Microbiology
Microbiology (from Greek , "mīkros", "small"; , "bios", "life"; and , "-logia") is the study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, parasitology, mycology and bacteriology.
Forensic biology
“Post-mortem microbiology (PMM) aims to detect unexpected infections causing sudden deaths; confirm clinically suspected but unproven infection; evaluate the efficacy of antimicrobial therapy; identify emergent pathogens; and recognize medical errors. Additionally, the analysis of the thanatomicrobiome may help to estimate the post-mortem interval.”. There is currently an extensive amount of research being performed, most notably using the famous “body farms” throughout the United States, to determine if there is a consistent microbial decomposition “clock” that could be used by itself, or in conjunction with other techniques (such as forensic entomology) to help estimate postmortem intervals. One such group has made extensive headway into describing such a microbial clock, and “believes she’s within two to five years of testing her clock in a real crime scene scenario”. However, if a reliable and consistent microbial clock is determined to exist, “it’s too soon to know whether the microbial clock will pass scientific and legal muster,” (Beans) and “a judge would also have to determine that the microbial clock meets the standard for admission of expert testimony”.