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Characterization of the Mammalian Post-mortem Thanatomicrobiome: A Time and Temperature Based Approach using Culture Dependent and Independent Techniques

Neeharika Srivastava, Harshita Tiwari, Tripti Bhatnagar

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Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology 18((2 Suppl)):p 191-203, April-June 2025. | DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijfmp.0974.3383.18225.19

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Tiwari H, Bhatnagar T, Srivastava N. Characterization of the Mammalian Post-mortem Thanatomicrobiome: A Time and Temperature Based Approach using Culture Dependent and Independent Techniques. Indian J Forensic Med Pathol. 2025;18(2 Suppl):191-203.

Timeline

Received : June 25, 2024         Accepted : June 21, 2025          Published : June 30, 2025

Abstract

Introduction: The thanatomicrobiome (Thanatos, Greek for death) or the postmortem microbiomes have been recognized as a significant biomarker to determine time and whereabouts of host death. The number and abundance of each organ’s signature microbioata can be of utmost importance to forensic microbiologists as a novel data source for estimating post-mortem interval. Method: Fresh samples of Liver and Kidney of goat were taken and processed. Cultures were prepared and incubated at varying temperatures (37°C, 27°C, and 4°C) in both aerobic and anaerobic condition. After every 24hour, the plates were observed to examine the growth for isolation of microbial colonies. Results: The present finding focuses on the characterization of various thanatomicrobiome compositions across time, temperature and oxygen availability once the animal is passed out. Conclusion: In the present study it was found that increase in time after death leads to variation in bacterial culture in the internal tissues of body which helps in estimation of Post-mortem interval (PMI) in different conditions (such as aerobic and anaerobic), and at different storage temperature.


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Data Sharing Statement

There are no additional data available. All raw data and code are available upon request.

Funding

This research received no funding.

Author Contributions

All authors contributed significantly to the work and approve its publication.

Ethics Declaration

This article does not involve any human or animal subjects, and therefore does not require ethics approval.

Conflicts of Interest

No conflicts of interest.


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Cite this article

Tiwari H, Bhatnagar T, Srivastava N. Characterization of the Mammalian Post-mortem Thanatomicrobiome: A Time and Temperature Based Approach using Culture Dependent and Independent Techniques. Indian J Forensic Med Pathol. 2025;18(2 Suppl):191-203.


Licence:

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.


Received Accepted Published
June 25, 2024 June 21, 2025 June 30, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijfmp.0974.3383.18225.19

Keywords

ThanatomicrobiomeDecompositionForensic SciencePost-Mortem IntervalCulturonomics

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Received June 25, 2024
Accepted June 21, 2025
Published June 30, 2025

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Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.


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