Dorota Samojłowicz

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that disrupts the brain regions involved in memory and cognitive functions. This impairment ultimately results in severe deficits in memory, learning, reasoning, communication, and the ability to perform daily activities. Our research reveals a statistically significant decrease in the density of neural progenitor cells within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus and the subventricular zone of the lateral ventricles in patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. This reduction correlates with the disease's progression. As Alzheimer’s disease advances, cognitive functions decline progressively, leading to the identification of five distinct stages of β-amyloid distribution across various brain structures. Early symptoms include short-term memory deficits and learning difficulties, along with cognitive, psychiatric, and neurological disturbances. Given the hippocampus's essential role in these functions, one would expect to see substantial changes in this brain region. Thus, understanding adult neurogenesis is vital in Alzheimer’s disease, particularly since the hippocampus, a primary neurogenic area, is notably impacted in affected individuals.

Toxoplasmosis was linked to impairment in brain function, encompassing a wide range of behavioral and neuropsychiatric changes. Currently, the precise localization of Toxoplasma gondii in the human brain is limited and the parasite DNA was not found in population-based screening of autopsy cases. The aim of proposed study was to identify the presence of parasite DNA within the brain and its association with risky behavior and alcohol consumption in postmortem examination. Preliminarily, 102 cases with certain circumstances of death at time of forensic autopsy was included. Due to high risk of bias, the females were excluded from the analysis and final study group consists 97 cases divided into three groups: risky behavior, inconclusively risky behavior, and control group. The obtained tissue samples for Nested PCR covered four regions of the brain: symmetric left/right and anterior/posterior horns of lateral ventricles comprising lining ependyma and hippocampus. The second type of material comprised blood evaluated for antibodies prevalence using ELISA and alcohol concentration using HS-GC-FID. Analysis demonstrated 16.5% prevalence concerning the parasite DNA presence in examined brain tissue samples without specific distribution and association with age at death or days after death until an autopsy was performed. Results have shown correlation between occurrence of risky behavior leading to death and higher proportions of positive parasite DNA presence within the brain. Correlation was not observed between parasite DNA presence and excessive alcohol consumption. Conducted screening demonstrated correlation between parasite DNA presence in the brain with risky behavior and provided new information on possible effects of latent toxoplasmosis.

Bystin (BYSL) is a 306-amino acid protein encoded in humans by the BYSL gene located on the 6p21.1 chromosome. It is conserved across a wide range of eukaryotes. BYSL was reported to be a sensitive marker for the reactive astrocytes induced by ischemia/reperfusion and chemical hypoxia in vitro and is considered to be one of the common characteristics of astrogliosis. In our study we examined whether BYSL could be used as a marker for hypoxic-ischemic changes in forensic cases. Groups suspected of acute hypoxic-ischemic changes presented strong BYSL expression in the cytoplasm of neocortical neurons especially in layers 3–5, that seemed to be short-lasting. In the hypoxic-ischemic-reperfusion group we did not find BYSL expression. BYSL expression in the cytoplasm of cortical neurons was minimal in the control group (cardiac arrest). BYSL seems to be a promising early marker of severe hypoxic-ischemic changes in neuropathological examination of forensic cases and certainly requires further studies.

Cel: Przedstawienie praktycznego zastosowania badania neuropatologicznego w praktyce medyczno-sądowej. Zwrócenie uwagi na przydatność rzadko to tej pory stosowanych badań neuropatologicznych szczególnie w przypadkach zgonów o niejasnej etiologii neurologicznej. Opis przypadku: 46-letnia kobieta uzależniona od alkoholu zmarła w przebiegu encefalopatii, klinicznie uznanej za encefalopatię toksyczną. Standardowa sekcja zwłok nie pozwoliła na jednoznaczne ustalenie przyczyny zgonu. Dzięki przeprowadzonemu badaniu neuropatologicznemu, które wykazało rozległą demielinizację i analizie przebiegu leczenia wykluczono toksyczną przyczynę zgonu i postawiono rozpoznanie zespołu demielinizacji osmotycznej w przebiegu zbyt szybkiej korekcji hiponatremii. Wnioski: Przypadek ten podkreśla istotną rolę neuropatologii w diagnostyce pośmiertnej i wskazuje na konieczność opracowania wytycznych i edukacji prokuratorów w kontekście jej stosowania w sekcjach sądowo-lekarskich.

