Forensic mycology

[1] Mycology is used in estimating times of death or events by using known growth rates of fungi, in providing trace evidence, and in locating corpses.

[1] It also includes tracking mold growth in buildings, the use of fungi in biological warfare, and the use of psychotropic and toxic fungus varieties as illicit drugs or causes of death.

[3] There is no limit to which species of fungi or which parts of the body can be used in this process, as long as conditions at the scene can be experimentally recreated.

Van Dijck of the Catholic University of Leuven had the first noted use of recreating fungal growth to determine post-mortem interval in 1980.

[4] In this, a woman, living alone, was found dead in a temperature-controlled house with stab wounds in her chest and fungal growth on her face and lower abdomen.

[4] The body had already cooled to 12 °C, the ambient temperature, and showed no signs of insect colonization which made accurate post-mortem interval determination difficult.

[5][6] Fungi in these categories have only been reported in woodland ecosystems, notably in both mammalian and avian remains as well as in some wasps nests.

They also have the distinct ability to grow in places where plants cannot, such as stone, leather, plastic, brick, and tiles, increasing the chances of finding microscopic fungal spores.

[2][3] If this is the case, examination of fungal remnants such as partially digested organisms or microscopic spores may be preformed in the stomach and intestinal contents.

[3] The use of fungi in bioterrorism dates back to 600 B.C., when the Assyrians used the rye ergot fungus (claviceps purpurea) to contaminate enemy wells.

[8] Currently, the fungi that have the greatest risk to the public are a specific set of molds that create a range of different mycotoxins, depending on the species.