{"title":"Sexual dimorphism and ancestral variation in the pectoral and pelvic girdles of modern humans.","authors":"Daphne R Hudson, John H Langdon","doi":"10.1127/homo/2023/1486","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2023/1486","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Discussions of the evolution of sexual dimorphism in torso shape and the pectoral region assume that this dimorphism exists independently of body size. We test this assumption in two human populations and further examine what is needed to understand sexual dimorphism in the pectoral region. Modern human males have broad shoulders and narrow hips relative to females, lending males a more triangular torso. The wider female pelvis is commonly attributed to obstetric pressures while the broader male pectoral girdle has been argued to be an adaptation that improves hunting or intrasexual competition. While sexual dimorphism in the pelvic girdle is known to exist after adjusting for body size across human populations, most studies of sexual dimorphism in the pectoral girdle have not adjusted the data to account for sexual size dimorphism or compared different ancestral groups. The aforementioned hypotheses explaining sexual dimorphism in the clavicle and scapula as products of natural selection are predicated on the untested assumption that sex differences do not scale with body size. This study tests this assumption by comparing various measurements of the pectoral girdle, the pelvic girdle, and six pectoral-pelvic indices of black and white South Africans of known sex and height to test whether the sexes and ancestral groups will differ in these values after adjusting for differences in body size. Comparisons of ancestral groups reveal that white South Africans have larger pectoral and pelvic dimensions than black South Africans, but that blacks have larger index values than whites. Regardless of differences in ancestry and body size, males have significantly broader pectoral regions as indicated by comparisons of both individual pectoral measurements and pectoral-pelvic indices. This pattern of sexual dimorphism is reversed in the pelvic region where females have larger skeletal elements. In addition to finding both absolute and relative differences in mean values for the pectoral and pelvic skeleton, females and males and blacks and whites differ in the scaling relationship of these traits, suggesting different allometric trajectories for these bones that may be explained by their distinct evolutionary functions, their adaptations to specific environments, or by changes in lengths due to age. These results suggest that sexual dimorphism in the pectoral region is not a product of scaling and that differences in this region reflect adaptive forces acting in unique ways on each sex, consistent with the assumptions of earlier evolutionary explanations.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"74 1","pages":"1-15"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2023-04-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9690543","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lucie Biehler-Gomez, Mirko Mattia, Elisabetta Piccolo, Emanuela Maderna, Anna Maria Fedeli, Carmelo Messina, Fabrizio Slavazzi, Cristina Cattaneo
{"title":"Physical disability in Late Antiquity Milan: slipped capital femoral epiphysis with severe secondary joint disease in the Basilica of San Dionigi.","authors":"Lucie Biehler-Gomez, Mirko Mattia, Elisabetta Piccolo, Emanuela Maderna, Anna Maria Fedeli, Carmelo Messina, Fabrizio Slavazzi, Cristina Cattaneo","doi":"10.1127/homo/2022/1553","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2022/1553","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The paper presents the skeletal remains of an adult male of 30-40 years with bone lesions and deformity on the left hip, recovered during the archaeological excavation below the former Basilica of San Dionigi, dated to Late Antiquity (3<sup>rd</sup> - 5<sup>th</sup> century AD) Milan. Biological profile and paleopathological analysis were performed following standard references and the bones underwent radiological examination. Differential diagnosis included congenital anomaly, active rickets, infectious diseases, femoral neck trauma, Legg-Carvé-Perthes disease, Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis (SFCE), osteogenesis imperfecta and osteoporosis. While the lesions were highly consistent with Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, they were typical of SFCE, complicated by an avascular necrosis and secondary osteoarthrosis. The alteration of the femoral head led to a 7.8% leg-length discrepancy, causing gait alteration with partial compensation though increased muscular activity on the right leg, reduced mobility of the joint and potentially hip pain, difficulty in walking and running and even limping. This paper explores a case of physical disability from the Roman era found near a Christian place of worship and represents a rare case of SFCE in the paleopathological record.