Article
Medicine, Legal
Siam Knecht, Frederic Santos, Yann Ardagna, Veronique Alunni, Pascal Adalian, Luisa Nogueira
Summary: This study generates and compares classification models for sex estimation based on combined measurement of long bones using machine learning classifiers. Eighteen measurements from four long bones were taken from a total of 2141 individuals. Random forest model performs the best among the different machine learning methods. This study upholds the value of combined long bones for sex estimation and provides accurate models.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Leandro H. Luna, Claudia M. Aranda, Alvaro M. Monge Calleja, Ana Luisa Santos
Summary: Non-adult sex estimation is an active field of forensic inquiry, and this study aimed to test the validity of the auricular surface method for sex estimation in fetuses and children under the age of 5 years old. Results showed high accuracy of this method in sex estimation, suggesting its potential incorporation into multifactorial laboratory protocols for non-adult sex estimation from skeletal remains.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Leandro H. Luna, Luis Bosio, Solana Garcia Guraieb, Claudia Aranda
Summary: Sex estimation of adult skeletons is a crucial step in forensic analysis, and this study evaluated the metric evaluation of the supero-inferior femoral neck diameter (SID) for sex estimation in a contemporary osteological collection from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The results showed high accuracy in sex discrimination using direct measurements, suggesting the method's adequacy for analyzing contemporary skeletal remains in the region.
Article
Medicine, Legal
Bogumila Wolska, Ana Rita Vassalo, Maria Paula M. Marques, Luis Esteves Batista de Carvalho, David Goncalves
Summary: Bone heat-induced changes complicate osteometric stature estimation of human remains from forensic settings. The validity of current methods has not been tested to a great extent. Stature estimations obtained from chemosteometry were found to be more precise than other approaches.
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Lauren Swift, Zuzana Obertova, Daniel Franklin
Summary: The ability to accurately differentiate individuals based on their biological sex is crucial for anthropological assessment. However, the lack of population-specific standards poses challenges for forensic anthropological assessments in specific jurisdictions. This study aims to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of established cranial sex estimation methods from geographically distinct populations when applied to the contemporary Australian population. The findings highlight the importance of using statistical models developed from a population consistent with the decedent's for sex estimation in forensic casework.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Elvira Kresic, Zeljana Basic, Ivan Jerkovic, Ivana Kruzic, Mislav Cavka, Igor Erjavec
Summary: This study aimed to test the sexual dimorphism of orbital measurements in the Croatian population using multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) images. The results showed that females and males in Croatia differed in orbital measurements and these measurements had a certain accuracy in sex classification. These findings have potential implications for exploring population differences.
FORENSIC SCIENCE MEDICINE AND PATHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Chengzhi Yan, Hui Ma, Yuejun Yang, Zhiping Mi
Summary: The limb bones of the Bufo gargarizans in southwest China were found to exhibit sexual dimorphism. Males had longer forelimb skeletons, but shorter hand length compared to females. Additionally, males had larger deltoid and medial crest areas, as well as heavier humerus and radioulna weights. In terms of hindlimbs, males had greater lengths in various bone measurements, but no significant weight differences. These findings suggest that sexual selection plays a role in the evolution of sexual size and shape dimorphism in the limb bones of B. gargarizans.
Article
Biology
Nicholas Passalacqua, Marin A. Pilloud, Derek Congram
Summary: Forensic anthropology in the United States has evolved into a specialization within anthropology, focusing on medicolegal examinations of human remains. It is argued that this field should be considered its own discipline due to its unique expertise, separate from bioarchaeology and other branches of anthropology. The importance of defined qualifications, training, standards of practice, certification processes, and ethical guidelines in strengthening professionalization within forensic anthropology is emphasized to ensure ethical conduct and serve the professional members and stakeholders effectively.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
M. Emery, K. Bolhofner, S. Ghafoor, S. Winingear, J. E. Buikstra, L. C. Fulginiti, A. C. Stone
Summary: This study compared whole mitochondrial genome data generated using two different DNA extraction methods from 27 thermally altered samples obtained from fire victims in Maricopa County, Arizona. The research found that DNA fragmentation increases with temperature, and the likelihood of generating high quality mtDNA haplogroup calls decreases significantly at temperatures > 550 degrees C.
