1
Q
- chemical and physical changes
- vascular circulation stops with death
- shortly after non traumatic death, body temp increases
- increase in body temp -> because of pathological condition
- febrile diseases, viral/bacterial infections, some nervous disorder
A
post mortem caloricity (4)
2
Q
algor mortis (2)
A
- physical changes
2. rate of temp change based on intrinsic and extrinsic factors
3
Q
intrinsic factors of algor mortis (4)
A
- surface area to body mass ratio
- higher surface area to mass ration = body will cool faster - build
- adipose tissue and muscle tissue retain heat - amount of post mortem caloricity
- pathological conditions
- autoimmune diseases, febrile diseases
4
Q
extrinsic factors of algor mortis (5)
A
- environment (temp)
- coverings on the body (clothes, sheets, etc)
- pathological conditions (infections)
- pharmaceuticals
- controlled substances (illegal drugs, alcohol)
5
Q
rigor mortis (4) characteristics
A
- chemical change
- happens within few hours of death, last for up to 3 days
- duration is dependent on multiple variables
- helps us determine time between death and embalming
6
Q
process of sliding filament model (9)
A
- while muscle is at rest, actin and myosin dont touch
- actin is “blocked off” by tropomyosin and troponin
- our brain send a signal or action potential for our muscle to move causing calcium to be released
- tropomyosin binds with calcium is pulled away from the actin strand
- myosin binds to an AT Molecule which changes the ATP -> ADP
- myosin then binds with actin
- sarcomere, shrinks, muscle contracts
- ADP unbinds, ATP rebinds with myosin to release actin
- muscles relaxes and process can restart
7
Q
rigor mortis process (4)
A
- muscle movement is a process that occurs at the cellular level
- involves three key players; actin, myosin and ATP
- rigor remains until proteins are broken down or until the cross link bridges are broken down via the embalmer massaging the tissue
- more muscle tissue = more rigor
8
Q
livor mortis characteristics (3)
A
- physical change
- intravascular purple/red discoloration
- can help determine amount of time between death and embalming
9
Q
post mortem stain characteristics (3)
A
- chemical change
- heme is released because of hemolysis
- usually present in dependent tissues
10
Q
post mortem stain sequence (5)
A
- hypostasis
- livor mortis
- hydrolysis
- hemolysis
5 post mortem stain
11
Q
pH shift (-> acidic) (2)
A
- metabolism continues after death
2. production of metabolites with no way to eliminate them creates an acidic environment
12
Q
pH shift (->) basic (4)
A
- proteins break down releasing nitrogen into the body
- not uniform throughout the body
- may have “microenvironment” with different pH levels throughout the body
- temperature can also have an affect on pH levels
13
Q
decomposition characteristics (2)
A
- chemical change
2. body decomposition as a result of hydrolysis, autolysis, and microbial influence
14
Q
signs of decomposition (9)
A
- discoloration
- odor
- desquamation
- anasarca
- swelling
- purge
- vascular breakdown
- adipocere
- skeletonization
15
Q
entropy characteristics (6)
A
- life is the act of cheating entropy
- cells of the body are not dead after brain death occurs; muscle and organ cells live for several hours, skin and bone cells stay alive for days
- lactic avid in the muscles is not cleared by circulation and becomes metabolic waste
- protein breakdown causes nitrogenous waste
- atp is no longer synthesized, muscles “lock” then “unlocked” when actin and myosin decompose
- bacterial infestation begins and spreads
16
Q
embalming purpose (2)
A
- disinfect bacteria that cause decomposition
- hold together biomolecules that have started to degrade
decomposition order
carbs-> soft proteins-> lipids-> hard proteins-> bone
17
Q
carbohydrate decompostion process (4)
A
- begins with hydrolysis of glycogen into glucose monomers
- monomers decompose further into organic acids, alcohols, and other oxygenated compounds like ketones, aldehydes, esters, and ethers
- these compounds are then further broken down into carbon dioxide and water
- contributing factor to the acidic pH shift
18
Q
carbs and oxygen characteristics together (2)
A
- in a more aerobic environment, carbs will be broken down by fungi and bacteria and will decompose into sugars into glucuronic acid, citric acid or oxalic acid
- in a more anaerobic environment, sugars become into lactic acid, butyric acid and acetic acid
19
Q
protein decomp (3)
A
- occurs via putrefactive, hydrolytic, and other processes
- saprophytic bacteria largely contribute to protein breakdown
- cells also have an auto-destruct mechanism that kicks in after death
- pH basic to acidic
- cell membrane surrounding lysosome within the cell lyses
- lysosome contains digestive enzymes that are released
- enzymes begin digesting surrounding cellular substances
20
Q
protein decomposition sequence (4)
A
- proteins do not degrade at a uniform rate
- tissues with a lot of proteolytic enzymes decompose early (pancreas, GI TRACT)
- Harder proteins decompose more slowly (muscle protein, collagen)
- keratin protein is the most resistant to decomposition (hair, skin, nails)
21
Q
- decomposition of proteins by the enzymatic activity of anaerobic bacteria
- in anaerobic conditions, proteins are decomposed by an enzymatic process
- process is regulated by moisture, temp, and bacteria content
- creates phenolic products, methane gas, ammonia, thiols, pyretic acid, sulfides and hydrogen sulfide gas
- thiol
A
putrefaction
22
Q
an organic compound containing the group -SH
A
thiol (mercaptan)
23
Q
- a chemical reaction in which a substance is broken down or dissociated by water
- amide bond breaking reaction that involves the addition of water
- enzymes are essential to the process
- products of the reaction polypeptides, amino acids, and other amino acids linked simple polymers
A
hydrolysis
24
Q
other protein breakdown processes (2)
A
- decarboxylation
2. deamination
25
process that chemically removes the carboxylic acid group from the amino acids and also from the terminal end of proteins
-associated products are cadaverine and putrescine
decarboxylation
26
enzyme driven process that removes the amino group from amino acids
-associated product is ammonia
deamination
27
heme decomposition (3)
1. in living person, heme is broken down by catabolism into a green molecule known as biliverdin
2. biliverdin is then reduced to bilirubin which is secreted as bile from the liver
3. when death occurs, unprocessed bilirubin and biliverdin cause post mortem stain by seeping from the capillaries and into the tissues
28
jaundice discoloration (3)
1. blood contain low levels of bilirubin
2. bilirubin gets pushed into surrounding tissues when it is over concentrated causing yellow discoloration
3. when embalming occurs, yellow is converted to a green color, because bilirubin is converted to biliverdin
29
nucleic acid decomposition (2)
1 nucleic acids decompose into sugars, nitrogenous bases, and phosphates
2. nitrogen bases are broken down in reactions that release ammonia
30
lipid decomposition (7)
1. adipose tissue makes up a large portion of lipids in the human body
2. phospholipids break down into phosphates and fatty acids
3. sterols break down into compounds like aldehydes, ketones, and other organic compounds that eventually break down further into carbon dioxide and water
4. triglycerides are hydrolyzed by enzymes
5. aerobic degradation produces aldehydes and ketons and eventually carbon dioxide and water
6. anaerobic degradation directly produces carbon dioxide and water but can also produce adipocere
7 under very alkaline conditions, body fat is saponified and turns into wax0 like soap
31
bone decomposition (4)
1. diagnosis is the term for bone breakdown
2. collagen is first eliminated via bacterial action to amino acids
3. minerals like calcium are then degraded
4. bone eventually turns into dust
PIMS - Embalming 1
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