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"73 1","pages":"61-67"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33499123","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Diet-related dental wear in archaeological human populations of Chalcolithic and Bronze Age from North-Eastern Romania.","authors":"Ozana-Maria Petraru, Luminița Bejenaru, Mariana Popovici","doi":"10.1127/homo/2022/1534","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2022/1534","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Dental macrowear is the non-pathological loss of hard tissues on the occlusal surface of the teeth. In archaeological contexts, the loss of tooth tissues is often correlated with lifestyles, habits, and with the physical properties of the consumed food - including preparation techniques. We report the first semiquantitative and quantitative assessment on dentine exposure of permanent second molars (M2) using the scale scoring technique, image analysis, and regression analysis on human teeth from Chalcolithic and Bronze Age archaeological populations discovered in North-Eastern Romania. We show an increase of dentine exposure percent (PDE) with the age-ranges, but no evidence of wear by sex were observed. In the linear regression analysis, the age and the dentine exposure percent, as variables, were correlated in 31% of the mandibular M2 molars and 49% in the maxillary ones (<i>p</i> < 0.001). Moreover, the multiple regression analysis involving the dentine exposure and the three variables that could influence the dental wear (i.e., age, occlusal area, and period) revealed no differences in dental wear between Chalcolithic and Bronze Age, as well as between different cultures of Bronze Age (i.e., Monteoru Culture and Noua Culture). Therefore, apart from age, occlusal area, and period, there may be other factors including diet and food-processing techniques that could be also considered when discussing the loss of tooth tissues in archaeological populations, especially farmers.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":" ","pages":"77-92"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40457160","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sexing the sternal rib end in modern Greeks: A virtual osteometric approach using high-resolution 3D surface models.","authors":"Ioanna Karagiorgou, Ioanna Anastopoulou, Fotios Alexandros Karakostis, Elena Kranioti, Konstantinos Moraitis","doi":"10.1127/homo/2022/1499","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2022/1499","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sex determination is one of the first biological attribute to be assessed when unidentified remains surface. In material of forensic interest, being able to use every skeletal element available for identification purposes is of paramount importance. The osteometric method from the sternal rib end has been found to generate accurate sex estimates, but as various studies have proved, all osteometric methods should be population-specific, as one equation does not fit all. The aim of this study is to assess sexual dimorphism in a contemporary Greek population sample of 68 males and 43 females, with the use of discriminant function analysis. The superior-inferior height (SIH) and anterior-posterior breadth (APB) from the third to fifth sternal rib ends of both sides were taken from 3D models created with the use of a hand-held 3D scanner. The results demonstrated that SIH is more sexually dimorphic than APB (alpha value of .05) while the application of İşcan's (1985) formula on the contemporary Greek sample, provided results of low accuracy, ranging from 48.6-52.4%. The cross-validated discriminant functions equations for the current sample, produced results ranging between 74.0-82.9% indicating that population-specific formulas produce results of higher accuracy, that are vital in cases of forensic interest.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":" ","pages":"69-76"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40457162","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Teeth macroabrasion for determination of dental age and diet in the Illyrian population from the Kopila necropolis on the Island of Korčula, Croatia.","authors":"Marina Marić, Dinko Radić, Jelena Dumančić, Marin Vodanović, Minja Birimiša, Davorka Radovčić, Hrvoje Brkić","doi":"10.1127/homo/2022/1645","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2022/1645","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This paper presents the changes caused by macroabrasion of teeth on skeletal remains found in tomb No 4 in the west necropolis of the archeological site Kopila near Blato on the island of Korčula. The site archeologically dates back to the Late Iron Age, when the island was inhabited by the Illyrians. The aim of this study was to assess the dental age of the buried individuals at death and determine the type of their diet, which could give us a preliminary insight into the socio-economic standard of the inhabitants of the settlement. The analyzed sample is part of the collection of excavated skeletal remains kept in the Vela Luka Cultural Center on the island of Korčula. 