Is CT bulletproof? On the use of CT for characterization of bullets in forensic radiology.

PURPOSE: Forensic investigations could benefit from non-invasive in situ characterization of bullets. Therefore, the use of CT imaging was explored for the analysis of bullet geometry and composition. Bullet visualization with CT is challenging as the metal constituents suffer from excessive X-ray attenuation due to their high atomic number, density, and geometry. METHODS: A metal reference phantom was developed containing small discs of various common metals (aluminum, iron, stainless steel, copper, brass, tungsten, and lead). CT images were acquired with 70-150 kVp and 200-400 mAs and were reconstructed using an extended Hounsfield unit (HU) scale (- 10,240 to + 30,710). For each material, the mean CT number (HU) was measured to construct a metal database. Different bullets (n = 11) were scanned in a soft tissue-mimicking phantom. Bullet size and shape were measured, and composition was evaluated by comparison with the metal database. Also, the effect of bullet orientation within the CT scanner was evaluated. RESULTS: In the reference phantom, metals were classified into three groups according to their atomic number (Z): low (Z ≤ 13; HU < 3000), medium (Z = 25-30; HU = 13,000-20,000), and high (Z ≥ 74; HU > 30,000). External bullet contours could be accurately delineated. Internal interfaces between jacket and core could not be identified. Cross-sectional spatial profile plots of the CT number along bullets' short axis revealed beam hardening and photon starvation effects that depended on bullet size, shape, and orientation within the CT scanner. Therefore, the CT numbers of bullets were unreliable and could not be used for material characterization by comparison with the reference phantom. CONCLUSION: CT-based characterization of bullets was feasible in terms of size and shape but not composition.

DNA and RNA profiling of excavated human remains with varying postmortem intervals.

When postmortem intervals (PMIs) increase such as with longer burial times, human remains suffer increasingly from the taphonomic effects of decomposition processes such as autolysis and putrefaction. In this study, various DNA analysis techniques and a messenger RNA (mRNA) profiling method were applied to examine for trends in nucleic acid degradation and the postmortem interval. The DNA analysis techniques include highly sensitive DNA quantitation (with and without degradation index), standard and low template STR profiling, insertion and null alleles (INNUL) of retrotransposable elements typing and mitochondrial DNA profiling. The used mRNA profiling system targets genes with tissue specific expression for seven human organs as reported by Lindenbergh et al. (Int J Legal Med 127:891-900, 27) and has been applied to forensic evidentiary traces but not to excavated tissues. The techniques were applied to a total of 81 brain, lung, liver, skeletal muscle, heart, kidney and skin samples obtained from 19 excavated graves with burial times ranging from 4 to 42 years. Results show that brain and heart are the organs in which both DNA and RNA remain remarkably stable, notwithstanding long PMIs. The other organ tissues either show poor overall profiling results or vary for DNA and RNA profiling success, with sometimes DNA and other times RNA profiling being more successful. No straightforward relations were observed between nucleic acid profiling results and the PMI. This study shows that not only DNA but also RNA molecules can be remarkably stable and used for profiling of long-buried human remains, which corroborate forensic applications. The insight that the brain and heart tissues tend to provide the best profiling results may change sampling policies in identification cases of degrading cadavers.

Analysis of microtraces in invasive traumas using SEM/EDS.

Scanning electron microscopy in combination with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM/EDS) is a proven forensic tool and has been used to analyze several kinds of trace evidence. A forensic application of SEM/EDS is the examination of morphological characteristics of tool marks that tools and instruments leave on bone. The microtraces that are left behind by these tools and instruments on the bone are, however, often ignored or not noticed at all. In this paper we will describe the use of SEM/EDS for the analysis of microtraces in invasive sharp-force, blunt-force and bone-hacking traumas in bone. This research is part of a larger multi-disciplinary approach in which pathologists, forensic anthropologists, toolmark and microtrace experts work together to link observed injuries to a suspected weapon or, in case of an unknown weapon, to indicate a group of objects that could have been used as a weapon. Although there are a few difficulties one have to consider, the method itself is rather simple and straightforward to apply. A sample of dry and clean bone is placed into the SEM sample chamber and brightness and contrast are set such that bone appears grey, metal appears white and organic material appears black. The sample is then searched manually to find relevant features. Once features are found their elemental composition is measured by an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS). This method is illustrated using several cases. It is shown that SEM/EDS analysis of microtraces in bone is a valuable tool to get clues about an unknown weapon and can associate a specific weapon with injuries on the basis of appearance and elemental composition. In particular the separate results from the various disciplines are complementary and may be combined to reach a conclusion with a stronger probative value. This is not only useful in the courtroom but above all in criminal investigations when one have to know for what weapon or object to look for.

Improving the visibility of tooth cementum annulations by adjustment of the cutting angle of microscopic sections.

Age at death assessments by counting tooth cementum annulations (TCAs) in unstained undecalcified microscopic ground sections of (single rooted) teeth is, amongst others, problematic because of the unclear distinction between the bright and darker annulations. Counting is hampered by optical superimposition of the tangentially positioned layers of cementum in the section since 'regular transverse sections' run perpendicular to the axis of a cone-shaped root with its yearly deposited cone-shaped layers of cementum. This study demonstrates that to improve the visibility of the annulations, the cutting angle should be perpendicular to the exterior of a root, not perpendicular to its axis. The site where the cut hits the root perpendicular should show the best possible distinction between the TCAs. Here, superimposition of the now vertical positioned layers within the section will result in increased contrast between bright and darker layers. A procedure for such preparation is given.