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New CU-Boulder-led study finds ‘microbial clock’ may help determine time of death

By Guest PostOctober 6, 2013Scienceaaron linne, active decay, bacterial change, biochemical change, body farm, boulder, chaminade university, crime scene investigation, david carter, determine, elife, eukaryotic expert, forensic scientist, forensic tool, grave soil, human decomposition facility, human microbiome, jessica metcalf, laura parfrey, max planck society, microbial clock, noah fierer, postmortem, rob knight, sibyl bucheli, time of death, university of colorado, wellcome trust fund

An intriguing study led by the University of Colorado Boulder may provide a powerful new tool in the quiver of forensic scientists attempting to determine the time of death in cases involving human corpses: a microbial clock.

The clock is essentially the lock-step succession of bacterial changes that occur postmortem as bodies move through the decay process. And while the researchers used mice for the new study, previous studies on the human microbiome – the estimated 100 trillion or so microbes that live on and in each of us – indicate there is good reason to believe similar microbial clocks are ticking away on human corpses, said Jessica Metcalf, a CU-Boulder postdoctoral researcher and first author on the study. (more…)

Digging Up Clues: Research On Buried Blow Flies Will Help Crime Scene Investigators

When investigating a murder, every clue helps. New research from North Carolina State University sheds light on how – and whether – blow flies survive when buried underground during their development. It’s an advance that will help forensic investigators understand how long a body may have been left above ground before being buried – or possibly whether remains were moved from one grave to another.

“Blow flies are probably the most important insects to forensic entomology,” says Dr. Wes Watson, a professor of entomology at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the research. “They are usually the first insects to arrive after an animal – or a person – has died.” (more…)

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New CU-Boulder-led study finds ‘microbial clock’ may help determine time of death

Digging Up Clues: Research On Buried Blow Flies Will Help Crime Scene Investigators