DISTINGUISHING ANTEMORTEM FROM POSTMORTEM INJURIES BY LTB(4) QUANTIFICATION

Leukotriene B-4 (LTB(4)) in skin samples from seven forensic cases was detected by HPLC to distinguish their antemortem or postmortem origin . In total, there were thirteen antemortem and seven postmortem specim ens. The results showed that LTB, was found in all antemortem wound sp ecimens which were either fresh, or refrigerated or fixed in formalin for less than 10 days. In contrast, LTB(4) could not be detected in po stmortem wound specimens. These results suggested that detecting the c ontent of LTB(4) is a useful method for distinguishing antemortem from postmortem injuries.