70 results on '"Christoph P. E. Zollikofer"'
Search Results
2. Individual-based modelling of population growth and diffusion in discrete time.
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Natalie Tkachenko, John D Weissmann, Wesley P Petersen, George Lake, Christoph P E Zollikofer, and Simone Callegari
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Medicine ,Science - Abstract
Individual-based models (IBMs) of human populations capture spatio-temporal dynamics using rules that govern the birth, behavior, and death of individuals. We explore a stochastic IBM of logistic growth-diffusion with constant time steps and independent, simultaneous actions of birth, death, and movement that approaches the Fisher-Kolmogorov model in the continuum limit. This model is well-suited to parallelization on high-performance computers. We explore its emergent properties with analytical approximations and numerical simulations in parameter ranges relevant to human population dynamics and ecology, and reproduce continuous-time results in the limit of small transition probabilities. Our model prediction indicates that the population density and dispersal speed are affected by fluctuations in the number of individuals. The discrete-time model displays novel properties owing to the binomial character of the fluctuations: in certain regimes of the growth model, a decrease in time step size drives the system away from the continuum limit. These effects are especially important at local population sizes of
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- 2017
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3. Human shoulder development is adapted to obstetrical constraints
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Mikaze Kawada, Masato Nakatsukasa, Takeshi Nishimura, Akihisa Kaneko, Naomichi Ogihara, Shigehito Yamada, Walter Coudyzer, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Marcia S. Ponce de León, and Naoki Morimoto
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musculoskeletal diseases ,Risk ,Shoulder ,Multidisciplinary ,Pan troglodytes ,OBSTETRICAL DILEMMA ,Parturition ,Macaca fuscata ,Fetal Development ,Pregnancy ,ONTOGENETIC ALLOMETRY ,Animals ,Humans ,Female ,Shoulder Dystocia ,CHILDBIRTH ,human activities - Abstract
In humans, obstetrical difficulties arise from the large head and broad shoulders of the neonate relative to the maternal birth canal. Various characteristics of human cranial development, such as the relatively small head of neonates compared with adults and the delayed fusion of the metopic suture, have been suggested to reflect developmental adaptations to obstetrical constraints. On the other hand, it remains unknown whether the shoulders of humans also exhibit developmental features reflecting obstetrical adaptation. Here we address this question by tracking the development of shoulder width from fetal to adult stages in humans, chimpanzees, and Japanese macaques. Compared with nonhuman primates, shoulder development in humans follows a different trajectory, exhibiting reduced growth relative to trunk length before birth and enhanced growth after birth. This indicates that the perinatal developmental characteristics of the shoulders likely evolved to ease obstetrical difficulties such as shoulder dystocia in humans., ヒトは小さく生まれて大きく育つ --その秘密は鎖骨にあり--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2022-04-13.
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- 2022
4. Virtual reconstruction and re-evaluation of the Neanderthal frontal bone from Carigüela Cave (Granada, Spain)
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Juan Manuel Jiménez-Arenas, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Isidro Toro-Moyano, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, and Thibault Bienvenu
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010506 paleontology ,Archeology ,Global and Planetary Change ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Neanderthal ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,biology ,Range (biology) ,Geology ,01 natural sciences ,Paleontology ,Frontal bone ,Cave ,Frontal lobe ,Wide nasal bridge ,biology.animal ,Virtual reconstruction ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences - Abstract
During several consecutive excavations from the 1950s to the 1990s the cave of Cariguela de Pinar (Granada, Baetic System, Southeast of the Iberian Peninsula) has yielded an important sample of Neanderthal fossils. Among these finds is a fragmentary frontal bone of an immature individual (CE-05877), which was described earlier. Here we present a new virtual reconstruction and a quantitative analysis of its three-dimensional morphology. Geometric morphometric analyses show that the Cariguela frontal falls within the range of shape variation of 6–7 year-old Neanderthals, and clearly outside the range of variation exhibited by same-age modern humans. Compared to other Neanderthals of similar age, Cariguela has a relatively wide nasal bridge and low frontal profile. Re-analysis of the fossil's endocranial imprints in the light of cerebral sulcal variability in modern humans indicates that only a reduced number of brain sulci can be identified reliably. Overall, the Cariguela fossil provides further support for the view that Neanderthals and modern humans exhibit distinct frontal bone morphologies, while their cerebral frontal lobes exhibit largely similar but highly variable sulcal patterns.
