Are cranial peri-mortem fractures identifiable in cremated remains? A study on 38 known cases.

Accurate identification and analysis of signs of trauma on human bone is one of the mainstays of forensic pathology. However, when a forensic pathologist has to deal with charred remains, the task become extremely difficult, because tissues are subjected to severe morphological alterations and their assessment can be critically distorted. We analyzed 38 individuals with peri-mortem skull fractures due to falls from height (17 cases), traffic accidents (16 cases), gunshots wounds (5 cases), of which we had the demographic and clinical data and the autopsy report with the description and photographic records of the fracture lines. After autopsy, the bodies were cremated in gas furnaces and the analysis of cremated cranial remains was conducted in order to verify if it was possible to reconstruct the original peri-mortem fractures and verify differences between known peri-mortem and post-mortem fractures. After 90 min and exposure to temperatures up to 1280 °C, in less than a third of cases (11-29%) the original peri-mortem fracture pattern could be found and reconstructed. The edges and the surface of the fractures can preserve their proper morphology, or they can be affected by post-mortem heat-induced fractures and deformations. Interestingly whenever peri-mortem fracture margins showed the evidence of yellow/brownish colouration, a matte appearance was observed, much different from post-mortem fractures, which may provide further food for thought for the identification of peri-mortem fractures after the cremation process.

Common and much less common scenarios in which botany is crucial for forensic pathologist and anthropologists: a series of eight case studies.

It is commonly accepted that crime scene recovery and recording are key moments of any judicial inspection in which investigators must decide on the correct strategies to put into place. Complex outdoor scenarios, presenting partially or entirely skeletonised remains, can benefit more than others by the intervention of environmental specialists (forensic anthropologists, archaeologists, entomologists and botanists). These experts are capable of singling out, correctly recording and recovering environmental evidence that can lead to a more comprehensive reconstruction of a given criminal episode. If human remains are discovered in an outdoor scenario, the on-site presence of a botanist will guarantee a correct approach to the identification, recording and recovery of any botanical evidence. If an on-site botanist is not available, the operators must be capable of both the botanical evaluation of a scene and the implementation of correct botanical sampling protocols.The following collection of unusual case histories that aim at underlining the efficacy of forensic botany will examine the determination of post mortem or the post depositional interval, evidence for a victim's post mortem transfer, evidence for the identification of a primary crime scene and evidence for the identification of a victim's dismemberment site. In another two cases, one, we will illustrate the important role that forensic botany played in the discrimination between botanical material used to voluntarily conceal a victim and vegetation that had grown naturally above a disposal site, whereas the other will highlight the protocols implemented for the identification of a murder weapon.

Men at war, recovery and analysis of soldiers' remains from the WWI and WWII Italian Front.

Italy was hit hard by the World Wars, still today the discovery of human remains dating back to 20th century is a common phenomenon, in particular on Alpine glaciers, due to climate changes. The authors will describe the Italian scenario in terms of legislation, scientific procedures and related disciplines involved, then the difficulties in the identification of human remains of soldiers, but also potential issues related to uncontrolled "scavenging" activities and consequent ethical aspects. The interdisciplinarity, used as systematic approach to deal with complex cases, allowed the presumptive identification of a WWI soldier recovered after one century from the glaciers of the Adamello mountain, as described. Putting aside the national perspective, the authors endorse and encourage the establishment of an international working group in order to share common issues, to exchange experience and to build global best-practices.

The formation of human populations in South and Central Asia.

By sequencing 523 ancient humans, we show that the primary source of ancestry in modern South Asians is a prehistoric genetic gradient between people related to early hunter-gatherers of Iran and Southeast Asia. After the Indus Valley Civilization's decline, its people mixed with individuals in the southeast to form one of the two main ancestral populations of South Asia, whose direct descendants live in southern India. Simultaneously, they mixed with descendants of Steppe pastoralists who, starting around 4000 years ago, spread via Central Asia to form the other main ancestral population. The Steppe ancestry in South Asia has the same profile as that in Bronze Age Eastern Europe, tracking a movement of people that affected both regions and that likely spread the distinctive features shared between Indo-Iranian and Balto-Slavic languages.

Genome-Wide DNA from Degraded Petrous Bones and the Assessment of Sex and Probable Geographic Origins of Forensic Cases.

