A Glance at Thanatotranscriptome (Thanato : death, transcriptome: pool of RNA transcripts)/A Molecular Autopsy in the fields of Biochemistry, Microbiology, Thanatology & in particular Forensic.

·   What happens to us after we die?

   To question our own mortality is human. Through the lens of biology, we can further question our existence by asking:

·   What happens to our bodies after we die?

·   What does it mean for our cells to be alive after we are no longer living?

      We know that our cells don't die when we die; this is what makes organ donation possible.

·   But what does death of an organism mean for an individual cell?

·   How does each cell decide how long to stay alive and when to shut down for good?

       Some researchers believe they may have found a way to answer this question using genomics.

       Enter the thanatotranscriptome and the discovery of zombie genes, genes that “wake up” in our cells after we die.

       But like any theory supposing an afterlife, human or cellular, many are skeptical.

       Cells produce readouts of genes, called RNA transcripts, to make proteins.

·   The pool of RNA transcripts within a cell or tissue is called the transcriptome.

·   The thanatotranscriptome (thanato-: death) represents all of the RNA transcripts that are present when or produced after an organism dies.

        By comparing the thanatotranscriptome at different points in time, researchers gain insight into what kind of cellular changes occur after death.

         An attempt has been made in this Booklet to present a comprehensive description of the Thanatotran scriptome in the fields of Biochemistry, Microbiology, Thanatology and in particular Forensic along with historical illustration.  

…Dr. H. K. Saboowala.

            M.B.(Bom) .M.R.S.H.(London)