Preservation of Human Tissue Immersed for Five Years in Fresh Water of Known Temperature

Cotton, Gerald E.; Aufderheide, Arthur C.; Goldschmidt, Volker

doi:10.1520/jfs12427j

Cited by 66 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 5 publications

(5 reference statements)

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“…Seasonality is often cited as the most significant factor that affects the nature of bodily decomposition (Rodriguez andBass 1983, 1985;Mann et al 1990;Manhein 1997;Campobasso et al 2001;Wilson et al 2007;Zhou and Bayard 2011;Meyer et al 2013). Anoxic burial environments can arrest bodily putrefaction and have been consistently observed to discourage bacterial bioerosion of bone microstructures (Polson et al 1985;Cotton et al 1987;Mant 1987;Janaway 1996;Turner and Wiltshire 1999;Fielder and Graw 2003;Wilson et al 2007;Turner-Walker and Jans 2008;O'Connor et al 2011;Hollund et al 2012). The endogenous model of bacterial bioerosion and the influence of early taphonomic events have been questioned more recently (Turner-Walker 2008, 2012Fernández-Jalvo et al 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Investigation Into the Relationship Between Funerary Treatment and Bacterial Bioerosion in European Archaeological Human Bone

Booth

2015

Archaeometry

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A central problem in funerary archaeology is interpreting how the corpse was manipulated in the immediate post mortem period. The extent of bacterial bioerosion to the internal bone microstructure has been proposed as a means to infer the early post mortem history of a corpse, as it has been suggested that this form of bone diagenesis is produced by an organism's putrefactive gut bacteria. Under this model, different forms of funerary treatment would be expected to leave characteristic signatures of bioerosion in archaeological bone. Here, we tested the extent to which bacterial bioerosion of ancient human bones reflected funerary treatment, through histological analysis of 301 archaeological human bone thin sections from 25 European archaeological sites. We found that bioerosion was significantly influenced by whether a bone originated from a neonatal individual or an anoxic context. When these remains were excluded, bioerosion was controlled by archaeological phase in a manner consistent with known early post mortem treatment and forensic models of bodily decomposition. These findings suggest that microscopic analyses of bone have useful applications in reconstructions of funerary processes and provide some insight into factors that may control the persistence of organic biomolecules and fossilization.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Investigation Into the Relationship Between Funerary Treatment and Bacterial Bioerosion in European Archaeological Human Bone

Booth

2015

Archaeometry

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“…During this It is well established that temperature is an important factor in the process of decomposition and similarly it has been identified as an influencing factor of adipocere formation in aquatic environments [7]. The ideal temperature range is considered to be 21-45⁰C and is correlated to the optimal conditions for bacterial growth and enzymatic release [7,[15][16][17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examination of adipocere formation in a cold water environment

2010

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Adipocere is a late stage postmortem decomposition product that forms from the lipids present in soft tissue. Its formation in aquatic environments is typically related to the presence of a moist, warm, anaerobic environment, and the effect of decomposer microorganisms. The ideal temperature range for adipocere formation is considered to be 21-45⁰C and is correlated to the optimal conditions for bacterial growth and enzymatic release. However, adipocere formation has been reported in cooler aquatic environments at considerable depths. This study aimed to investigate the chemical process of adipocere formation in a cold freshwater environment in Lake Ontario, Canada. Porcine tissue was used as a human tissue analogue and submerged at two depths (i.e. 10 and 30 feet) in the trophogenic zone of the lake. Samples were collected at monthly postmortem submersion intervals and analysed using Diffuse Reflectance Infrared

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“…Interestingly, low temperature may not have been a factor in DNA preservation since present-day subsurface groundwater temperatures are around 23°C and would not have been substantially different in 8000 B.P. Adipocere formation is indeed possible under warm water conditions, as was previously noted when two human bodies immersed in 21°C water for 5 years were recovered with extensive adipocere present in the bodies (Cotton et al 1987). Although DNA has been isolated from tissues preserved through rapid drying (see section on Dried Samples), our results demonstrate that tissues recovered from water-saturated environments under conditions of limited oxygen, neutral pH, and high ion levels also yield preserved DNA of acceptable quality.…”

Section: Analysis Of Single-copy Nuclear Genesmentioning

confidence: 76%

DNA Analysis of the Windover Population

Hauswirth¹,

Dickel²,

Lawlor³

1994

Ancient DNA

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The discovery that a water-saturated environment can preserve DNA in tissue has provided a significant additional source of genetic material for the rapidly expanding field of ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis. In this chapter we describe some results of our genetic study of the Windover archaeological site. Windover is presently the most extensively characterized wet site with regard to ancient human DNA. Our intent is to describe the conditions of DNA preservation, discuss reasons for the surprisingly good state of that preservation, and outline the current status of genetic reconstruction of this 7,000-8,000-year-old population. Throughout, we have also attempted to highlight elements of our Windover study which may serve as useful predictive and methodological guides for retrieval and analysis of aDNA from other wet sites. DNA Preservation at the Wind over SiteThe Wind over site (8BR46) consists of a small (5,400 m 2 ) peat deposit in a low-lying swale on the western edge of the Florida Atlantic Coastal Ridge, roughly equidistant from the Indian River coastal lagoon system and the St. John's River in eastern central Florida. Information from preliminary analysis of flora and fauna indicates that the site was a wooded marsh from 8000 B.P. to 6900 B.P. and during this time was regularly used as a burial ground. A description and summary of the Wind over site has appeared (Doran and Dickel J988a, b). Most bodies found at the site had been placed in a flexed position and then buried lying on their sides in anaerobic, watersaturated peat at an approximate depth of 1 m. The chronometric placement of Windover skeletal material is based on a series of 14 radiocarbon dates. These dates were obtained directly from human bone, from the top and bottom of vertical burial stakes, and from peat above, within, and beneath human bone from multiple locations within the pond. The dates on human bone are consistent with all other dates and range from 6990 ± 70 to 8120 ± 70 years B.P., which would cluster human activities at Wind over at approximately

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Preservation of Human Tissue Immersed for Five Years in Fresh Water of Known Temperature

Cited by 66 publications

References 5 publications

An Investigation Into the Relationship Between Funerary Treatment and Bacterial Bioerosion in European Archaeological Human Bone

An Investigation Into the Relationship Between Funerary Treatment and Bacterial Bioerosion in European Archaeological Human Bone

Examination of adipocere formation in a cold water environment

DNA Analysis of the Windover Population

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