284 permanent teeth, 19 fragments of the maxilla and 20 fragments of the mandible were found in the tomb, which were classified into 32 individuals and by sex. Teeth were analyzed by metric and non-metric methods of determining dental status in order to assess the dental age at the time of death and the diet of the inhabitants. The dental age of individuals was determined by the Lovejoy method and the degree of tooth wear by the Smith-Knight method. The analysis of the stable isotope <sup>14</sup>C determined the exact time of death of the analyzed individuals. The tooth wear changes were very pronounced and present on 92.9% of teeth, equally on incisors and molars (<i>p</i> = 0.236). There is no significant gender difference (<i>p</i> > 0.05 for all teeth and jaw parts). There was no difference in the degree of tooth wear of the teeth of the mandible and maxilla (t = -0.266, <i>p</i> = 0.791), nor in the degree of tooth wear of the teeth of the maxilla right and left (t = -0.392, <i>p</i> = 0.702) or in the degree of tooth wear of the teeth of the mandible right and left (t = -0.889, <i>p</i> = 0.390). The average age of the analyzed population sample was 35.6 (±3.1) years. They were buried between 360-40 BC. Tooth wear changes observed on the analyzed teeth indicate a diet rich in hard, weakly cariogenic food with particles that were probably of inorganic origin, which caused an increased wear of tooth structures. The population was sedentary, agricultural type and the life expectancy was normal for the Late Iron Age. Besides, their socio-economic status was good. The age at the time of their death was between 30 and 40 years. Further studies should include more accurate and standardized methods for assessing the condition.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"73 1","pages":"49-60"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33499124","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Prevalence of taurodontism: meta-analysis in recent humans and evolutionary perspectives.","authors":"Pierre-Hadrien Decaup, Christine Couture, Mathieu Colin, Elsa Garot","doi":"10.1127/homo/2021/1447","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2021/1447","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Taurodontism is a continuous anatomical variation of permanent and primary posterior teeth represented by an enlargement of the pulp cavity. A high prevalence of the trait is reported in <i>Homo neanderthalensis</i> remains. Exploring and refining epidemiology of taurodontism in actual populations could strengthen the hypothesis of a selective advantage for a high attrition diet (as heavy tooth wear in <i>Homo sapiens</i> evolution changed little until recently) or favour pleiotropic or genetic drift effects to explain the high frequency of the trait in Neandertal remains. Prevalence ranges between 0.1% and 48% in the literature. The aim of the present study is to assess the prevalence of taurodontism in recent populations by means of meta-analysis, that is, is the prevalence of taurodontism lower or higher in modern human living populations, where the selective advantages of high attrition diet are still expected? From 90 potentially eligible studies, 15 were included in the meta-analysis. Only cross-sectional studies were reported, and 14,771 participants were included. The meta-analyses were performed with a random model, calculating a weighted-mean prevalence of 11.8%. Gender was found to be unrelated to the prevalence of taurodontism (OR = 0.84 (95% CI 0.67-1.05), <i>p</i> > 0.05). Taurodontism occurs in approximately 11.8% of the living population. This result questions the status of taurodontism as a \"typical trait\" in <i>Homo neanderthalensis</i> and allows a possible common evolutionary mechanism in <i>Homo sapiens</i> and <i>Homo neanderthalensis</i> for the trait. Further studies should include more accurate and standardized methods to assess the condition.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"73 1","pages":"1-11"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39807202","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The link between prenatal stress and indicators of fatness in children - literature review.","authors":"Ewa Bryl, Tomasz Hanć","doi":"10.1127/homo/2022/1493","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2022/1493","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p><i>Background:</i> There are indications that the occurrence of metabolic diseases in children may be conditioned by factors experienced already in the utero. <i>Aim of the study:</i> The aim of this systematic review was to analyze the studies that examined the effects of stress experienced by a pregnant woman on the child's adiposity rates in postnatal life. <i>Methods:</i> The review includes 20 articles published before March 2020 in Scopus and Medline databases with the use of following keyword combinations: /maternal or mother/, /prenatal or pregnant/, /stress or distress/ and /BMI, body mass index or overweight or obesity or body composition/. <i>Results:</i> The results of the research were inconsistent. Nevertheless, most articles confirmed the positive association of prenatal stress with fatness indicators in children. The review raised a question of the role of the methods applied for stress measurement (objective vs. subjective indicators) and adiposity assessment, as well as the time of prenatal exposition to stress. <i>Conclusion:</i> Most studies have proved that prenatal stress is related to the children adiposity in postnatal life.