Case of Fatal Starvation: Can Stable Isotope Analysis Serve to Support Morphological Diagnosis and Approximate the Length of Starvation?

On tackling abuse of older people: The forensic challenges in fatal cases investigation

The World Health Organization recently presented the priorities for tackling abuse of older people in a coordinated and strategic way. However, data on the forensic scenario is still lacking. In this context, the aim of the present work was to provide a comprehensive literature review of this inherently complex phenomenon in the post-mortem setting, in order to better characterize it from a forensic point of view. A comprehensive literature search was performed in three electronic databases following the PRISMA guidelines. Sociodemographic and medical data of victims and perpetrators, post-mortem data, types of abuse and risk factors were extracted from non-aggregated data. Forty-eight papers dealing with abuse in the post-mortem setting were included, with a predominance of case reports and case series. The review showed that neglect was the most common type of abuse and victims are predominantly older women who are abused in a domestic setting by trusted family member. To generate more and better data, expanded research in the forensic field requires standardized methods and the raise of professional awareness about abuse of older people.

Effect of cocooning conditions on the structure, carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios of silks

The stable isotope technique provides the possibility to trace ancient textiles because the technique is associated with advantages such as trace indication, fast detection, and accurate results. Since different cocooning conditions may impact cocoons even under identical habitats, it is important to investigate the effects of different cocooning temperatures and humidity on the isotope incorporation values in the cocoons. In this study, silk fibers were reeled under different conditions of temperature and humidity, followed by analysis of the secondary structure of cocoon proteins and isotope incorporation patterns. We found that the deviations in carbon isotope values of silk under different cocooning conditions could reach up to 0.76‰, while the deviation in carbon isotope values at different locations of a single silk was 2.75‰. Further, during the cocooning process, depletion of the 13C-isotope at different locations of the silk fibers was observed, reducing the δ13C values. We proposed that the changes in carbon isotopes in silk were related to the content of sericin and silk fibroin in silk. Finally, we did not observe a significant difference in isotope ratios in degummed cocoons. In summary, the 13C isotope was enriched in sericin, whereas 15N was enriched in fibroin, and these findings provide basic information for tracing the provenance of silks.

Sidon on the breadth of the wild sea: Movement and diet on the Mediterranean coast in the Middle Bronze Age

OBJECTIVES

Excavations at Sidon (Lebanon) have revealed dual identities during the Middle Bronze Age (ca. 2000-1600 BCE): a maritime port and center for local distribution, as well as a settlement with a heavy subsistence dependence on the extensive inland hinterlands. We aim to investigate residential mobility at Sidon using isotopic analyses of 112 individuals from 83 burials (20 females, 26 males, and 37 subadults). Veneration and remembrance of the dead is evident from funerary offerings in and near the tombs. With marine fish a major component in funerary offerings, we predict major marine reliance in this coastal population.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

New isotopic evidence of paleomobility (⁸⁷ Sr/⁸⁶ Sr, δ¹⁸ O) and diet (δ¹³ C_carbonate ) is the focus of this research. Previous bulk bone collagen δ¹³ C and δ¹⁵ N analysis is strengthened by further sampling, along with δ³⁴ S where collagen yield was sufficient.

RESULTS

The five non-locals identified (8.9% of the 56 analyzed) come from constructed tombs with high-status grave goods except for one, which was heavily disturbed in antiquity. Dietary investigation of the population confirms reliance on terrestrial resources with no significant marine input. No significant differences in diet between the sexes or burial types are present.

CONCLUSIONS

Although Sidon was part of a growing Mediterranean network evidenced through artefactual finds, relatively low immigration is evident. While religious feasts venerating the dead may have involved significant piscine components, no appreciable marine input in diet is observed. Fish may have been reserved for the deceased or only consumed on feast days alongside the dead rather than a regular part of the Bronze Age menu.