The acquisition of biological information and assessment of the most probable geographic origin of unidentified individuals for obtaining positive identification is central in forensic sciences. Identification based on forensic DNA, however, varies greatly in relation to degradation of DNA. Our primary aim is to assess the applicability of a petrous bone sampling method in combination with Next Generation Sequencing to evaluate the quality and quantity of DNA in taphonomically degraded petrous bones from forensic and cemetery cases. A related aim is to analyse the genomic data to obtain the molecular sex of each individual, and their most probable geographic origin. Six of seven subjects were previously identified and used for comparison with the results. To analyse their probable geographic origin, samples were genotyped for the 627.719 SNP positions. Results show that the inner ear cochlear region of the petrous bone provides good percentages of endogenous DNA (14.61-66.89%), even in the case of burnt bodies. All comparisons between forensic records and genetic results agree (sex) and are compatible (geographic origin). The application of the proposed methodology may be a powerful tool for use in forensic scenarios, ranging from missing persons to unidentified migrants who perish when crossing borders.

Effects of Cremation on Fetal Bones.

The charring process is a weak point of anthropological analysis as it changes bone morphology and reduces information obtainable, specially in fetuses. This experiment aims at verifying the conservation of fetal bones after cremation. A total of 3138 fetuses of unknown sex and age were used, deriving from legal and therapeutic abortions from different hospitals of Milan. Cremations took place in modern crematoria. Nine cremation events were analyzed, each ranging from 57 to 915 simultaneously cremated fetuses. During the cremations, 4356 skeletal remains were recovered, 3756 of which (86.2%) were morphologically distinguishable. All types of fetal skeletal elements were found, with the exception of some cranial bones. Only 3.4% of individuals could be detected after the cremation process, because of the prevalence of abortions under 12 lunar weeks. All fire alterations were observed and the results were statistically analyzed. This pilot study confirmed the possibility of preservation of fetal skeletal elements after cremation.

Study on the criteria for assessing skull-face correspondence in craniofacial superimposition.

Craniofacial superimposition has the potential to be used as an identification method when other traditional biological techniques are not applicable due to insufficient quality or absence of ante-mortem and post-mortem data. Despite having been used in many countries as a method of inclusion and exclusion for over a century it lacks standards. Thus, the purpose of this research is to provide forensic practitioners with standard criteria for analysing skull-face relationships. Thirty-seven experts from 16 different institutions participated in this study, which consisted of evaluating 65 criteria for assessing skull-face anatomical consistency on a sample of 24 different skull-face superimpositions. An unbiased statistical analysis established the most objective and discriminative criteria. Results did not show strong associations, however, important insights to address lack of standards were provided. In addition, a novel methodology for understanding and standardizing identification methods based on the observation of morphological patterns has been proposed.

Reliability of Craniofacial Superimposition Using Three-Dimension Skull Model.

Craniofacial superimposition is a technique potentially useful for the identification of unidentified human remains if a photo of the missing person is available. We have tested the reliability of the 2D-3D computer-aided nonautomatic superimposition techniques. Three-dimension laser scans of five skulls and ten photographs were overlaid with an imaging software. The resulting superimpositions were evaluated using three methods: craniofacial landmarks, morphological features, and a combination of the two. A 3D model of each skull without its mandible was tested for superimposition; we also evaluated whether separating skulls by sex would increase correct identifications. Results show that the landmark method employing the entire skull is the more reliable one (5/5 correct identifications, 40% false positives [FP]), regardless of sex. However, the persistence of a high percentage of FP in all the methods evaluated indicates that these methods are unreliable for positive identification although the landmark-only method could be useful for exclusion.

Age estimation from canine volumes.

Techniques for estimation of biological age are constantly evolving and are finding daily application in the forensic radiology field in cases concerning the estimation of the chronological age of a corpse in order to reconstruct the biological profile, or of a living subject, for example in cases of immigration of people without identity papers from a civil registry. The deposition of teeth secondary dentine and consequent decrease of pulp chamber in size are well known as aging phenomena, and they have been applied to the forensic context by the development of age estimation procedures, such as Kvaal-Solheim and Cameriere methods. The present study takes into consideration canines pulp chamber volume related to the entire teeth volume, with the aim of proposing new regression formulae for age estimation using 91 cone beam computerized scans and a freeware open-source software, in order to permit affordable reproducibility of volumes calculation.

Surface curvature of pelvic joints from three laser scanners: separating anatomy from measurement error.

