| 7. Forensic application of microRNAs to diagnosis for drowning pattern |
Hyung-Seok Kim
Department of Forensic Medicine, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, Korea |
Forensic research using microRNA has been limited used to determine the cause of death or manner of death. To add small data to forensic studies using microRNAs, we performed experiments to compare between freshwater and saltwater drowning mouse models, and miRNA expression was analyzed in the brain through a forward bioinformatics screening approach. In this study, we identified eight specific microRNAs whose expression increased in freshwater and decreased in saltwater. Among them, miR-706 - targeting HCN1 - was identified as a potent biomarker for the drowning pattern identification. A higher expression of miR-706was detected in the freshwater drowning compared to the control and saltwater drowning group. HCN1 mRNA expression, a suggested candidate target for miR-706, was lower in the freshwater than in the saltwater drowning group, and showed statistical difference between freshwater and saltwater drowning. miR-706 was specifically expressed in the hippocampal neurons as detected by in situ hybridization. Our data suggest that a specific microRNA may provide clues to understanding some crime scene investigations and pathobiological processes in the dead body. |
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