FORENSIC SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL-GENETICS
(2022)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Samuel R. Rennie, Constantine Eliopoulos, Silvia Gonzalez
Summary: Correctly assessing sex from skeletal remains is crucial for creating biological profiles. The obturator foramen is a commonly used feature, but its accuracy has been debated. This study examined four skeletal collections from the UK and South Africa, using a grading scale, and found sexual dimorphism in the obturator foramen. However, the accuracy for sex classification varied across different samples and identifying subtle changes in morphology was challenging. Therefore, the obturator foramen should be used as part of a multifactorial assessment of sex.
FORENSIC SCIENCE MEDICINE AND PATHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biology
Austin A. Shamlou, Sean D. Tallman
Summary: The frontal sinus is an important cavity in the forehead and has been used for positive identification in forensic anthropology. This study found that shape is not affected by ancestral background or assigned sex, but dimensional variation is influenced by both factors.
Article
Ecology
Meaghan L. Pimsler, Carl E. Hjelmen, Michelle M. Jonika, Anika Sharma, Shuhua Fu, Madhu Bala, Sing-Hoi Sze, Jeffery K. Tomberlin, Aaron M. Tarone
Summary: The reliability of forensic entomology analyses relies on understanding the arthropod populations of interest and the contributing factors to variability. Recent studies show that sexual dimorphism may play a crucial role in analyzing traits and age-related genetic markers. The Chrysomya rufifacies system is particularly suitable for studying sexual dimorphism due to its monogenic sex determination system.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Daniele Garcovich, Laura Albert Gasco, Alfonso Alvarado Lorenzo, Riccardo Aiuto, Milagros Adobes Martin
Summary: The study analyzed the sexual dimorphism of the frontal bone using a geometric morphometric approach to assess the accuracy of sex estimates. The results showed that this method can achieve high accuracy for sex estimates in post-pubertal subjects, but is not applicable in pre-pubertal ones.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Anthropology
Adam Budziszewski
Summary: In recent years, the use of a set of sieves has become an important part of the methodology in studying burned human bone. This study aimed to analyze the impact of sieve mesh opening shape on the results achieved. Seiving human burned bones from two Polish archaeological sites using two sets of sieves with different mesh opening shapes revealed noticeable differences. The shape of the mesh openings and their distribution on the sieves' surface can significantly affect the results concerning burned bone fragmentation.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ANTHROPOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Anthropology
Efthymia Nikita
Summary: Documented skeletal collections are a crucial resource in forensic anthropological and bioarchaeological research, allowing for the estimation of an individual's biological profile parameters and the examination of method accuracy across different skeletal assemblages. This review focuses on two modern reference collections in Greece, presenting their composition, research projects, and future prospects for use.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Helena Correia Dias, Francisco Corte-Real, Eugenia Cunha, Licinio Manco
Summary: This study aimed to develop DNA methylation-based age prediction models for bones and teeth. Analysis of DNA samples from Portuguese individuals showed that DNA methylation levels in bones and teeth can be used for age estimation. The results revealed that the bone APM explained 92.5% of age variation, while the tooth APM explained 41.3% of age variation.
AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Francisco Curate, David Navega, Eugenia Cunha, Joao D'Oliveira Coelho
Summary: This study aims to generate age estimation models for both sexes through bone densitometry of the femur and radiogrammetry of the second metacarpal. Different models were generated using least squares regression and general regression neural networks. The models were operationalized in a user-friendly online interface and provide reliable results for estimating age at death of unidentified skeletal individuals.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Biology
David Navega, Ernesto Costa, Eugenia Cunha
Summary: This study proposes a new method based on multifactorial macroscopic analysis and deep random neural network models to estimate the age of skeletal remains in adults. The results demonstrate that age estimation can be accurately inferred across the entire adult age span, with informative estimates and prediction intervals obtained for the elderly population.
