The thanatotranscriptome: Gene expression of male reproductive organs after death

Therefore, postmortem prostate cells counteract programmed cell death with its anti-apoptotic machinery; yet as time progresses, pro-apoptotic mechanisms dominate. In conclusion, our study implies that over-expression of genes in male reproductive organs still occurs during decomposition, which may play substantial roles in forensic research and clinical application. These findings demonstrate that there is still active postmortem gene expression; however, our future research question will be, “When does gene expression terminate after death?”