Graduation Semester and Year
Spring 2026
Language
English
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Biology
Department
Biology
First Advisor
Dr. Dylan Parks
Second Advisor
Dr. Melissa Walsh
Third Advisor
Dr. Jeffery Demuth
Abstract
Estimating the postmortem interval (PMI) is one of the most crucial factors in forensic death investigations. Recent advances in forensic microbiology have led to increased interest in using the study of the human postmortem microbiome, or “thanatomicrobiome,” to improve PMI estimates. In addition to current PMI estimation techniques, microbial community succession could serve as a valuable tool in estimating PMI. Further research is needed to develop a comprehensive understanding of the human postmortem microbiome. The purpose of this study is to contribute to the expansion of this tool by reviewing the current literature and analyzing previously published data using the Kraken2 platform to identify gaps in the research that are preventing microbial composition analysis from being implemented in forensic cases.
Keywords
thanatomicrobiome, necrobiome, epinecrotic, forensic microbiology, post mortem interval, bacterial community succession
Disciplines
Biology | Forensic Biology | Microbiology | Other Microbiology
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Laughlin, Ashton C., "CHARACTERIZATION OF THE HUMAN THNATOMICROBIOME BY DECOMPOSITION STAGE THROUGH BIOINFORMATIC AND META DATA ANALYSIS" (2026). Biology Theses. 3.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/biology_theses2/3