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- 2019
5. Phenotypic variation in infants, not adults, reflects genotypic variation among chimpanzees and bonobos.
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Naoki Morimoto, Marcia S Ponce de León, and Christoph P E Zollikofer
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Medicine ,Science - Abstract
Studies comparing phenotypic variation with neutral genetic variation in modern humans have shown that genetic drift is a main factor of evolutionary diversification among populations. The genetic population history of our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees and bonobos, is now equally well documented, but phenotypic variation among these taxa remains relatively unexplored, and phenotype-genotype correlations are not yet documented. Also, while the adult phenotype is typically used as a reference, it remains to be investigated how phenotype-genotye correlations change during development. Here we address these questions by analyzing phenotypic evolutionary and developmental diversification in the species and subspecies of the genus Pan. Our analyses focus on the morphology of the femoral diaphysis, which represents a functionally constrained element of the locomotor system. Results show that during infancy phenotypic distances between taxa are largely congruent with non-coding (neutral) genotypic distances. Later during ontogeny, however, phenotypic distances deviate from genotypic distances, mainly as an effect of heterochronic shifts between taxon-specific developmental programs. Early phenotypic differences between Pan taxa are thus likely brought about by genetic drift while late differences reflect taxon-specific adaptations.
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- 2014
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6. Early development of the Neanderthal ribcage reveals a different body shape at birth compared to modern humans
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Daniel, García-Martínez, Markus, Bastir, Asier, Gómez-Olivencia, Bruno, Maureille, Liubov, Golovanova, Vladimir, Doronichev, Takeru, Akazawa, Osamu, Kondo, Hajime, Ishida, Dominic, Gascho, Christoph P E, Zollikofer, Marcia Ponce, de León, and Yann, Heuzé
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Evolutionary Biology ,hemic and lymphatic diseases ,Anthropology ,SciAdv r-articles ,Research Articles ,Research Article - Abstract
Neanderthal infants had a short and deep ribcage that was genetically determined and able to sustain the high metabolism of their massive bodies., Ontogenetic studies provide clues for understanding important paleobiological aspects of extinct species. When compared to that of modern humans, the adult Neanderthal thorax was shorter, deeper, and wider. This is related to the wide Neanderthal body and is consistent with their hypothetical large requirements for energy and oxygen. Whether these differences were already established at birth or appeared later during development is unknown. To delve into this question, we use virtual reconstruction tools and geometric morphometrics to recover the 3D morphology of the ribcages of four Neanderthal individuals from birth to around 3 years old: Mezmaiskaya 1, Le Moustier 2, Dederiyeh 1, and Roc de Marsal. Our results indicate that the comparatively deep and short ribcage of the Neanderthals was already present at birth, as were other skeletal species-specific traits. This morphology possibly represents the plesiomorphic condition shared with Homo erectus, and it is likely linked to large energetic requirements.
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- 2020
7. Shared human-chimpanzee pattern of perinatal femoral shaft morphology and its implications for the evolution of hominin locomotor adaptations.
