Life After Death: What Happens to Your Body After You Die?

ISBN-13: 9783030830359 / Angielski / Miękka / 2022 / 374 str.

Michael Wilson

Spis treści

Preface

Chapter 1.  It comes to us all 

Chapter 2. A rich bag of goodies - the human body as a source of nutrients

2.1 What types of tissues are present in my body? 

2.1.1 Epithelial tissue – keeping it all together

2.1.2 Connective tissue – our support system  

2.1.3 Muscle tissue – standing and moving

2.1.4 Nervous tissue – “I’ve got a feeling” (thank you Beatles) 

2.2 But what are all these tissues made up of?

2.2.1 Small is beautiful, but big is also very important 

2.2.2 Structures of the main macromolecules in humans          

2.2.3 Where are macromolecules found in human tissues?

2.3 How available to microbes and insects are the nutrients present in the human body?  

2.4 And then, of course, we shouldn’t forget that brown, smelly stuff  

2.5 Want to know more?

Chapter 3. Our life-long microbial companions – who are they and what do they get up to while we’re alive?

3.1 What are microbes? 

3.1.1 What is the definition of a microbe? 

3.1.2 So, how are these six types of microbes different from each other?

3.1.3 They’re so small so they must be very simple creatures?

3.1.4 How do we identify the various types of microbes?  

3.2 Meet my best friends - my microbiota

3.2.1 How many microbes live on me?

3.2.2 Do all parts of my body have the same microbes?

3.2.3 Which microbes live in my gut?

3.2.3.1 Microbes that live in our mouth 

3.2.3.2 Microbes that live in our stomach

3.2.3.3 Microbes that live in our small intestine 

3.2.3.4 Microbes that live in our large intestine

3.2.4 Which microbes live on my skin? 

3.2.5 Which microbes live in my respiratory system?

3.2.6 What about the microbes that live at other body sites?

3.3 How do we manage to co-exist with our microbiota?

3.4 Want to know more?

Chapter 4.   Not a pretty picture – our appearance after death

4.1 How can we find out what happens to a body after death?

4.2 The decomposition of a human corpse follows a predictable pattern

4.3 What are the various stages involved in decomposition?

4.3.1 The fresh stage – 0 to 3 days after death 

4.3.2 The bloat stage – 2 to 6 days after death

4.3.3 The stage of active decay – 5 to 11 days after death

4.3.4 Advanced decay (or post-decay) stage - 10 to 25 days after death

4.3.5 Skeletal decay stage - >25 days after death  

4.4 The smell of death - “I think, I think, I smell a stink, it comes from y…o…u” 

4.5 Factors that affect the rate of decomposition

4.6 Where’s my mummy?

4.7 Want to know more?

Chapter 5.  The great betrayal – our own cells and our symbionts turn against us

5.1 It all starts with autolysis – the damage is self-inflicted

5.2. And now the microbes can take over

5.3. It all comes down to ecology

5.4. Ch…Ch….Ch….changes (with thanks to David Bowie)

5.5. Mass migration – a world (or, at least, a corpse) without borders      

5.6. Knock, knock – who’s there?

5.6.1. A general overview – the broad-brush approach

5.6.2. What happens to specific organs?

5.6.2.1. What happens in your mouth?

5.6.2.2. What happens in your gut?

5.6.2.3. What happens to your skin?

5.6.2.4. What happens in your brain?

5.6.2.5. What goes on in your heart (with thanks to the Beatles)?

5.6.2.6. What happens in your liver?

5.6.2.7. What happens to your spleen?

5.6.2.8. What happens to the uterus?

5.6.2.9. What happens to the prostate?

5.6.2.10. What happens to them bones, them bones, them dry bones (with thanks to the Johnson brothers)? 

5.6.2.11. What happens to your blood?

5.6.3. Come on in, it’s now open house – the invasion of the body-eaters

5.7 Want to know more?

Chapter 6. From the micro to the macro – now the big guys move in

6.1 What is an insect?

6.2. What goes on above ground – who’s first and who’s last?

6.2.1 The fresh stage

6.2.2 The bloat stage

6.2.3 The active decay stage

6.2.4 The advanced decay stage

6.2.5 The skeletonisation stage

6.2.6 Wave upon wave of insects – “Help, I’m not waving but drowning” 

6.3 And now for what’s going on down below

6.3.1 Early arrivals

6.3.2  Now for the late-comers

6.3.3 And last, but not least

6.4 Want to know more?

Chapter 7. And what about the rest of the big, wide world? Corpse decomposition and the environment

7.1 What are the ways in which a corpse affects the environment?

7.1.1 Let’s start with the sensual

7.1.2 Now for the chemical

7.1.2.1 Local effects

7.1.2.2 Distant effects

7.1.3 The biological impact 

7.1.3.1 What happens to the soil microbiota? 

7.1.3.2 Now for the nematodes

7.1.3.3 The micro-arthropods are also affected

7.1.3.4 What about insects?

7.1.3.5 Are other animals affected?

7.1.3.6 What about plants?

7.1.3.7 The bigger picture

7.2 Final thoughts

7.3 Want to know more?

APPENDIX I. Glossary

APPENDIX II. Brief descriptions of microbes mentioned in the book

APPENDIX III. Images of corpses

O autorze

Michael Wilson is Emeritus Professor of Microbiology at University College London where he was based for more than 30 years. He has published 337 scientific papers, holds 13 patents and in 1991 was awarded the “Inventor of the Year” prize by Toshiba for inventing a device that produces pure drinking water from contaminated water sources. In 2011 he was appointed Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes Académiques by the President of France for his services to French culture. He has produced a number of exhibitions for the general public about his research and was Senior Scientific Advisor to the Eden Project for their “Invisible you; the human microbiome” exhibition which opened in 2015.  He has published 14 books, mainly in the fields of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. His most recent books are: “Into the labyrinth; in search of Daidalos” (2020) and “Close encounters of the microbial kind; everything you need to know about common infections” (2021).

Blurb

Death is not an end – it’s a new beginning. After death, all of the molecules that came together to form the living “you” become nutrients for millions of creatures, large and small. Your body becomes the hub of a complex ecosystem of microbes, insects, worms, plants and more. Cheer up! This book shows how you are going to live forever – as components of so many other wonderful creatures. It describes the science behind the remarkable recycling of your body. We begin with lessons about how your body functions, is a collection of valuable nutrients and is a home to millions of microbes. The book goes on to describe the various stages the body passes through as it decomposes following death. The microbes and insects that make use of your tissues are then introduced. Finally, you will learn about the enduring effects that your body will have on the wider biosphere. We are rich in valuable resources that will end up feeding an immense number and variety of other creatures. Inevitably, your body will support the continuation of life on our beautiful planet – this book describes how all this happens.