Using arthropods in a corpse or at a crime scene, investigators can determine whether toxins were present in a body at the time of death.
This technique is a major advance in forensics; previously, such determinations were impossible in the case of severely decomposed bodies devoid of intoxicated tissue and bodily fluids.
[3] Since J.C. Beyer and his partners first demonstrated the ability of toxins to be recovered from maggots feeding on human remains in 1980, the use of entomotoxicology in investigations has made an emergence into the field of forensic entomology.
Due to the body's advanced stage of decomposition, no organ or tissue samples were viable to screen for toxins.
A liquid chromatography analysis on organ tissue and Calliphoridae larvae found at the scene revealed the existence of five prescription medications.
Comparative research showed increased sensitivity of toxicological analysis of Diptera samples over decomposed body tissues.
Through the use of GC and GC-MS techniques, Nolte and his partners discovered the presence of cocaine in decomposed muscle tissue and in maggots found on the body.
[3] Pekka Nuorteva presented the case of a young woman found severely decomposed in Ingå, Finland.
[8] Through the analysis of specific cases, it was revealed that toxins present in a person's body upon death can confound postmortem interval estimations.
An example of such a case, reported by Gunatilake and Goff, concerned the discovery of a 58-year-old male with a history of attempted suicides found dead in a crawl space in Honolulu, Hawaii last seen eight days prior.
[7] Paul Catts analyzed a case in Spokane, Washington where maggots rendered differing postmortem estimations.
Prescription medicine bottles were found with labels identifying the following drugs: ampicillin, Ceclor, doxycycline, erythromycin, Elavil, Lomotil, pentazocine, and Tylenol 3.
McDonough performed toxicological analyses on stomach contents and dried sections of brain and found lethal levels of amitriptyline and nortriptyline.
McDonough sent these to an FBI lab which broke down the complex structures of the samples using strong acids and bases and freed the toxins for analysis.
[3][10] demonstrated this theory using Calliphora vicina larvae reared on human skeletal muscle obtained from cases of co-proxamol and amitriptyline overdose.