Determination of postmortem interval through histopathological alterations and collagen evaluation in the prostate of Wistar albino rats

Abstract

Background: Determination of postmortem interval (PMI) has always been a fundamental issue in forensic fields. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess usefulness of histopathological changes and collagen degradation in the prostate for estimation of PMI in adult male rats. Methods: Forty male albino rats were euthanized using CO2 chamber and then classified randomly into 8 groups; each group consisted of 5 rats. Rats were used for determining postmortem changes at 0, 6, 12, 24, 36, 48, 60 and 72 hs. Sections of prostate were fixed and stained for histopathology and quantitative analysis of collagen by Masson trichrome. Moreover, slices of 5µm mounted on positively charged slides were carried out for collagen III immunohistochemistry. Results: The prostate showed normal histology at 0 and 6 hs postmortem (PM). While, at 12 hs, most sections of the gland revealed no abnormalities except for mild focal widening between the acini. Starting from 24 hs, epithelial desquamation was seen in most acini. Seventy-two hours, obvious necrosis of prostatic acini appeared in most of samples. Degradation of collagen started and the spaces between acini became wide at 12 and 24 hs PM. Complete loss of stain reactivity was observed at both 60 and 72 hs. Moreover, a significant decrease in the amount of collagen's stained areas in the prostate started from 12 hs. Positive immunohistochemical reaction of collagen III was detected at 0, 6 and 12 hs PM. However, it was completely lost at 60 and 72 hs. Interestingly, the immuno-reactive area of collagen III was significantly increased at 6 hs, then a remarkable decline in immuno-reactive area was observed at 12 hs. Conclusion: Collagen type III proved to be a successful parameter with histopathology in determination of PM interval. However, further studies still needed to confirm the accuracy of these parameters.

Prostatic estimation of time passed since death; oxidative stress markers, histological and immunohistochemical examination (an experimental study)

“…The current results come in an agreement with what was stated by Elgawish et al (2021) whose study revealed that the prostate samples didn't show any structural abnormalities during the first 12 hours. It was also revealed that after 24 hours PM, desquamation of the epithelium with the appearance of inflammatory cells was detected then atrophic prostatic tissues with necrosis were observed at 60 to 72 hours PM.…”

New Trends in Immunohistochemical Methods to Estimate the Time since Death: A Review

“…Elgawish [ 66 ] evaluated the IHC degradation of prostatic type III collagen to estimate the PMI in 40 male rats. A gradual reduction in the IHC expression of type III collagen was observed within 20 to 24 h after death, and was completely negative in a PMI of 60–72 h [ 66 ].…”

“…Elgawish [ 66 ] evaluated the IHC degradation of prostatic type III collagen to estimate the PMI in 40 male rats. A gradual reduction in the IHC expression of type III collagen was observed within 20 to 24 h after death, and was completely negative in a PMI of 60–72 h [ 66 ]. These results matched those obtained by Mazzotti et al [ 27 ] from human gingival tissue, where the negativization of the immunostaining of type III collagen fibers was slower to develop.…”