The purpose of this study was to determine expectations of public prosecutors towards forensic professionals participating in external examinations of dead bodies performed at the site of finding the corpses. The presence of forensic physicians on the crime scene was recognized as advantageous by all prosecutors; however, expectations associated with corpse inspection did not correspond to capabilities of modern medicine or necessitated repeating activities performed during autopsies. Homicides (99%), deaths of children (86%) and "media" deaths (73%) were indicated as cases when the presence of forensic professional was especially important. Definition of injuries with indication of the causative object made by forensic physicians on the crime scene was the advantage most often chosen by respondents (82%). Almost one third of respondents expected forensic physicians to evaluate the length and direction of wound tracts, more than half of them--to provide a detailed description of injuries, one fifth wanted physicians to determine the exact time of death. Description of post mortem changes was not indicated as the most important benefit by any prosecutor. Public prosecutors recognized the presence of forensic professionals on the crime scene as advantageous, but their expectations associated with dead body examinations did not correspond to capabilities of forensic medicine or forced physicians to perform activities normally made during autopsy. An algorithm of dead body examination on the crime scene including aims and advantages of such a examination should be developed jointly by prosecutors and forensic medicine specialists.

Nitrogen causes environmental asphyxia by displacing oxygen in the air leading to death. The study presents a case of a death of a driver death who was transporting flasks with liquid nitrogen that depressurized during an accident. The mechanism and cause of death were determined based on the result of the autopsy and histopathologic examination. The authors emphasize the relevance of accident scene inspection during establishing the cause of death in similar cases.

This paper was prepared in view of consultative difficulties which occur during autopsies of bodies found at the seat of fire. The most difficult problem in such cases is establishing--in absence of typical signs of intravitality--whether the deceased was alive during the fire and inhaling the fire atmosphere; especially when the concentration of carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) in blood is higher than 10% and soot is found in the respiratory tract. The authors analyzed 241 reports of autopsies which had been performed at Institute of Forensic Medicine, Warsaw Medical University, between 2006 and 2011. The following data were analyzed: age, gender, the place where the body was found, blood concentration of COHb and alcohol and the presence of soot in the upper and lower respiratory tract, as well as in the esophagus. It was noted that if the concentration of COHb was higher, soot was more frequently present in the respiratory tract and esophagus. At the same time, the presence, as well as absence of soot was noted regardless of COHb concentration in blood, including 0% concentration. In cases of performing autopsies on bodies found at the seat of fire, examining the upper and down respiratory tract seems to be irrelevant in terms of its consultative usefulness; however, the presence of soot in the esophagus concomitant with low COHb concentration in blood is important in this context.

It has recently been shown that the behavioural effects resulting from latent T. gondii infection in immunocompetent people could pose as a threat to their welfare. AIM. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of T. gondii infection in a group of people who died suddenly in Warsaw and its vicinity. The studied group (n = 169 people) included 42 road traffic accident victims who were driving a vehicle (bicycle (n = 6), a motorbike (n = 3), a motorcycle (n = 13), a car (n = 20)) prior to sudden death and 41 people whose death resulted from suicide. Blood samples were collected post-mortem and examined for the presence of T. gondii, IgG antibodies and ethyl alcohol. Of the 169 people tested, T. gondii IgG antibodies were found in the serum of 93 (55%) of which 25 (59.5%) were drivers and 26 (63.4%) people who died as a result of suicide. With respect to the prevalence of T. gondii infection no statistically significant differences were found between the study (61.4%) and control group (49.4%); (p = 0.09). A statistically significant result was recorded in the 38-58 age group between suicide and control groups (71.4% vs. 44.4%; p < 0.05). Positive test results for the presence of ethyl alcohol in the blood were reported among 49.7% of the studied population: 25.7% among drivers, 67.6% among suicides and 51.8% in the control group. To a statisctically siginificant degree, IgG T. gondii antibodies were found to occur more frequently in people with positive blood alcohol test results among suicides (72% vs. 50%; p < 0.05) and among the control group (60% vs. 40%; p < 0.05) than in their equivalents with negative test results. Our work confirmed the usefulness of serologically testing samples collected post-mortem for epidemiological purposes. The small size of the study group made it impossible to evaluate the potential associations between exposure to T. gondii infection and the probability of sudden death. The significance of Toxoplasma gondii infection as a risk factor for self-destructive behaviour merits further study.