'Microbiome of death' uncovered on decomposing corpses could aid forensics
Microbes that lurk in decomposing human corpses could help forensic detectives establish a person's time of death, a new study finds. The research, published Monday (Feb. 12) in the journal Nature Microbiology , involved placing 36 human cadavers in three locations during spring, summer, fall and winter. The scientists chose locations that were geographically distant from each other — in Tennessee, Texas and Colorado — and that had either a temperate, humid climate or a semiarid climate. DNA samples were taken from the surface of the cadavers' skin and from the surrounding soil during the first 21 days of decomposition. This is when decomposition rates are generally fast and dynamic, as the tissues quickly begin to break down. Related: After you die, your microbiome cooperates with soil microbes to 'recycle' your body In decoding all of the DNA, the scientists revealed that the bodies bore the same profile of microbes regardless of the location, climate or season....