Bone Decay

The bones are made up of two minerals, including calcium. Calcium is critical in order to maintain the level of bone mass to support structures of the body. If calcium is truncated in other regions of the body then it will be released from the bones into the bloodstream sending it to the appropriate destination. Bones begin to weaken if an insufficient amount of calcium is not consumed. The body will discontinue absorbing calcium if an abundant amount of calcium is consumed, in which vitamin D aids this process.

If you were a forensic anthropologist and were studying human remains, what information would you look for in the bones? Why would this information be helpful?

Forensic anthropologist knowledge of the human body, helps aid in the outcome of a death investigation. (Stanojevich) To help solve criminal trials, the systematic recovery and collection of physical evidence in the field, the scientific analysis in the laboratory and the protection of integrity of evidence, is crucial. Usually, response teams from either federal, state, or local authorities will gather and examine the physical evidence of a crime scene, but there are often times, when a forensic anthropologist is called in. Forensic anthropologist are major players, because they are trained in anthropology, archaeology, human osteology, forensic taphonomy, and chain-of-evidence procedures. Their study of human remains, aids in the case by working to assess the age, sex, stature, ancestry and unique features of a skeleton. Forensic anthropologist have been used to investigate victims of homicide, accidental deaths, natural deaths, and mass fatalities. The cases a forensic anthropologist works on usually involve victims that are decomposed, skeletonized, or have body parts that are missing. Often times, the forensic anthropologist, is the last chance for identification and justice for the victims. (Walsh-Haney)

One morning a couple was out jogging when they stumbled upon human remains. A decision was made to bring in the forensic anthropologist team. To bring light to this mysterious death several things had to occur. Firstly the forensic team had to analyze features of bone to determine as much as possible, that includes; the person’s gender, ethnic origin, age, and height.

Osteoclasts are bone-absorbing cells that breakdown bone and assist in depositing calcium and phosphate in the blood.

After the prior four stages, the body then enters the final stage of decomposition. In this final stage, the body is left with very minimal skin and complete bones; also known as complete skeletonization. When the body has reach the complete skeletonization stage, weather begins to affect the bones. If the body is in hot climate weather, the bones will begin to dry up and discoloration of the outer surface of the bone. Also factors that affect the human bones in this stage are insect and animal activity. For instance, the book states that squirrels specifically show a preference on human dry bones that have exposed up to one year to the environment. Thus squirrels are one type of animal that prefer the human bones because bones can inherit soil, and other substance from the environment depending on its location(Tersigni-Tarrant, Shirley, p. 352, 2013.) But the longer human bones spend out in their location, the more changes it is bound to exhibit. For instance, bones may exhibit additional discoloration and may resemble and growth with plants if it were

When a person dies, the natural forces of decomposition cause for the soft tissue to breakdown and ultimately disappear over time. If enough time has gone by, any soft tissue evidence present at the time of death will also have disappeared. Once this has occurred, it is up to forensic anthropologists to analyze the skeletal remains for evidence of trauma in order to help the forensic pathologist assign a cause and manner of death to this individual. The task is complicated by the similarities between antemortem and perimortem injuries, the presence of skeletal anomalies, as well as the postmortem changes that can occur when skeletal remains are exposed to the elements of nature.

The bone consists of the diaphysis and epiphysis. The diaphysis is the middle part of the bone and the diaphysis are the ends of all long bones like for example the hip bone. This structure only qualifies for all typical long bones in our bodies. In this disease of osteoporosis cells of bone tissues are also involved such as osteoblasts, and osteoclasts. Osteoblasts are involved in bone forming cells and they secrete calcium and binding proteins. Osteoclasts are involved in dissolving a damage bone and is a way that the bone can be repaired.

Anthropologists help with identifying human remains by constructing a biological profile. They do this by estimating age, sex, stature, and ancestry, as well as identifying other characteristics such as diseases and injuries (Anđelinović et al. 2005). The anthropologists also analyze injuries that happened around the time of a person’s death which can determine the cause of death (Allmäe, Limbo-Simovart 2015). To learn these things, some questions need to be asked, such as: is it a bone? Is it human? Which bones are present? How many people are represented? Are the remains modern or

Osteoporosis is a skeletal disease that decreases bone density and reduces bone mass. This illness leads to injuries such as Colle’s fracture, compression fracture of vertebral bodies, and fracture at the neck of the femur. The purpose of the article is to illustrate age-related bone loss in different populations that inhabited Poland from the Neolithic to early modern times. The focus of the study is to determine if age-related bone loss in those populations differ from nowadays. Due to difference in life condition such as housing, diet, and work the authors think that in the Neolithic era the population had better bone mineral density (BMD) than people from the Middle Ages and today.

The authors’ main argument is that the information bone turnover rates offer, which are determined by the measurement of carbon-14 content of collagen in bones, is beneficial for forensic dating and archaeological science applications. The authors also mention that the manner in which stable isotope values from collagen are interpreted can either lead to a misleading or constructive conclusion if age range is taken into consideration.

Throughout life the skeletal system is constantly changing. Bone modeling, formation and growth of bones, occurs from birth to early adulthood resulting in increase in skeletal mass and changes in skeletal form. Naturally the peak bone mass is achieved in the third decade of life, meaning the bones are at their strongest state in human development. Bone remodeling, a response to micro trauma and stress on the bone, is a dynamic process that also occurs through life. Bone is composed of collagen type 1, a protein, minerals such as calcium and phosphate and bone forming cells (osteoblasts and osteocytes) as wells as bone resorbing cells known as osteoclasts. Calcium is a main contributor of bone strength. In fact 99% of calcium is stored in bones and teeth with one percent remaining in the blood. The process of bone remodeling is activated by stressors such as weight bearing and is necessary to maintain bone mass in an adult. It’s a dynamic process in which bone resorption is always

Parathyroid gland is stimulated by low calcium levels in the blood to release the hormone osteoclasts to break down bone and calcium

Tooth decay is an imbalance of mineral loss and replacement within a tooth over time in response to acid attacks on a daily basis. These acid attacks are a direct result of food and drink consumption resulting in cavities and decay. The cavity and tooth decay process can be prevented by working closely with a professional dentist and following a thorough at-home dental health routine. Eating the correct foods at the right times and avoiding certain snacks can all help to prevent tooth decay. So let’s take a look at tooth decay and the actual process itself.

The objective of the course and the first laboratory experiments were to familiarize with the practical skills in physical anthropology. And enable the students of Analysis for human skeletal remains to identify, locate, describe and analyze the types of cells, tissues and structure of bones as well as the formation of enamel and dentine.