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"73 1","pages":"13-32"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39944092","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Tarsal metric trends over the Medieval-Post-Medieval transition in London.","authors":"Malorie E Albee","doi":"10.1127/homo/2022/1551","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2022/1551","url":null,"abstract":"The Medieval-Post-Medieval transition in England was an important shift in the human biocultural environment. With urbanization and industrialization came resultant changes in living and working conditions and subsequent effects on the skeleton. In addition, the Post-Medieval period ushered in changes in footwear and activity patterns, with potential consequences on foot bone morphology. The objective of this study is to compare calcaneal and talar lengths between the Medieval and Post-Medieval periods to determine whether there are quantifiable differences that correspond to shifting footwear and activity patterns. T-tests and ANCOVAs (and their non-parametric equivalents) were used to compare calcaneal and talar lengths of 1086 adults from 14 London cemeteries (Medieval n = 8, Post-Medieval n = 6), available in the Oracle Wellcome Osteological Research Database (WORD) curated by the Museum of London. Males and females were also analyzed separately. In the total sample, tali and calcanei are longer in the Medieval period (p < 0.001 for both tarsals). When males and females are analyzed separately, male talar length is greater in the Post-Medieval period (p < 0.001). The difference in talar length between periods is not statistically significant for females (p = 0.093). These differences in talar and calcaneal lengths between periods likely reflect differences in footwear between the Medieval and Post-Medieval periods. The magnitude of these differences varies according to sex, indicating that the change in footwear had differential impacts on men and women. Together, these results suggest that Medieval and Post-Medieval tarsals physically incorporated their respective cultural environments and gendered differences in cultural practice, particularly related to the footwear characteristic of each period.","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"229 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-03-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75019298","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A new methodology to estimate flat foot in skeletal remains - the example of Mediterranean collections.","authors":"Eduardo Saldías, Assumpció Malgosa, Xavier Jordana, Cristina Martínez-Labarga, Alfredo Coppa, Mauro Rubini, Bernardo Vila, Albert Isidro","doi":"10.1127/homo/2021/1320","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2021/1320","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Flat feet <i>(pes planus)</i> are considered a postural defect caused by the collapse of the longitudinal arch, producing complete or near-complete contact of the sole of the foot with the ground. <i>Pes planus</i> has been well-studied in clinical literature and paleoanthropology but has not been approached extensively in bioarchaeology. The main difficulty is related to the diagnosis of this pathology based exclusively on bone remains. In this work, we propose a metric and morphological method to discriminate flat foot in dry bones. Thus, we studied 390 pairs of adult feet in a fair state of preservation from archaeological contexts from Spain, Italy, and Oman. Morphological variability, angles, and dimensions of both the normal bones and the bones displaying flat foot characteristics were analyzed. We found a correlation between the presence of flat foot and some morphological and metric features, mainly in the subtalar and Chopart joints. These results are expressed through a combination of morphological and metric variables, which are useful to discriminate between these two groups. No markedly significant differences of flat foot frequencies between the Spanish and Italian series were found across centuries. However, we noticed a notable increase of the prevalence of flat foot in the contemporary collection, possibly due to the consequences of a rise in life expectancy and modern styles of footwear.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"72 4","pages":"281-292"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2021-12-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39211503","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Qafzeh 9 Early Modern Human from Southwest Asia: age at death and sex estimation re-assessed.","authors":"Dany Coutinho-Nogueira, Hélène Coqueugniot, Anne-Marie Tillier","doi":"10.1127/homo/2021/1513","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1127/homo/2021/1513","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Qafzeh 9 is an almost complete skeleton commonly employed as representative of the population of the eponymous site. However, its biological profile is still largely based on the age at death and sex estimation methods in use at the time of its discovery. Moreover, post-mortem damage to the skeleton has made difficult the observation of some morphoscopic features, particularly pelvic ones currently used in sex estimation. Here, we apply recent methods and paleoimaging to re-evaluate the biological profile of Qafzeh 9, taking into account post-mortem damage. The results suggest a young age at death, indicating that Qafzeh 9 died before reaching complete dental and bone maturity; they also support a male sex assignment.</p>","PeriodicalId":46714,"journal":{"name":"Homo-Journal of Comparative Human Biology","volume":"72 4","pages":"293-305"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2021-12-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39422031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}