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Naoki Morimoto, Christoph P E Zollikofer, and Marcia S Ponce de León
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Medicine ,Science - Abstract
BackgroundAcquisition of bipedality is a hallmark of human evolution. How bipedality evolved from great ape-like locomotor behaviors, however, is still highly debated. This is mainly because it is difficult to infer locomotor function, and even more so locomotor kinematics, from fossil hominin long bones. Structure-function relationships are complex, as long bone morphology reflects phyletic history, developmental programs, and loading history during an individual's lifetime. Here we discriminate between these factors by investigating the morphology of long bones in fetal and neonate great apes and humans, before the onset of locomotion.Methodology/principal findingsComparative morphometric analysis of the femoral diaphysis indicates that its morphology reflects phyletic relationships between hominoid taxa to a greater extent than taxon-specific locomotor adaptations. Diaphyseal morphology in humans and chimpanzees exhibits several shared-derived features, despite substantial differences in locomotor adaptations. Orangutan and gorilla morphologies are largely similar, and likely represent the primitive hominoid state.Conclusions/significanceThese findings are compatible with two possible evolutionary scenarios. Diaphyseal morphology may reflect retained adaptive traits of ancestral taxa, hence human-chimpanzee shared-derived features may be indicative of the locomotor behavior of our last common ancestor. Alternatively, diaphyseal morphology might reflect evolution by genetic drift (neutral evolution) rather than selection, and might thus be more informative about phyletic relationships between taxa than about locomotor adaptations. Both scenarios are consistent with the hypothesis that knuckle-walking in chimpanzees and gorillas resulted from convergent evolution, and that the evolution of human bipedality is unrelated to extant great ape locomotor specializations.
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- 2012
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8. Human bony labyrinth is an indicator of population history and dispersal from Africa
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Marco Milella, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, John David Weissmann, Toetik Koesbardiati, Gen Suwa, Anna-Sapfo Malaspinas, Carlos S Reyna-Blanco, Tim D. White, Osamu Kondo, Marcia S. Ponce de León, University of Zurich, and White, Tim D
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,0301 basic medicine ,History ,Corrections ,Imaging ,Human Genome Project ,Stabilizing selection ,Tomography ,History, Ancient ,Comparative ,bony labyrinth ,human dispersals ,morphometrics ,stabilizing selection ,Pediatric ,education.field_of_study ,Multidisciplinary ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Ear ,Biological Evolution ,X-Ray Computed ,Anatomy, Comparative ,Phenotype ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Anatomy ,Primates ,Cephalometry ,Human Migration ,Population ,Biology ,Ancient ,Bony labyrinth ,03 medical and health sciences ,Imaging, Three-Dimensional ,Genetics ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Inner ear ,education ,Local adaptation ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Phenotypic plasticity ,Inner ,030104 developmental biology ,Ancient DNA ,Evolutionary biology ,Ear, Inner ,Three-Dimensional ,Africa ,Biological dispersal ,Tomography, X-Ray Computed - Abstract
The dispersal of modern humans from Africa is now well documented with genetic data that track population history, as well as gene flow between populations. Phenetic skeletal data, such as cranial and pelvic morphologies, also exhibit a dispersal-from-Africa signal, which, however, tends to be blurred by the effects of local adaptation and in vivo phenotypic plasticity, and that is often deteriorated by postmortem damage to skeletal remains. These complexities raise the question of which skeletal structures most effectively track neutral population history. The cavity system of the inner ear (the so-called bony labyrinth) is a good candidate structure for such analyses. It is already fully formed by birth, which minimizes postnatal phenotypic plasticity, and it is generally well preserved in archaeological samples. Here we use morphometric data of the bony labyrinth to show that it is a surprisingly good marker of the global dispersal of modern humans from Africa. Labyrinthine morphology tracks genetic distances and geography in accordance with an isolation-by-distance model with dispersal from Africa. Our data further indicate that the neutral-like pattern of variation is compatible with stabilizing selection on labyrinth morphology. Given the increasingly important role of the petrous bone for ancient DNA recovery from archaeological specimens, we encourage researchers to acquire 3D morphological data of the inner ear structures before any invasive sampling. Such data will constitute an important archive of phenotypic variation in present and past populations, and will permit individual-based genotype-phenotype comparisons.
