X-Message-Number: 10650 Date: Wed, 28 Oct 1998 03:05:05 -0800 (PST) From: Doug Skrecky <> Subject: medline looks at the iceman Citations: 1-5 <1> Unique Identifier 97330941 Authors Mayer BX. Reiter C. Bereuter TL. Institution Institute for Organic Chemistry, University of Vienna, Austria. Title Investigation of the triacylglycerol composition of iceman's mummified tissue by high-temperature gas chromatography. Source Journal of Chromatography. B, Biomedical Sciences and Applications. 692(1):1-6, 1997 Apr 25. Abstract The pattern of intact triacylglycerols of a skin sample from the 5300-year-old Iceman mummy (nicknamed Otzi) was resolved on a diphenyl-dimethylpolysiloxane stationary phase by high-temperature gas chromatography. Adipocere from a 64-year-old glacier mummy as well as recent human subcutaneous fat served as a comparison in this study. Qualitatively, the results for mummy samples were similar with well-preserved saturated, but decomposed unsaturated, triacylglycerols, the latter being predominant in subcutaneous fat. Excellent preservation of triacylglycerols with odd carbon numbers and branched acyl chains was observed. The results presented here shed new light on the process of mummification. <2> Unique Identifier 97230798 Authors Gunkel AR. Freysinger W. Thumfart WF. Truppe MJ. Gaber O. Kunzel KH. Platzer W. Tiefenbrunner F. Institution Ear, Nose, and Throat Department, University Hospital Innsbruck, Australia. Title Otorhinolaryngologic computer-assisted biopsies of the Iceman. Source Archives of Otolaryngology -- Head & Neck Surgery. 123(3):253-6, 1997 Mar. Abstract BACKGROUND: The Iceman is a prehistoric, completely preserved, 5300-year-old male human mummy. OBJECTIVE: To obtain the first biopsy specimens from inside the Iceman while meeting an extended standard of hygiene and following precise intraoperative guidance to the site of biopsy and keeping tissue damage to a minimum. DESIGN: Biopsy specimens from the nose, the maxillary sinus, and the larynx of the Iceman were obtained. Special caution had to be taken while performing the biopsies to not contaminate the Iceman with heavy metals or remnants of microorganisms. SUBJECT: The Iceman, a cadaver kept frozen in a glacier for 5300 years. The Iceman is in an excellent state of preservation and will allow fundamental histological, morphological, and molecular genetic insights into early man. INTERVENTION: The biopsies were planned and executed with the aid of Interventional Video Tomography, a system that guides the surgeon to the target area by combining live video with existing imaging modalities. The system does not need mechanical fixation of the subject (the Iceman) and is barely in physical contact with the subject; thus, it was the ideal tool for guiding the surgeon to the site of the biopsy samplings through a tiny canal into the nose, the maxillary sinus, and the larynx of the Iceman. RESULTS: We have obtained a number of tissue samples by precisely guided 3-dimensional navigation. Unnecessary tissue damage was avoided. CONCLUSIONS: Visual inspection of the extracted mucosa showed typical human cadaver tissue, despite its age, without clinical abnormalities. Currently, the samples are being investigated by various international scientific groups. <3> Unique Identifier 97259312 Authors Thumfart WF. Freysinger W. Gunkel AR. Truppe MJ. Institution ENT Department, University of Innsbruck, Austria. Walter.Thumfart:uibk.ec.et Title 3D image-guided surgery on the example of the 5,300-year-old Innsbruck Iceman. Source Acta Oto-Laryngologica. 117(2):131-4, 1997 Mar. Abstract Interventional Video Tomography (IVT) is regularly used for computer-assisted 3D navigation in ear-, nose, throat, and head & neck surgery in our clinic. We present the technology and its application to collect biopsies of a 5,300 year old, completely conserved male cadaver, the Iceman. IVT links intraoperative live video with medical imaging data sets, realizing real-time surgical guidance in the live video and/or in the medical images. The IVT data contain the video images and the spatial sensor information; this has a large potential for documentation, training, teaching, and telepresence. IVT allowed us to sample the Iceman's mucosa by the minimally invasive endoscopic approach of the maxillary sinus, the nasal cavity, and the larynx, minimizing tissue damage. Visual inspection of the sinuses and the mucosa revealed the typical mucosa of a fresh cadaver, albeit originating from the stone-age. <4> Unique Identifier 97240913 Authors Thumfart WF. Freysinger W. Gunkel AR. Truppe MJ. Platzer W. Institution Universitats-HNO-Klinik Innsbruck. Title [3D computer-assisted ENT biopsies of the Iceman (see comments)]. [German] Comments Comment in: HNO 1997 Feb;45(2):61-2 Source HNO. 45(2):65-8, 1997 Feb. Abstract The University of Innsbruck possesses a unique prehistoric, completely conserved 5300-year-old human cadaver. We report our experiences during which ENT specialists collected samples from various cavities inside the Iceman. Guidance of biopsy instruments was accomplished with computer-assisted navigation based on Interventional Video Tomography. This technology allows surgical guidance by interlinking currently available imaging modalities with live endoscopic video. The system operates without patient fixation and is practically free of external contact. Apart from sterility, special precautionary measures were necessary to avoid contamination with heavy metals or microorganisms. Visual inspection of the samples of mucosa from the nose, maxillary sinus and larynx revealed the typical patterns of a human cadaver without overt pathology. <5> Unique Identifier 95110854 Authors Williams AC. Edwards HG. Barry BW. Institution School of Pharmacy, University of Bradford, West Yorkshire, UK. Title The 'Iceman': molecular structure of 5200-year-old skin characterised by Raman spectroscopy and electron microscopy. Source Biochimica et Biophysica Acta. 1246(1):98-105, 1995 Jan 5. Abstract The molecular state of about 5200-year-old skin from the so-called 'Iceman' (Similaun man or Otzi) has been characterised using Fourier transform Raman spectroscopy, and has been compared with that of contemporary man. Contemporary skin was also freeze-dried (to mimic the conditions under which the ancient skin was preserved) and its molecular structure was compared with that of Iceman skin. The results showed that the proteinaceous moiety of the ancient skin had degraded considerably and, although olefinic bonds had probably oxidised, the lipoidal component was largely unaltered. Electron microscopical comparisons of Iceman and contemporary skin showed that the gross structure of Iceman skin had survived essentially intact for five millennia. Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=10650