Ultramicroscopic observations on morphological changes in hair during 25 years of weathering

Soo Chang Byung, Sung Hong Wan, Eunju Lee, Moon Yeo Sung, Seok Bang In, Hee Chung Yoon, Sun Lim Do, Hee Mun Ga, Jaehyup Kim, Ock Park Sang, Hoon Shin Dong

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

24 Scopus citations

Abstract

Weathering or long-term burial may cause profound morphological and histological changes in hair, which may affect the results of forensic and archaeological investigations. We therefore used ultramicroscopic techniques to assay the changes in weathering hair shafts caused by burial for up to 25 years. We found that the middle portion of hair shafts from living individuals shows the expected histological hair structure, while the cuticle layer was absent from the terminal portion of the same hairs, which may be due to the increased weathering experienced by the terminal portion. In hair samples taken 5 years after death, no significant changes in morphology were observed. By 15 years after death, however, we observed losses in various layers of the hair, including the cuticle layer. At 25 years after death, hair shafts showed a number of pores extending into the medulla, with only some hair shafts retaining their cortical layers. To our knowledge, this is the first ultramicroscopic study on weathering of hair for up to 25 years after death. Our results may therefore provide a basis for similar studies in the fields of forensic science and physical anthropology.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)193-200
Number of pages8
JournalForensic Science International
Volume151
Issue number2-3
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 16 2005
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cortex
  • Cuticle
  • Electron microscope
  • Hair
  • Medulla
  • Weathering

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pathology and Forensic Medicine

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