title: Using ninhydrin to detect gravesoil.
abstract: Some death scene investigations commence without knowledge of the location of the body and/or decomposition site. In these cases, it is necessary to locate the remains or the site where the body decomposed prior to movement. We hypothesized that the burial of a mammalian cadaver will result in the release of ninhydrin reactive nitrogen (NRN) into associated soil and that this reaction might have potential as a tool for the identification of clandestine graves. Juvenile rat (Rattus rattus) cadavers were buried in three contrasting soil types in Australian tropical savanna ecosystems and allowed to decompose over a period of 28 days. Soils were sequentially harvested and analyzed for NRN. Cadaver burial resulted in an approximate doubling (mean = 1.7 +/- 0.1) in the concentration of soil NRN. This reaction has great potential to be used as a presumptive test for gravesoil and this use might be greatly enhanced following more detailed research.
authors: School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, Australia. dcarter2@unl.edu
authors: David O
authors: DO
authors: Carter
authors: David
authors: D
authors: Yellowlees
authors: Mark
authors: M
authors: Tibbett
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002048:Burial; D018732:Forensic Anthropology; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D023421:Models, Animal; D009555:Ninhydrin; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000032:analysis; D011180:Postmortem Changes; D051381:Rats; D012987:Soil / Q000032:analysis*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D012987:Soil; D009555:Ninhydrin; D009584:Nitrogen