Vitreous Lipid and Protein Biomarkers as Indicators of Brackish Water Drowning: A Forensic Biochemistry Study

Abstract

Deaths resulting from submersion or immersion in water account for about 7% of trauma-induced mortalities. Several cases of drowning deaths are not unintentional but criminally disguised to evade justice. Also, the type of water body in which drowning occurred is important in making an empirical closure on the intent of occurrence.   Therefore, this study was designed to utilize vitreous proteins and lipids in discriminating postmortem brackish water drowning from true brackish water drowning. Sixteen (16) albino rabbits constituted the sample size which were further divided into four (4) groups: the control (CD), the chloroform group (CFD), the postmortem drowned (PDD), and the brackish drowned death (BDD). Vitreous humours were extracted from the eyes of the animals, and consequently processed, and analysed for proteins and lipids. The results showed a significant decrease (P>0.05) in the concentration of vitreous albumin in PDD (0.190± 0.071) and BDD (0.109±0.043), when compared to the CD (0.485 ± 0.307), whereas it increased significantly (P>0.05)  in CFD (1.837 ± 0.231). In a similar vein, there was a significant increase (P>0.05) in vitreous triacylglycerol in the experimental groups (CFD-0.218±0.116; PDD-1.051±0.627; BDD- 0.826±0.172) when compared to the controls (0.082±0.032). Additionally, the increase in vitreous triacylglycerol was more prominent in the PDD when compared to the BDD and CFD. The findings have revealed that vitreous albumin and triacylglycerol could be useful in discriminating against deaths resulting from brackish water drowning.