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- 2018
9. Identification of in vivo Sulci on the External Surface of Eight Adult Chimpanzee Brains: Implications for Interpreting Early Hominin Endocasts
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José Luis Alatorre Warren, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Katerina Semendeferi, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, William D. Hopkins, and Dean Falk
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Male ,0301 basic medicine ,Pan troglodytes ,Australopithecine ,Biology ,03 medical and health sciences ,Behavioral Neuroscience ,Imaging, Three-Dimensional ,0302 clinical medicine ,Species Specificity ,Developmental Neuroscience ,medicine ,Animals ,Arcuate fasciculus ,Broca's area ,Lunate sulcus ,Cerebral Cortex ,Fossil Record ,Anatomy ,biology.organism_classification ,Biological Evolution ,Magnetic Resonance Imaging ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Cytoarchitecture ,Female ,Identification (biology) ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery ,Endocast - Abstract
The only direct source of information about hominin brain evolution comes from the fossil record of endocranial casts (endocasts) that reproduce details of the external morphology of the brain imprinted on the walls of the braincase during life. Surface traces of sulci that separate the brain’s convolutions (gyri) are reproduced sporadically on early hominin endocasts. Paleoneurologists rely heavily on published descriptions of sulci on brains of great apes, especially chimpanzees (humans’ phylogenetically closest living relatives), to guide their identifications of sulci on ape-sized hominin endocasts. However, the few comprehensive descriptions of cortical sulci published for chimpanzees usually relied on post mortem brains, (now) antiquated terminology for some sulci, and photographs or line drawings from limited perspectives (typically right or left lateral views). The shortage of adequate descriptions of chimpanzee sulcal patterns partly explains why the identities of certain sulci on australopithecine endocasts (e.g., the inferior frontal and middle frontal sulci) have been controversial. Here, we provide images of lateral and dorsal surfaces of 16 hemispheres from 4 male and 4 female adult chimpanzee brains that were obtained using in vivo magnetic resonance imaging. Sulci on the exposed surfaces of the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes are identified on the images based on their locations, positions relative to each other, and homologies known from comparative studies of cytoarchitecture in primates. These images and sulcal identifications exceed the quantity and quality of previously published illustrations of chimpanzee brains with comprehensively labeled sulci and, thus, provide a larger number of examples for identifying sulci on hominin endocasts than hitherto available. Our findings, even in a small sample like the present one, overturn published claims that australopithecine endocasts reproduce derived configurations of certain sulci in their frontal lobes that never appear on chimpanzee brains. The sulcal patterns in these new images also suggest that changes in two gyri that bridge between the parietal and occipital lobes may have contributed to cortical reorganization in early hominins. It is our hope that these labeled in vivo chimpanzee brains will assist future researchers in identifying sulci on hominin endocasts, which is a necessary first step in the quest to learn how and when the external morphology of the human cerebral cortex evolved from apelike precursors.
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- 2018
10. Development of Pelvic Sexual Dimorphism in Hylobatids: Testing the Obstetric Constraints Hypothesis
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, and Marc Scherrer
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0106 biological sciences ,Morphometrics ,060101 anthropology ,Histology ,Pelvic inlet ,Physiology ,06 humanities and the arts ,Body size ,Biology ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Sexual dimorphism ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,medicine ,0601 history and archaeology ,Anatomy ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Pelvis ,Biotechnology - Abstract
Pelvic sexual dimorphism in primates is typically seen as the result of female-specific adaptations to obstetric constraints, which arise from the tight fit between the neonate head and the maternal pelvis. However, it remains debated to which extent pelvic dimorphism is a correlate of obstetric constraints, of body size dimorphism, and/or of other factors. Also, little is known on how pelvic dimorphism develops. Here we use methods of biomedical imaging and geometric morphometrics to address these questions in two hylobatid species, Hylobates lar and Symphalangus syndactylus. These species differ markedly in body size, but within each species, there is only little body size dimorphism. Results show that the neonates of H. lar are large compared to the maternal pelvis, resulting in high cephalopelvic proportions and substantial obstetric constraints. Pelvic sexual dimorphism is moderate but significant: During puberty, females develop a more capacious pelvic inlet than males, while overall pelvic size is similar in both sexes. S. syndactylus has substantially larger pelves than H. lar, but neonates are similar in size to those of H. lar. Cephalopelvic proportions are thus low, and there are no obstetric constraints. Pelvic sexual dimorphism is absent. Overall, these data indicate that pelvic sexual dimorphism in hylobatids reflects obstetric constraints. Anat Rec, 300:859-869, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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- 2017
