The Paris Descartes human donation centre is embroiled in a scandal around its treatment of people who gave their bodies to science. From allegations of rats eating the bodies to parts being sold for profit, the scandal has shocked the victims' families: 'My mother was tortured. That's how I see it. She was subjected to atrocities', says Laurence Dezelee, whose mother's body was given to the Descartes centre. Dominique Horde, former secretary general of the body donation centre, leaked the information after her concerns were ignored: 'What I found out is unspeakable. I was having nightmares and I was haunted by what I called the 'Paris-Descartes mass grave''. The closure of the centre has wider repercussions. Research centres that were supplied by Paris Descartes are forced to now buy body parts from American private companies: 'These companies are making a profit, and that's unacceptable. We're in a grey area between what seems ethically desirable and what is legally acceptable', says Professor Arnaud Perrier, whose lab has purchased from American companies.