Intra- and intermuscular variations of postmortem protein degradation for PMI estimation

Abstract

In recent years, protein decomposition has become of increasing interest for the use in forensic estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI). Especially skeletal muscle tissue has proven to be a prime target tissue, among other reasons, due to its large abundance in the human body. In this regard, it is important to know whether there are any intra-and intermuscular differences in the behavior of protein degradation. Thus, samples from different locations within several skeletal muscles as well as from cardiac and smooth muscle tissue samples were collected from three autopsy cases with varying degree of decomposition. Samples were analyzed by SDS-PAGE and Western blotting and compared for protein degradation patterns. Intramuscular variations turned out to be minimal and without major influence for the use of the method. Observed intermuscular differences provide possibilities for future improvement of the precision and temporal application range. The results of this study show the strengths and current limitations of protein degradation-based PMI estimation and provide a deeper understanding of intraindividual postmortem protein degradation processes.

A standard protocol for the analysis of postmortem muscle protein degradation: process optimization and considerations for the application in forensic PMI estimation

“…Although the recommended restrictions were not exceeded, a future transfer of the samples should be improved using dry ice as a cooling medium instead of cool bags to keep the samples frozen for the whole transport period. Sample processing and analysis of protein degradation worked without any problems and, although over-interpretation should be avoided, the obtained protein patterns reflected the respective PMIs well, both in comparison with the established animal model, the extracorporeal degradation model, and literature data [ 13 , 21 , 22 ]. At this point, the available data is insufficient to compare extracorporeal protein degradation to actual (in situ) postmortem decomposition.…”

“…), alternatives are required. Apart from the difficulty to transfer data from animal models to humans [ 11 ], from one organ, tissue, or body part to another [ 7 , 12 , 13 ], or from one analysis technique to another, practical application can be challenging due to inherent variations of techniques. While (basic) research can be carried out under standardized conditions, these exact conditions rarely occur in routine work.…”

Systematic Review on Post-Mortem Protein Alterations: Analysis of Experimental Models and Evaluation of Potential Biomarkers of Time of Death

“…The analysis of human models involved a minimum of 2 cases and a maximum of 164 cases per study [ 15 , 17 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 ].…”

Releasing Terminology Inhibitions in Medical English Under a Postmodernist Influence

“…(Caruso, 2016) His corpse depicted reddish green discoloration of the skin and showed changes associated with postmortem immersion, such as washerwoman's skin and slippage of the epidermis. (Pittner et al, 2020) The body and clothing were all wet at scanning and autopsy. The soles of the feet and palms of the hands showed washerwoman changes.…”