11. Development of Modular Organization in the Chimpanzee Pelvis
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Alik Huseynov, Marcia S. Ponce de León, and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
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0106 biological sciences ,0301 basic medicine ,Morphometrics ,Histology ,Natural selection ,Shape change ,business.industry ,Ontogeny ,Modularity (biology) ,Anatomy ,Biology ,Modular design ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Evolvability ,03 medical and health sciences ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Evolutionary biology ,medicine ,business ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Pelvis ,Biotechnology - Abstract
The bony pelvis of primates is a composite structure serving a variety of functions, and exhibiting a complex pattern of modularity and integration. Still little is known, however, about how patterns of modularity and integration arise, and how they change throughout ontogeny. Here we study the ontogeny of modularity and integration in developmental and functional units of the pelvis of our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees. We use methods of biomedical imaging and geometric morphometrics to quantify pelvic shape change from late fetal stages to adulthood, and to track changes in patterns of covariation within and among pelvic regions. Our results show that both developmental and functional units of the pelvis exhibit significant levels of modularity throughout ontogeny. Modularity of developmental units (ilium, ischium, and pubis) decreases with increasing age, whereas modularity of functional units tends to increase. We suggest that the decreasing modularity and increasing integration of developmental units reflects their gradual fusion. In contrast, increasing modularity of functional pelvic units likely reflects changing functional demands during an individual's lifetime. Overall, ontogenetic changes in patterns of modularity and integration imply that natural selection could act differently on each module, either developmental or functional, at different stages of ontogeny. This further implies that adult patterns of covariation in the pelvis provide only limited information about its evolvability. Anat Rec, 300:675-686, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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- 2017
12. Evidence for independent brain and neurocranial reorganization during hominin evolution
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William D. Hopkins, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, and José Luis Alatorre Warren
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Pan troglodytes ,Brain reorganization ,Computed tomography ,Biology ,morphological integration ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,human evolution ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,neurocranium ,Bipedalism ,Anterior displacement ,030304 developmental biology ,0303 health sciences ,Cerebellar fossa ,Multidisciplinary ,Gorilla gorilla ,medicine.diagnostic_test ,Skull ,Encephalization ,Brain ,Biological Sciences ,Biological Evolution ,Magnetic Resonance Imaging ,brain reorganization ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Human evolution ,Neurocranium ,Evolutionary biology ,Anthropology ,biomedical imaging ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery - Abstract
Significance Human brains differ substantially from those of great apes, and equally important differences exist between their braincases. However, it remains unclear to which extent evolutionary changes in brain structure are related to changes in braincase structure. To study this question, we use combined computed tomography (CT) and MRI head data of humans and chimpanzees and quantify the spatial correlations between brain sulci and cranial sutures. We show that the human brain–braincase relationships are unique compared to chimpanzees and other great apes and that structural rearrangements in the brain and in the braincase emerged independently during human evolution. These data serve as an important frame of reference to identify and quantify evolutionary changes in brain and braincase structures in fossil hominin endocasts., Throughout hominin evolution, the brain of our ancestors underwent a 3-fold increase in size and substantial structural reorganization. However, inferring brain reorganization from fossil hominin neurocrania (=braincases) remains a challenge, above all because comparative data relating brain to neurocranial structures in living humans and great apes are still scarce. Here we use MRI and same-subject spatially aligned computed tomography (CT) and MRI data of humans and chimpanzees to quantify the spatial relationships between these structures, both within and across species. Results indicate that evolutionary changes in brain and neurocranial structures are largely independent of each other. The brains of humans compared to chimpanzees exhibit a characteristic posterior shift of the inferior pre- and postcentral gyri, indicative of reorganization of the frontal opercular region. Changes in human neurocranial structure do not reflect cortical reorganization. Rather, they reflect constraints related to increased encephalization and obligate bipedalism, resulting in relative enlargement of the parietal bones and anterior displacement of the cerebellar fossa. This implies that the relative position and size of neurocranial bones, as well as overall endocranial shape (e.g., globularity), should not be used to make inferences about evolutionary changes in the relative size or reorganization of adjacent cortical regions of fossil hominins.