Article
Medicine, Legal
Julianne J. Sarancha, Jelmer W. Eerkens, Christopher J. Hopkins, David Goncalves, Ana Vassalo, Gwyneth W. Gordon, Eugenia Cunhad, Ines Oliveira-Santosd
Summary: This study compared the isotope composition of bones before and after burning to examine the preservation of isotope ratio values. The research found that the isotope composition of fleshed burned bone retains the geoprofiling inferences of unburned bone in open fire burn situations, but carbonate and phosphate oxygen isotopes from dry bone burned in a muffle furnace do not retain the geoprofiling inferences.
FORENSIC SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Giulia Festa, Adriana P. Mamede, David Goncalves, Eugenia Cunha, Winfried Kockelmann, Stewart F. Parker, Luis A. E. Batista de Carvalho, Maria Paula M. Marques
Summary: The first neutron diffraction study of in-situ anaerobic burning of human bones investigates the heat-induced changes in bone structure. The study reveals the structural reorganization of bone matrix at different temperatures and the absence of carbonates and organic constituents at high temperatures. These findings contribute to a better understanding of heat-prompted changes in bone and have implications in forensic science, archeology, and other biomaterial studies.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Bogumila Wolska, Ana Rita Vassalo, Maria Paula M. Marques, Luis Esteves Batista de Carvalho, David Goncalves
Summary: Bone heat-induced changes complicate osteometric stature estimation of human remains from forensic settings. The validity of current methods has not been tested to a great extent. Stature estimations obtained from chemosteometry were found to be more precise than other approaches.
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biology
Melanie Henriques, Vincent Bonhomme, Eugenia Cunha, Pascal Adalian
Summary: In forensic anthropology, skeletal trauma analysis is used to determine the circumstance, cause, and manner of death. The hat brim line rule (HBL) is commonly used to distinguish between fractures from falls or homicidal blows. However, recent studies have shown that postcranial skeletal trauma should also be considered. Evidence presented in court must follow guidelines for validity and reliability. This study proposes a classification method using random forests and achieved an accuracy rate of 83% in distinguishing between falls and blows.
Article
Medicine, Legal
Ines Oliveira-Santos, Ricardo A. M. P. Gomes, Catarina Coelho, Francisco Gil, Eugenia Cunha, Isabel Poiares Baptista, Maria Teresa Ferreira
Summary: Access to better health care leads to the discovery of more medical devices near skeletal remains. Dental prostheses made of copper-aluminium alloys have been popular since the 1980s in the USA, Japan, and Eastern Europe. This study aimed to determine the elemental composition of a dental prosthesis alloy, and analysis showed higher levels of copper and aluminium, with no gold or palladium detected.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Luiza Bao Sobreira, Eugenia Cunha, Francisco Curate
Summary: This study developed models to predict sex based on measurements of femora in a Spanish population sample, achieving high accuracy and low bias.
AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Medicine, Legal
Joana Rosa, M. Paula M. Marques, David Goncalves, Maria Teresa Ferreira
Summary: Skeletal human remains that have undergone heat-induced changes have been extensively studied, but there is still much to learn and understand about these changes. Heat-induced colour modifications in bones are not well understood, as they often present unexpected colors instead of the typical variations. Additionally, there is a lack of standardization in determining and naming these colorations, leading to subjective descriptions. However, recent research shows a commitment to more objective methods. This review compiles literature data to discuss the potential of heat-induced color changes in inferring cause of death and their applicability in legal contexts.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
David Goncalves, Joana Rosa, Ana L. Brandao, Andrea Martins, Cesar Neves, Mariana Diniz, Jose M. Arnaud, Maria Paula M. Marques, Luis A. E. Batista de Carvalho
Summary: Vibrational spectroscopy was used to study cylindrical engraved bone boxes from Vila Nova de Sao Pedro, Portugal. The research aimed to understand the manufacturing techniques, the role of pyrotechnology, and oxygen conditions during burning. The analysis showed that the artefacts were most likely produced through bone cutting, engraving, polishing, and heat treatment. The population in Vila Nova de Sao Pedro had a high level of specialization in using fire to work with various materials.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2023)
Article
Anthropology
Joana Rosa, Ana R. Vassalo, Ana Amarante, Luis A. E. Batista de Carvalho, Maria Paula M. Marques, Maria Teresa Ferreira, David Goncalves
Summary: This study aimed to assess and document the effects of inhumation on the chemical composition of both unburned and burned human skeletal remains. Through periodic burial and excavation experiments, the results showed that the crystallinity index and carbonates to phosphate index of unburned bones and bones burned at 500℃ did not vary significantly. However, other indexes showed relevant changes depending on burning temperature and index.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Giulia Festa, Adriana P. Mamede, David Goncalves, Eugenia Cunha, Winfried Kockelmann, Stewart F. Parker, Luis A. E. Batista de Carvalho, Maria Paula M. Marques
Summary: The first neutron diffraction study on the in-situ anaerobic burning of human bones was conducted to interpret heat-induced changes in bone, previously detected using vibrational spectroscopy. Structural and crystallinity variations were observed in human femur, tibia, and reference hydroxyapatite samples when heated under anaerobic conditions. The study provides insight into the structural reorganization of the bone matrix at different temperatures and can contribute to the understanding of heat-prompted changes in bone, which can serve as biomarkers for burning temperature. This information is important for forensic science, archaeology, and other biomaterial studies.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Catarina Ermida, Eugenia Cunha, Maria Teresa Ferreira
Summary: Estimating the postmortem interval is challenging for forensic anthropologists, and the Luminol technique shows promise but is influenced by various taphonomic factors.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LEGAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Anthropology
Benoit Bertrand, Martine Vercauteren, Eugenia Cunha, Anne Becart, Didier Gosset, Valery Hedouin
Summary: This article evaluates the feasibility of using a module to accurately quantify cementum deposits and compares the module's performance to that of a human expert. The study found that the automated module produced reliable and reproducible counts with a higher global precision than the human expert, but it showed higher sensitivity to taphonomic damages and did not avoid the trajectory effect described for age-at-death estimation in adults.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Wangping Zhang, Kaikai Dong, Jing Sun, Zhiwei Huang, Ping Shi
Summary: Postmortem interval (PMI) estimation is crucial in forensic pathology. This study reveals a negative correlation between total protein content and PMI in mouse liver and spleen, as well as a positive correlation between beta-actin degradation and PMI in the liver. Proteomic techniques were employed to identify protein expression changes related to PMI in the liver, leading to the discovery of four significantly decreased proteins and three unchanged proteins with the increase of PMI. These findings provide potential internal references for more accurate and reliable estimation of the time of death.
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC AND LEGAL MEDICINE
(2024)
Review
Medicine, Legal
Wojciech Oronowicz-Jaskowiak, Tomasz Kozlowski, Marta Polanska, Jerzy Wojciechowski, Piotr Wasilewski, Dominik Slezak, Miros law Kowaluk
Summary: Machine learning methods for identifying child sexual abuse materials have limitations, including the lack of annotated training sets by forensic experts, rare use of models trained on real pornographic content, and absence of detailed justification for classification decisions. This study trained convolution neural networks using expert-labelled CSAM images, achieving high accuracy in classifying CSAM. The study also highlighted the crucial areas for classifying pornographic content involving children and suggested the ResNet-s neural network as a reliable tool for clinical work and supporting expert witnesses in the field of anthropology.
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC AND LEGAL MEDICINE
(2024)
Article
Medicine, Legal
Nozomi Idota, Ryutaro Takazakura, Hiroshi Ikegaya
Summary: Negative pressure pulmonary edema (NPPE) can occur after airway obstruction by foreign bodies or laryngospasms, and even if the obstruction is removed. The CT features of NPPE include diffuse central ground-glass opacities and thickening of the bronchovascular bundles and bronchial walls. Forensic practitioners may not be aware of NPPE, but understanding its mechanisms and CT findings can be useful for them.
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC AND LEGAL MEDICINE
(2024)