A modern baseline for the paired isotopic analysis of skin and bone in terrestrial mammals

We present the isotopic discrimination between paired skin and bone collagen from animals of known life history, providing a modern baseline for the interpretation of archaeological isotopic data. At present, the interpretation of inter-tissue variation (Δ_(skin-bone)) in mummified remains is based on comparisons with other archaeological material, which have attributed divergence to their contrasting turnover rates, with rapidly remodelling skin collagen incorporating alterations in environmental, cultural and physiological conditions in the months prior to death. While plausible, the lack of baseline data from individuals with known life histories has hindered evaluation of the explanations presented. Our analysis of a range of animals raised under a variety of management practices showed a population-wide trend for skin collagen to be depleted in ¹³C by -0.7‰ and enriched in ¹⁵N by +1.0‰ relative to bone collagen, even in stillborn animals. These results are intriguing and difficult to explain using current knowledge; however, on the basis of the findings reported here, we caution any results which interpret simply on differing turnover rates. We hypothesize that there may be a consistent difference in the routing of dietary protein and lipids between skin and bone, with potentially on-site synthesis of non-essential amino acids using carbon and nitrogen that have been sourced via different biochemical pathways.

Assessment of nutritional stress in famine burials using stable isotope analysis

OBJECTIVES

We compared δ¹⁵ N and δ¹³ C values from bone and dentine collagen profiles of individuals interred in famine-related and attritional burials to evaluate whether individuals in medieval London who experienced nutritional stress exhibit enriched nitrogen in bone and tooth tissue. Dentine profiles were evaluated to identify patterns that may be indicative of famine during childhood and were compared with the age of enamel hypoplasia (EH) formation to assess whether isotopic patterns of undernutrition coincide with the timing of physiological stress.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

δ¹⁵ N and δ¹³ C isotope ratios of bone collagen were obtained from individuals (n = 128) interred in attritional and famine burials from a medieval London cemetery (c. 1120-1539). Temporal sequences of δ¹⁵ N and δ¹³ C isotope profiles for incrementally forming dentine collagen were obtained from a subset of these individuals (n = 21).

RESULTS

Results indicate that individuals from attritional graves exhibit significantly higher δ¹⁵ N values but no significant differences were found between burial types for the sexes. Analyses of dentine profiles reveal that a lower proportion of famine burials exhibit stable dentine profiles and that several exhibit a pattern of opposing covariance between δ¹⁵ N and δ¹³ C. EH were also observed to have formed during or after the opposing covariance pattern for some individuals.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this study may reflect differences in diet between burial types rather than nutritional stress. Though nutritional stress could not be definitively identified using bone and dentine collagen, the results from dentine analysis support previous observations of biochemical patterns associated with nutritional stress during childhood.

Using evidence from hair and other soft tissues to infer the need for and receipt of health-related care provision

The Bioarchaeology of Care approach developed by Tilley is usually applied to skeletalized human remains, given the usual constraints of preservation bias that are seen with archaeological assemblages. However, other tissues, such as hair are sometimes preserved and can provide a wealth of information that can supplement the skeletal data. Archaeological hair has been analysed for drug compounds for almost thirty years. This article integrates data from hair analyses for coca metabolites, stable light isotope analysis and aDNA to expand the potential of the Bioarchaeology of Care approach using the example of a spontaneously mummified adult female from northern Chile.

Economic and demographic predictors of dietary variation and nutritional indicators in Nicaragua

OBJECTIVES

We measured carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios in a contemporary population, and tested how the isotopic variability relates to measures of socioeconomic status (e.g., household wealth) and anthropometric measures (e.g., standardized height-for-age and weight-for-age z-scores).

METHODS

Hair samples from individuals living in the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve in Nicaragua were analyzed for δ¹³ C and δ¹⁵ N, and these data were examined in relation to individual (e.g., age, sex, anthropometrics) and household (e.g., household size, wealth) variables.

RESULTS

We found through mixed-effects modeling that δ¹³ C and δ¹⁵ N varied predictably with individual age and household wealth. δ¹³ C and δ¹⁵ N did not, however, improve models predicting variation in individual anthropometric measures.

CONCLUSION

These results indicate that, although there is a relationship between diet (δ¹³ C and δ¹⁵ N) and socioeconomic variables, these dietary differences are not the main cause of health differences in this population.