PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New experiments reveal the types of bacteria involved in human decomposition

A new field of forensic science turns its attention to bacteria

2013-10-31
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Kallie Huss
onepress@plos.org
415-568-3162
Public Library of Science
New experiments reveal the types of bacteria involved in human decomposition A new field of forensic science turns its attention to bacteria The type of bacteria involved in human decomposition can change over time, according to new research published October 30th in the open-access journal PLOS ONE, by Aaron Lynne and colleagues at Sam Houston State University and Baylor College of Medicine.

A corpse is far from dead when viewed as an ecosystem for tiny bugs and microorganisms. Bacteria can take some credit for driving the natural process of human decomposition, but we know little about the diversity of bacterial species involved. Previous studies have been unfortunately limited to the traditional approach of culturing bacteria, whereas the vast majority of bacteria residing in the human body cannot actually be cultured experimentally.

To help address this problem, the authors studied the decomposition of two human cadavers under natural conditions. They assessed bacterial biodiversity using a gene sequencing method of analyzing bacterial DNA, rather than relying on traditional culture methods. This sequencing method allowed them to measure bacterial genes present in any given region of the cadaver, giving them a high-throughput way of mapping out an entire microbial community at two different time points.

They found that these bacterial communities were different between the two bodies and between regions on the same body, and these communities changed over the time-course of decomposition. The authors suggest that bacterial communities may be following specific, changing patterns as a corpse moves through its natural stages of decomposition. This gene sequencing approach may be a valuable tool for further dissecting the role of bacteria in human decomposition. Lynne expands, "This study is the first to catalogue bacteria present internally at the onset and end of the bloat stage of human decomposition. Ultimately, we hope to come up with a cumulative systems approach to look at decomposition in a way that might complement existing forensic models at determining the post-mortem interval (time since death)."

INFORMATION:

Citation: Hyde ER, Haarmann DP, Lynne AM, Bucheli SR, Petrosino JF (2013) The Living Dead: Bacterial Community Structure of a Cadaver at the Onset and End of the Bloat Stage of Decomposition. PLoS ONE 8(10): e77733. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0077733

Financial Disclosure: Funding for this project was provided by Sam Houston State University in the form of an Enhancement Research Grant and by Baylor College of Medicine through the Alkek Foundation. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Competing Interest Statement: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

PLEASE LINK TO THE SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE IN ONLINE VERSIONS OF YOUR REPORT (URL goes live after the embargo ends): http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0077733

Disclaimer: This press release refers to upcoming articles in PLOS ONE. The releases have been provided by the article authors and/or journal staff. Any opinions expressed in these are the personal views of the contributors, and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of PLOS. PLOS expressly disclaims any and all warranties and liability in connection with the information found in the release and article and your use of such information.

About PLOS ONE: PLOS ONE is the first journal of primary research from all areas of science to employ a combination of peer review and post-publication rating and commenting, to maximize the impact of every report it publishes. PLOS ONE is published by the Public Library of Science (PLOS), the open-access publisher whose goal is to make the world's scientific and medical literature a public resource.

All works published in PLOS ONE are Open Access. Everything is immediately available—to read, download, redistribute, include in databases and otherwise use—without cost to anyone, anywhere, subject only to the condition that the original authors and source are properly attributed. For more information about PLOS ONE relevant to journalists, bloggers and press officers, including details of our press release process and our embargo policy, see the everyONE blog at http://everyone.plos.org/media.

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Listening to music before you're even born may boost your auditory system

2013-10-31
Listening to music before you're even born may boost your auditory system Prenatal music exposure leads to long-lasting changes in the brain after birth Playing music while you're pregnant may influence your child's auditory system, according to new research published ...

One of the oldest cases of tuberculosis is discovered

2013-10-31
One of the oldest cases of tuberculosis is discovered Scientists verify the presence of tuberculosis from 7,000 years ago Tuberculosis was present in Europe as early as 7000 years ago, according to new research published October 30th in the open-access journal PLOS ...

Baby brains are tuned to the specific actions of others

2013-10-31
Baby brains are tuned to the specific actions of others Observing body movements activates related brain regions in infants Infant brains are surprisingly sensitive to other people's movements, according to new research published October 30th in the open-access journal ...

