Soil elemental changes during human decomposition.

Mammalian decomposition provides pulses of organic matter to the local ecosystem creating ephemeral hotspots of nutrient cycling. While changes to soil biogeochemistry in these hotspots have been described for C and N, patterns associated with deposition and cycling of other elements have not received the same attention. The goal of our study was to evaluate temporal changes to a broad suite of dissolved elements in soils impacted by human decomposition on the soil surface including: 1) abundant mineral elements in the human body (K, Na, S, P, Ca, and Mg), 2) trace elements in the human body (Fe, Mn, Se, Zn, Cu, Co, and B), and 3) Al which is transient in the human body but common in soils.

Re-examining so-called 'secondary identifiers' in Disaster Victim Identification (DVI): Why and how are they used?

Disaster victim identification (DVI) refers to the identification of multiple deceased persons following an event that has a catastrophic effect on human lives and living conditions. Identification methods in DVI are typically described as either being primary, which include nuclear genetic markers (DNA), dental radiograph comparisons, and fingerprint comparisons, or secondary, which are all other identifiers and are ordinarily considered insufficient as a sole means of identification. The aim of this paper is to review the concept and definition of so-called 'secondary identifiers" and draw on personal experiences to provide practical recommendations for improved consideration and use.

Postmortem Skeletal Microbial Community Composition and Function in Buried Human Remains.

Bones and teeth can provide a lasting resource to identify human remains following decomposition. Bone can support dynamic communities of micro- and macroscopic scavengers and incidental taxa, which influence the preservation of bone over time. Previously we identified key microbial taxa associated with survivability of DNA in bones of surface-decomposed human remains, observing high intra- and interindividual variation.

Isotope analysis of human dental calculus δ CO : Investigating a potential new proxy for sugar consumption.

Rationale: Dental calculus (mineralised dental plaque) is composed primarily of hydroxyapatite. We hypothesise that the carbonate component of dental calculus will reflect the isotopic composition of ingested simple carbohydrates. Therefore, dental calculus carbonates may be an indicator for sugar consumption, and an alternative to bone carbonate in isotopic palaeodiet studies.

Comparative Decomposition of Humans and Pigs: Soil Biogeochemistry, Microbial Activity and Metabolomic Profiles.

Vertebrate decomposition processes have important ecological implications and, in the case of human decomposition, forensic applications. Animals, especially domestic pigs (), are frequently used as human analogs in forensic decomposition studies. However, recent research shows that humans and pigs do not necessarily decompose in the same manner, with differences in decomposition rates, patterns, and scavenging.