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- 2019
13. Comparative analysis of dentognathic pathologies in the Dmanisi mandibles
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Paul Tafforeau, Marcia S. Ponce de León, David Lordkipanidze, Ann Margvelashvili, and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
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education.field_of_study ,060101 anthropology ,Fossil Record ,Population ,030206 dentistry ,06 humanities and the arts ,Biology ,medicine.disease ,Hypercementosis ,Phys anthropol ,03 medical and health sciences ,Young age ,0302 clinical medicine ,Evolutionary biology ,Anthropology ,medicine ,0601 history and archaeology ,Anatomy ,education ,Demography - Abstract
Objectives Due to the scarcity of the fossil record, in vivo changes in the dentognathic system of early Homo are typically documented at the level of individual fossil specimens, and it remains difficult to draw population-level inferences about dietary habits, diet-related activities and lifestyle from individual patterns of dentognathic alterations. The Plio-Pleistocene hominin sample from Dmanisi (Georgia), dated to 1.77 million years ago, offers a unique opportunity to study in vivo changes in the dentognathic system of individuals belonging to a single paleodeme of early Homo. Materials and Methods We analyze dentognathic pathologies in the Dmanisi sample, and in comparative samples of modern Australian and Greenlander hunter-gatherer populations, applying clinical protocols of dentognathic diagnostics. Results The Dmanisi hominins exhibit a similarly wide diversity and similar incidence of dentognathic pathologies as the modern human hunter-gatherer population samples investigated here. Dmanisi differs from the modern population samples in several respects: At young age tooth wear is already advanced, and pathologies are more prevalent. At old age, hypercementosis is substantial. Conclusions Results indicate that dentognathic pathologies and disease trajectories are largely similar in early Homo and modern humans, but that the disease load was higher in early Homo, probably as an effect of higher overall stress on the dentognathic system. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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- 2016
14. Palynology and chronology of hyaena coprolites from the Piñar karstic Caves Las Ventanas and Carihuela, southern Spain
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M S Ponce de León, Louis Scott, Juan Ochando, Monika Knul, José S. Carrión, Isidro Toro-Moyano, John R. Stewart, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Joaquín Rodríguez-Vidal, Gabriela Amorós, M. Munuera, Juan Manuel Jiménez-Arenas, Santiago Fernández, University of Zurich, and Ochando, J
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,Pleistocene ,Evolution ,1904 Earth-Surface Processes ,Coprolite ,Oceanography ,law.invention ,Behavior and Systematics ,Cave ,law ,1910 Oceanography ,Glacial period ,Radiocarbon dating ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Holocene ,Earth-Surface Processes ,Palynology ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Ecology ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Palaeontology ,Paleontology ,Earth ,Archaeology ,1911 Paleontology ,1105 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Surface Processes ,Geology ,Chronology - Abstract
This paper presents pollen analyses and radiocarbon dating on Crocuta coprolites from Las Ventanas (LV) and Carihuela (Car) Caves in southern Spain (Granada), with the aim of reconstructing the environmental conditions of these hominin sites. The LV coprolites are radiocarbon dated from c. 37,890 to 6980 cal yr BP, and the Car coprolites from c. 31,063 to 7861 cal yr BP. Overall, the palaeoecological scenario inferred from both coprolite series display similar patterns, with Pinus, Poaceae, and Artemisia as dominant during the full Pleistocene, and an important contribution of Quercus in the most recently dated coprolite samples. While the palynology is consistent with results of former investigations on the past environments in the region as obtained from other deposits (peat bogs, cave infills), the Late Glacial and Holocene chronology of several coprolites in both sites is in conflict with the generally accepted timing of extinction of Crocuta in western Europe. A discussion on the taphonomical processes and potential sources of carbon contamination of the radiocarbon samples is provided. The correlation between pollen from coprolites and from sedimentary records, and the paucity of the fossil bone record suggests nevertheless, that a late survival of Crocuta in southern Spain should not be categorically discarded.
