Chemical process of decomposition during early decomposition, while others are degraded during later stages of decomposition. During the early stages of decomposition, soft tissue proteins are broken down. These include proteins that: During later stages of decomposition, more resistant tissue proteins are degraded by the effects of putrefaction. These include: Keratin is a protein which is found in skin, hair, and nails. It is most resistant to the enzymes involved in proteolysis and must be broken down by special keratinolytic microorganisms. This is the reason that hair and nails are commonly found with skeletal remains. In general, proteolysis breaks down proteins into: Continuing proteolysis
The dogs and the lion's skin The dogs and the lion's skin The dogs and the lion's skin is a fable ascribed to Aesop and is numbered 406 in the Perry Index. However, it is only found in a mediaeval Greek manuscript claiming to be a translation from the Syriac (Syntipas, Fable 19). The story relates how some dogs, finding the skin of a lion, began to tear it to pieces. Seeing them, a passing fox remarked, "If this lion were alive, you would soon find out that his claws were stronger than your teeth." The moral in the original commented that "the fable is for