First results from LUX dark matter detector rule out some candidates

2013-10-31
First results from LUX dark matter detector rule out some candidates Results from the first run of the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment operating a mile underground in the Black Hills of South Dakota, have proven the detector's sensitivity and ruled ...

Babies can learn their first lullabies in the womb

2013-10-31
Babies can learn their first lullabies in the womb The study focused on 24 women during the final trimester of their pregnancies. Half of the women played the melody of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to their fetuses five days a week for the final stages ...

New SARS-like coronavirus discovered in Chinese horseshoe bats

2013-10-31
New SARS-like coronavirus discovered in Chinese horseshoe bats 10 years after SARS outbreak -- Ecohealth Alliance finds plausible evidence for direct bat to human transmission NEW YORK – October 30, 2013 – EcoHealth Alliance, a nonprofit organization that ...

Mystery planet baffles astronomers

2013-10-31
Mystery planet baffles astronomers Kepler-78b is a planet that shouldn't exist. This scorching lava world circles its star every eight and a half hours at a distance of less than one million miles - one of the tightest known orbits. ...

New multiple action intestinal hormone corrects diabetes

2013-10-31
New multiple action intestinal hormone corrects diabetes Scientists from the Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen and the Technische Universitaet Muenchen, together with scientists in the USA, have ...

Public insurance fills the health coverage gap, new UCLA analysis shows

2013-10-31
Public insurance fills the health coverage gap, new UCLA analysis shows In the years leading up to implementation of the Affordable Care Act, the percentage of Californians who received their health insurance through public programs continued to rise, ...

New study compares provisional and two-stent strategies for coronary bifurcation lesions

2013-10-31
New study compares provisional and two-stent strategies for coronary bifurcation lesions Results of the Nordic-Baltic Bifurcation IV trial presented at TCT 2013 SAN FRANCISCO, CA – OCTOBER 30, 2013 – A new clinical trial shows that a two-stent technique for treatment of ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Pink skies

Monkeys are world’s best yodellers - new research

Key differences between visual- and memory-led Alzheimer’s discovered

% weight loss targets in obesity management – is this the wrong objective?

An app can change how you see yourself at work

NYC speed cameras take six months to change driver behavior, effects vary by neighborhood, new study reveals

New research shows that propaganda is on the rise in China

Even the richest Americans face shorter lifespans than their European counterparts, study finds

Novel genes linked to rare childhood diarrhea

New computer model reveals how Bronze Age Scandinavians could have crossed the sea

Novel point-of-care technology delivers accurate HIV results in minutes

Researchers reveal key brain differences to explain why Ritalin helps improve focus in some more than others

Study finds nearly five-fold increase in hospitalizations for common cause of stroke

Study reveals how alcohol abuse damages cognition

Medicinal cannabis is linked to long-term benefits in health-related quality of life

Microplastics detected in cat placentas and fetuses during early pregnancy

Ancient amphibians as big as alligators died in mass mortality event in Triassic Wyoming

Scientists uncover the first clear evidence of air sacs in the fossilized bones of alvarezsaurian dinosaurs: the "hollow bones" which help modern day birds to fly

Alcohol makes male flies sexy

TB patients globally often incur "catastrophic costs" of up to $11,329 USD, despite many countries offering free treatment, with predominant drivers of cost being hospitalization and loss of income

Study links teen girls’ screen time to sleep disruptions and depression

Scientists unveil starfish-inspired wearable tech for heart monitoring

Footprints reveal prehistoric Scottish lagoons were stomping grounds for giant Jurassic dinosaurs

AI effectively predicts dementia risk in American Indian/Alaska Native elders

First guideline on newborn screening for cystic fibrosis calls for changes in practice to improve outcomes

Existing international law can help secure peace and security in outer space, study shows

Pinning down the process of West Nile virus transmission

UTA-backed research tackles health challenges across ages

In pancreatic cancer, a race against time

Targeting FGFR2 may prevent or delay some KRAS-mutated pancreatic cancers

[Press-News.org] New experiments reveal the types of bacteria involved in human decomposition
A new field of forensic science turns its attention to bacteria