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- 2020
15. Reconstructing the Neanderthal brain using computational anatomy
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Osamu Kondo, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Kunihiro Hasegawa, Hiromasa Suzuki, Takeru Akazawa, Markus Bastir, Takanori Kochiyama, Chris Stringer, Norihiro Sadato, Hideki Amano, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Hiroki C. Tanabe, Naomichi Ogihara, University of Zurich, Ogihara, Naomichi, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan), Swiss National Science Foundation, and Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España)
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0301 basic medicine ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,Cerebellum ,Neanderthal ,Tomography Scanners, X-Ray Computed ,Biological anthropology ,Climate Change ,lcsh:Medicine ,Article ,Social Skills ,03 medical and health sciences ,Executive Function ,0302 clinical medicine ,Cognition ,Imaging, Three-Dimensional ,biology.animal ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,lcsh:Science ,Neanderthals ,Analysis of Variance ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,Working memory ,Cerebrum ,Fossils ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,lcsh:R ,Skull ,Cognitive flexibility ,Computational Biology ,Computational anatomy ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Memory, Short-Term ,Archaeology ,nervous system ,Homo sapiens ,Anthropology ,Linear Models ,lcsh:Q ,Neuroscience ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery ,Algorithms - Abstract
© The Author(s) 2018., The present study attempted to reconstruct 3D brain shape of Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens based on computational neuroanatomy. We found that early Homo sapiens had relatively larger cerebellar hemispheres but a smaller occipital region in the cerebrum than Neanderthals long before the time that Neanderthals disappeared. Further, using behavioural and structural imaging data of living humans, the abilities such as cognitive flexibility, attention, the language processing, episodic and working memory capacity were positively correlated with size-adjusted cerebellar volume. As the cerebellar hemispheres are structured as a large array of uniform neural modules, a larger cerebellum may possess a larger capacity for cognitive information processing. Such a neuroanatomical difference in the cerebellum may have caused important differences in cognitive and social abilities between the two species and might have contributed to the replacement of Neanderthals by early Homo sapiens., This study was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientifc Research on Innovative Areas “Replacement of Neanderthals by Modern Humans: Testing Evolutionary Models of Learning” from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to T.A. (#22101001), N.O. (#22101006), and H.C.T. (#22101007) respectively, and by Swiss NSF grant 31003A_135470 to C.P.E.Z., CGL-2015-63648-P MINECO, Spain to M.B., and Te Calleva Foundation and the Human Origins Research Fund to C.S.
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- 2018
16. Femoral ontogeny in humans and great apes and its implications for their last common ancestor
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Masato Nakatsukasa, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Naoki Morimoto, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, University of Zurich, and Morimoto, Naoki
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0301 basic medicine ,Most recent common ancestor ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,Hominidae ,Ontogeny ,Biological anthropology ,lcsh:Medicine ,Morphology (biology) ,Article ,03 medical and health sciences ,Phylogenetics ,Animals ,Humans ,0601 history and archaeology ,Femur ,lcsh:Science ,Phylogeny ,Ancestor ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Principal Component Analysis ,060101 anthropology ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,lcsh:R ,06 humanities and the arts ,biology.organism_classification ,030104 developmental biology ,Evolutionary biology ,Anthropology ,lcsh:Q ,Diaphyses ,Knuckle-walking - Abstract
Inferring the morphology of the last common ancestor of humans, chimpanzees and gorillas is a matter of ongoing debate. Recent findings and reassessment of fossil hominins leads to the hypothesis that the last common ancestor was not extant African ape-like. However, an African great-ape-like ancestor with knuckle walking features still remains plausible and the most parsimonious scenario. Here we address this question via an evolutionary developmental approach, comparing taxon-specific patterns of shape change of the femoral diaphysis from birth to adulthood in great apes, humans, and macaques. While chimpanzees and gorillas exhibit similar locomotor behaviors, our data provide evidence for distinct ontogenetic trajectories, indicating independent evolutionary histories of femoral ontogeny. Our data further indicate that anthropoid primates share a basic pattern of femoral diaphyseal ontogeny that reflects shared developmental constraints. Humans escaped from these constraints via differential elongation of femur., ヒトの祖先はチンパンジーやゴリラには似ていない --発生パターンの比較から二足歩行の起源に迫る--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2018-02-01.
