Adipocere formation is well known as a later
postmortem change. We collected
adipocere from five male victims which had been submerged under the sea or fresh water for 1 mon to 4 yr. Fresh subcutaneous fat of a male victim who died from a
cerebral contusion was used as the control. The samples were homogenized, and the
lipids were extracted with
chloroform and
methanol followed by injection into a gas chromatograph and a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. We detected hydroxy
fatty acids (10-hydroxyoctadecanoic
acid and 10-hydroxyhexadecanoic
acid) as well as 10-ketooctadecanoic
acid in
adipocere, but not in the control. In addition, we found for the first time a
cholesterol-related peak with a molecular ion of 388 in
adipocere and identified it as
epicoprostanol, suggesting not only oxidation but also reduction had occurred during the formation of
adipocere. In addition, we showed the time-course of
epicoprostanol accumulation. The relationship between the time of
adipocere formation and the characteristic
lipid composition is discussed.