed lower than expected performance. This case demonstrates the presence of subtle neuropathological changes in the brain of a patient who sustained a mild TBI and was still symptomatic for the residual effects of the injury 7 months post injury when he unexpectedly died.

Attention↗

PubMed2003

Post-mortem changes in porcine M. longissimus studied by solid-state 13C cross-polarization magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Solid-state (13)C cross-polarization (CP) magic-angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments are carried out for the first time on rapidly frozen muscle biopsies taken in M. longissimus in vivo and at 1 min, 45 min, and 24 h post-mortem from three pigs. Two of the pigs were CO(2)-stunned (control animals), and one was pre-slaughter-stressed (treadmill exercise) followed by electrical stunning to induce difference in metabolism post-mortem. (13)C resonance signals from saturated and unsaturated carbons in fatty acids, carboxylic carbons, and carbons in lactate and glycogen are identified in the solid-state NMR spectra. The (13)C CP MAS spectra obtained for post-mortem samples of the stressed, electrically stunned pig differ significantly from the post-mortem control samples, as the intensity of a resonance line appearing at 30 ppm, assigned to carbons of the methylene chains, is reduced for the stressed pig. This spectral difference is probably due to changes in lipid mobility and indicates altered membrane properties in the muscle of the stressed/electrically stunned animal when compared with the control animals already 1 min post-mortem. In addition, the post-mortem period changes in glycogen carbons can be estimated from the (13)C CP MAS spectra, yielding a correlation of r = 0.74 to subsequent biochemical determination of the glycogen content.

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Changes in oxypurine concentrations in vitreous humor of pigs during hypoxemia and post-mortem.

In the vitreous humor from three hypoxemic and one control group of pigs, hypoxanthine, xanthine, and uric acid concentrations were measured. The purine concentrations were measured before the hypoxemia, at the time of death, and 24 h post-mortem. During hypoxemia with arterial O2 tension between 2.1 and 3.0 kPa [fractional inspired oxygen (FiO2) = 0.08], hypoxanthine concentrations increased from a mean basal value of 11.7 +/- 5.6 mumol/L to 16.3 +/- 2.4 mumol/L at the time of death (NS). Xanthine concentrations changed from a basal value of 0.3 +/- 0.1 mumol/L to 0.6 +/- 0.2 mumol/L (p less than 0.02), and uric acid changed from 3.4 +/- 1.1 mumol/L to 5.0 +/- 4.5 mumol/L (NS). During hypoxemia with arterial O2 tension between 3.0 and 4.0 kPa (FiO2 = 0.11), hypoxanthine increased in the vitreous humor from a mean basal value of 9.1 mumol/L to 20.3 mumol/L at the time of death (p less than 0.02). Xanthine concentrations increased from 0.3 mumol/L to 1.3 mumol/L (p less than 0.05), whereas there was no change in uric acid concentration (basal 5.0 +/- 0.8 mumol/L and final 4.5 +/- 1.0 mumol/L). During milder hypoxemia with arterial O2 tension between 4.3 and 5.6 kPa (FiO2 = 0.14), or in the control group (FiO2 = 0.21), neither of the metabolites changed significantly. The vitreous humor was not stable post-mortem, inasmuch as the mean concentration of hypoxanthine increased from 18.2 +/- 7.7 mumol/L to 121.6 +/- 57.4 mumol/L 24 h post-mortem (p less than 0.01).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[The forensic expertise of cadavers of females suspected to be victims of sexually motivated homicide].

According to the author's independent observations, the criminal, as a rule, strangles his victim in sex-related murders. In cases of suspected sex-related murders of women, the female urogenital system needs to be examined as an anatomically whole preparation. It was proven that the spermatozoid structure (in the cadaveric vagina, whose condition was optimal) began to change from week 2 with almost all their heads being destroyed by the end of week 6. When cadavers are found in 1.5-2 months after the event, there is no reason to give up examinations of the sperm from cadaver.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Modelling the buried human body environment in upland climes using three contrasting field sites.

Despite an increasing literature on the decomposition of human remains, whether buried or exposed, it is important to recognise the role of specific microenvironments which can either trigger or delay the rate of decomposition. Recent casework in Northern England involving buried and partially buried human remains has demonstrated a need for a more detailed understanding of the effect of contrasting site conditions on cadaver decomposition and on the microenvironment created within the grave itself. Pigs (Sus scrofa) were used as body analogues in three inter-related taphonomy experiments to examine differential decomposition of buried human remains. They were buried at three contrasting field sites (pasture, moorland, and deciduous woodland) within a 15 km radius of the University of Bradford, West Yorkshire, UK. Changes to the buried body and the effect of these changes on hair and associated death-scene textile materials were monitored as was the microenvironment of the grave. At recovery, 6, 12 and 24 months post-burial, the extent of soft tissue decomposition was recorded and samples of fat and soil were collected for gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS) analysis. The results of these studies demonstrated that (1) soil conditions at these three burial sites has a marked effect on the condition of the buried body but even within a single site variation can occur; (2) the process of soft tissue decomposition modifies the localised burial microenvironment in terms of microbiological load, pH, moisture and changes in redox status. These observations have widespread application for the investigation of clandestine burial and time since deposition, and in understanding changes within the burial microenvironment that may impact on biomaterials such as hair and other associated death scene materials.

Animals↗

PubMed1979

Post mortem changes in adenylate cyclase activity in rat brain striatum.

Adenylate cyclase activity in rat striatum decreased post mortem. Half-lives were about 2.7 h at 22 degrees C, 72 h at 4 degrees C. Differences in stability after death of adenylate cyclase in human brain and rat striatum, and possible heterogenity of the enzyme, are briefly discussed.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