丹蛭降糖胶囊对糖尿病大鼠血清TNF-α和CXCL-5的影响

目的 观察丹蛭降糖胶囊对糖尿病大鼠血清肿瘤坏死因子-α（tumor necrosis factor alpha， TNF-α）和趋化因子（C-X-C基序）配基5（chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 5，CXCL-5）表达的影响，探究其降糖作用机制。方法 将健康雄性SD大鼠随机分为正常对照组，模型组，吡格列酮组，丹蛭降糖胶囊高、低剂量组。采用链尿佐菌素单次腹腔注射法复制糖尿病模型，采用双抗体夹心法测定大鼠血清TNF-α、CXCL-5水平。结果 与模型组比较，吡格列酮组和丹蛭降糖胶囊高、低剂量组TNF-α、CXCL-5水平显著降低（P＜0.01），3个给药组TNF-α、CXCL-5比较，差异均无统计学意义（P>0.05）。与模型复制后0周末比较，2、4、8周末，吡格列酮组和丹蛭降糖胶囊高、低剂量组血糖水平均显著降低（P<0.01）。2、4、8周末，与模型组比较，吡格列酮组及丹蛭降糖胶囊高、低剂量组血糖水平均显著降低（P＜0.01），但3个给药组之间血糖水平比较，差异均无统计学意义（P>0.05）。Pearson相关分析显示，8周末血糖水平与TNF-α、CXCL-5均呈正相关（P<0.01）。结论 丹蛭降糖胶囊降低糖尿病大鼠血糖的机制与其降低血清TNF-α、CXCL-5水平有关。     

Lipidic compounds found in soils surrounding human decomposing bodies and its use in forensic investigations – A narrative review

Following decomposition of a human body, a variety of decomposition products, such as lipids, are released into the surrounding environment, e.g. soils. The long-lasting preservation in soils and their high diagnostic potential have been neglected in forensic research. Furthermore, little is known about the preservation, chemical transformation, or degradation of those human derived lipids in soils. To date, several studies identified various lipids such as long-chain free fatty acids and steroids in soils that contained decomposition fluids. Those lipids are preserved in soils over time and could serve as markers of human decomposition in forensic investigations, e.g. for estimating the post-mortem interval or identifying the burial location of a human body. Therefore, this review focuses on the current literature regarding fatty acid and steroid that have been detected in soils and associated with human body decomposition. After a short introduction about human decomposition processes, this review summarises fatty acid and steroid analysis applied in current case studies and studies related to taphonomic research. This review provides an overview of the available studies that have used fatty acids and steroids as identifiers of human decomposition fluid in soils in a forensic context and discusses the potential for developing this innovative field of research with direct application in a forensic context.     

Informing regional taphonomy research using retrospective forensic anthropology cases in the Western Cape,South Africa

The post-mortem interval (PMI) is important in death investigations as it can assist in reconstructing the context of the case and the identification of the unknown individual. However, in some instances the PMI is challenging to estimate due to the absence of regional taphonomy standards. To conduct accurate and locally relevant forensic taphonomy research, investigators require insight into the regional hotspot recovery areas. Thus, forensic cases examined by the Forensic Anthropology Cape Town (FACT) in the Western Cape (WC) province of South Africa between 2006 and 2018 (n = 172 cases; n = 174 individuals) were retrospectively reviewed. In our study, a considerable number of individuals did not have the PMI estimations (31 %; 54/174) and the ability to estimate a PMI was significantly associated with skeletal completeness, unburnt remains, absence of clothing and the absence of entomological evidence (p < 0.05 for each). Significantly fewer cases had the PMI estimated after FACT was formalised in 2014 (p < 0.0001). One third of cases with PMI estimations were made with large open-ended ranges, making them less informative. Factors significantly associated with these broad PMI ranges were fragmented remains, absence of clothing and absence of entomological evidence (p < 0.05 for each). Most decedents (51 %; 87/174) were discovered in police precincts from high crime areas, yet a considerable number (47 %; 81/174) were also found in low crime and sparsely populated areas regularly used for recreational activities. Common sites of body discovery were vegetated areas (23 %; 40/174), followed by the roadside (15 %; 29/174), aquatic environments (11 %; 20/174) and farms (11 %; 19/174). Decedents were discovered exposed (35 %; 62/174), covered with items such as bedding or shrubs (14 %; 25/174) or buried (10 %; 17/174). Our data highlight gaps in forensic taphonomy studies and clearly informs what regional research is needed. Overall, our study demonstrates how forensic case information can inform regional forensic taphonomy studies to locate common areas and contexts for the discovery of decomposed bodies and encourages similar studies in other areas of the world.