Have you ever wondered what happens after we die, chemically speaking? Death is a sensitive subject, but learning about the processes behind body decomposition is increasingly important for forensics and criminal justice. From volatile organic chemicals to the succession of microbes in the gut, there are a number of clues the body can give us once deceased to help find the cause of, and time since, death. The valuable insights from forensic chemistry can determine whether justice is served.

Why attend this webinar?

In this hour-long, interactive webinar – originally broadcast on 22 July 2025 – you will hear from two researchers working in forensic taphonomy. Noemi Procopio focuses on microbial communities post-mortem. Her research applies omics sciences – including proteomics, metabolomics, microbiomics – to forensic investigations, with the aim of improving post-mortem interval determination and age-at-death estimation. Shari Forbes investigates the chemical processes that occur in soft tissue decomposition. Her current research looks at how detection dogs use decomposition odour to locate remains, identifying an accurate chemical profile of decomposition odour using multidimensional chromatography.

This webinar appeals to a wide audience, from organic chemists to those using similar analytical procedures in their labs, and for those simply interested in the inner workings of the forensic field.

Meet our forensic taphonomy experts

Noemi Procopio principal investigator of the Forens-OMICS team at the University of Central Lancashire

Noemi Procopio

Noemi Procopio is a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and principal investigator of the Forens-OMICS team at the University of Central Lancashire. Her lab uses omics sciences to aid in forensic investigations. She is internationally recognised for her pioneering work, including the first legal case worldwide in which microbiome evidence was accepted in a forensic casework. She is the recipient of several prestigious grants, including a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship, a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) research grant (USA), and a STAR Fund collaborative project with UK police forces and a British Academy fund.

 

Shari Forbes is Professor and Chair of Forensic Science at the University of Windsor

Shari Forbes

Shari Forbes is a Professor and Chair of Forensic Science at the University of Windsor, Ontario, and the former director of the Research in Experimental and Social Thanatology (Rest) facility, the first human taphonomy facility to open in Canada. She also established and directed the Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research (After), the first human taphonomy facility in Australia and the only such facility in the southern hemisphere. Her research focuses on soft tissue decomposition and assists police canine units to improve their training protocols for cadaver-detection dogs. Her expertise is regularly requested to assist law enforcement with locating and recovering buried or concealed evidence.

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