Museum für Naturkunde-Leibniz Institute for Research on Evolution and Biodiversity at the Humboldt University Berlin, Invalidenstrasse 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany.
Forensic Sci Int. 2012 Nov 30;223(1-3):64-71. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2012.08.001. Epub 2012 Aug 27.
After death organisms are decomposed by a variety of enzymes and microorganisms. The decay is typically accompanied by the emission of a plethora of volatile organic compounds responsible for the unpleasant odour of a carcass and thus, for the attraction of necrophagous insects. The composition of carcass-related odour profiles strongly depends on the composition of macro-nutrients like fat, carbohydrates, and particularly protein, as well as on the presence of oxygen which influences the community of microorganisms colonising the corpse. The impact of abiotic factors like temperature and humidity on carcass-related volatile emission is less well understood although these parameters are known to have a strong impact on the growth of microorganisms. In the present study we investigated the volatile succession released from dead mice stored for one, ten and 30 days under warm/hot (wh, 22°C/80-90% RH) or cold/dry (cd, 12°C/40-60% RH) climate conditions. We identified 51 typical carcass volatiles by coupled gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and analysed the volatile profiles by multivariate statistical methods to find compounds characterising the different stages. Dead mice stored under wh conditions released volatiles much faster, in higher amounts, and in a greater diversity than those stored under cd conditions. The relatively low amount of sulphur chemicals released under cd conditions were most striking. The results are discussed with respect to their possible applicability in forensic science and insect ecology studies.
生物体死后会被各种酶和微生物分解。这种腐烂过程通常伴随着大量挥发性有机化合物的释放，这些化合物是尸体恶臭的原因，也是腐食性昆虫的吸引源。与尸体相关的气味特征的组成强烈取决于宏量营养素的组成，如脂肪、碳水化合物，尤其是蛋白质，以及氧气的存在，这会影响到在尸体上定殖的微生物群落。尽管这些参数已知对微生物的生长有强烈影响，但温度和湿度等非生物因素对与尸体相关的挥发性排放的影响还不太清楚。在本研究中，我们研究了在温暖/炎热（wh，22°C/80-90% RH）或寒冷/干燥（cd，12°C/40-60% RH）气候条件下储存 1、10 和 30 天的死鼠释放的挥发性物质的顺序。我们通过气相色谱-质谱联用技术鉴定了 51 种典型的尸体挥发性物质，并通过多变量统计方法分析了挥发性图谱，以找到表征不同阶段的化合物。在 wh 条件下储存的死鼠释放挥发性物质的速度更快、数量更多、种类更多，而在 cd 条件下储存的死鼠则相反。cd 条件下释放的相对低量的硫化学物质最为显著。结果将根据其在法医学和昆虫生态学研究中的可能应用进行讨论。