Recent studies have reported that quantifying symphyseal and auricular surface curvature changes on 3D models acquired by laser scanners has a potential for age estimation. However, no tests have been carried out to evaluate the repeatability of the results between different laser scanners. 3D models of the two pelvic joints were generated using three laser scanners (Custom, Faro, and Minolta). The surface curvature, the surface area, and the distance between co-registered meshes were investigated. Close results were found for surface areas (differences between 0.3% and 2.4%) and for distance deviations (average <20 µm, SD <200 µm). The curvature values were found to be systematically biased between different laser scanners, but still showing similar trends with increasing phases/scores. Applying a smoothing factor to the 3D models, it was possible to separate anatomy from the measurement error of each instrument, so that similar curvature values could be obtained (p < 0.05) independent of the specific laser scanner.

Sexual dimorphism of canine volume: a pilot study.

Sex assessment is a crucial part of the biological profile in forensic and archaeological context, but it can be hardly performed in cases of commingled and charred human remains where DNA tests often are not applicable. With time literature have analyzed the sexual dimorphism of teeth (and especially canines), but very few articles take into consideration the teeth volume, although with time several technologies have been introduced in order to assess 3D volume (CT-scan, laser scanner, etc.). This study aims at assessing the sexual dimorphism of dental and pulp chamber volumes of a sample of canines. Cone beam computed tomography analyses were performed by 87 patients (41 males and 46 females, aged between 15 and 83 years) for clinical purposes, and were acquired in order to measure canine volumes. Results show that the dental volume amounted to 0.745 cm(3) (SD 0.126 cm(3)) in males, 0.551 cm(3) (SD 0.130 cm(3)) with a statistically significant difference (p<0.01). A diagnostic threshold of 0.619 cm(3) was stated, which provides a percentage of correct answer of 80.5% in the chosen sample. The novel method was then applied with success to 7 archaeological: where in all the cases the results were concordant with those provided by the assessment of the cranium and pelvis. The study adds a contribution to the wide analysis of dental sexual dimorphism confirming the statistically significant differences of volume between males and females and providing a method for the diagnosis of sex applicable to forensic cases.

Assets and pitfalls of chemical and microscopic analyses on gunshot residues in skeletonized bodies: a report of five cases.

In case of gunshot wounds, forensic anthropologists and pathologists have many tools at hand, and the assistance that chemical and microscopic investigations can provide in such scenarios is often valuable and crucial. However, the results of such analyses in the search of gunshot residues (GSR) ought not to be acritically considered. We report five cases where chemical (sodium rhodizonate) and microscopic (scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX)) analyses were performed for the search of GSR. Four cases concerned the forensic field and analyses on buried, charred, or submerged remains, whereas one case concerned the historical remains of a soldier of the First World War. In every case, the search for GSR with these techniques showed their persistence even after long periods and preservation in peculiar environments. However, chemical analyses provided their contribution, but in two cases, anthropological analyses provided crucial and solving results. The five cases show the indisputable usefulness of chemical and microscopic analyses in the search of GSR in gunshot wounds and especially how such residues may survive in time and in adverse environmental conditions. However, experts should always be dubious about some pitfalls (such as contamination) one can frequently find in these scenarios.

The difficult task of assessing perimortem and postmortem fractures on the skeleton: a blind text on 210 fractures of known origin.

The distinction between perimortem and postmortem fractures is an important challenge for forensic anthropology. Such a crucial task is presently based on macro-morphological criteria widely accepted in the scientific community. However, several limits affect these parameters which have not yet been investigated thoroughly. This study aims at highlighting the pitfalls and errors in evaluating perimortem or postmortem fractures. Two trained forensic anthropologists were asked to classify 210 fractures of known origin in four skeletons (three victims of blunt force trauma and one natural death) as perimortem, postmortem, or dubious, twice in 6 months in order to assess intraobserver error also. Results show large errors, ranging from 14.8 to 37% for perimortem fractures and from 5.5 to 14.8% for postmortem ones; more than 80% of errors concerned trabecular bone. This supports the need for more objective and reliable criteria for a correct assessment of peri- and postmortem bone fractures.

World War One Italian and Austrian soldier identification project: DNA results of the first case.

We report the results of an attempt to identify the supposed remains of a famous World War I (WWI) Italian soldier who was killed in battle along the Italian front in 1915. Thanks to the availability of offspring from both paternal and maternal lineage Y-STRs and mtDNA were analysed and both showed a clear exclusion scenario: the remains did not belong to the supposed war hero. This is the first effort of identification of the remains of soldiers who perished during World War I within a multidisciplinary project aimed at the retrieval of historical and cultural aspects linked to WWI, and the systematic study of the remains of soldiers and ultimately their identification. This last step involves both Italian and Austrian laboratories.