Unlike what is portrayed on shows like “CSI” and “Law & Order”, pinpointing time of death of a corpse can be an uncertain science. Many factors, including weather conditions and location of body storage, can confound traditional time of death analysis techniques. More accurate methods for identifying time of death could go a long way in connecting a name to unidentified remains or establishing the truthfulness of an alibi in a murder trial.
A new article from Undark details how a small handful of “body farms” are helping to address these issues. At these locales, such as the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Anthropology Research Facility, donated corpses are left to the elements under the watchful eye of researchers, who can gain valuable insights into science behind body decomposition.
These investigations include research into traditional markers, such as accumulation of flies, but much of the excitement lies in investigation of the microbiome—in what some have dubbed the necrobiome.
“We’re in an age of technology where the microbes can help provide new answers about time of death, but also whether a body was moved, and medical conditions inside the body that can help identify a person,” said Dawnie Steadman, director of the school’s Forensic Anthropology Center.
Steadman refers to advances in DNA sequencing and machine learning that have made analysis of bacteria, fungi, and other microbes more precise than ever.
The body farm at the University of Tennessee is the first of its kind and was conceived by renowned osteologist, William M. Bass, who joined the University of Tennessee in 1971. It began in pursuit of basic information about decomposition and progressed to more complex research, as well as serving as a training site for law enforcement.
Over the years, this and the few other body farms that have opened since then, have led to numerous new discoveries in forensic anthropology and promise to reveal other valuable insights into what happens to the body following death.
To learn more about these centers and their research, read the full article at: https://undark.org/2019/11/11/how-microbes-could-aid-forensic-detectives/