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- 2018
17. Virtual reconstruction of the Neanderthal Amud 1 cranium
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Hideki Amano, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Hiromasa Suzuki, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Markus Bastir, Yusuke Morita, Osamu Kondo, Chris Stringer, Takeo Kikuchi, and Naomichi Ogihara
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Neanderthal ,biology ,medicine.diagnostic_test ,Bilateral symmetry ,Computed tomography ,Anatomy ,Paleontology ,Skull ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Anthropology ,biology.animal ,Maxilla ,Endocranium ,Virtual reconstruction ,medicine ,Endocast ,Geology - Abstract
OBJECTIVES: We describe a new computer reconstruction to obtain complete anatomical information of the ecto- and endocranium from the imperfectly preserved skull of the Neanderthal Amud 1. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were obtained from computed tomography scans of the fossil cranium. Adhesive and plaster were then virtually removed from the original specimen, and the fragments comprising the fossil cranium were separated. These fragments were then mathematically reassembled based on the smoothness of the joints. Both sides of the cranium were reassembled separately, and then aligned based on bilateral symmetry and the distance between the mandibular fossae obtained from the associated mandible. The position of the isolated maxilla was determined based on the position of the mandible that was anatomically articulated to the mandibular fossae. To restore missing basicranial and damaged endocranial regions, the cranium of Forbes' Quarry 1 was warped onto that of La Chapelle-aux-Saints 1, and the resulting composite Neanderthal cranium was then warped onto the reconstructed Amud 1 by an iterative thin-plate spline deformation. RESULTS: Comparison of the computer reconstruction with the original indicated that the newly reconstructed Amud 1 cranium was slightly shorter and wider in the anteroposterior and mediolateral directions, respectively, suggesting that it was relatively more brachycephalic. The endocranial volume was estimated to be 1,736 cm3 , which was quite similar to the original estimated value of 1,740 cm3 . DISCUSSION: This new computer reconstruction enables not only measurement of new cranial metrics, but also inclusion of the Amud 1 specimen in three-dimensional geometric morphometric analyses that were previously difficult due to its incompleteness.
- Published
- 2015
18. Let bone and muscle talk together: a study of real and virtual dissection and its implications for femoral musculoskeletal structure of chimpanzees
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Gen Suwa, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Masato Nakatsukasa, C. Owen Lovejoy, Naoki Morimoto, Takeshi Nishimura, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, University of Zurich, and Morimoto, Naoki
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,Histology ,Pan troglodytes ,Fossa ,Dissection (medical) ,Biology ,2722 Histology ,Tendons ,1309 Developmental Biology ,1307 Cell Biology ,1312 Molecular Biology ,medicine ,Muscle attachment ,Animals ,Musculoskeletal structure ,Muscle, Skeletal ,Musculoskeletal System ,Molecular Biology ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Osteology ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Femur Head ,Original Articles ,Cell Biology ,Anatomy ,Comparative anatomy ,2702 Anatomy ,biology.organism_classification ,medicine.disease ,Tendon ,1105 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Single muscle ,Buttocks ,Female ,Developmental Biology - Abstract
Proximal femoral morphology and associated musculature are of special relevance to the understanding of hominoid locomotor systems. Knowledge of bone-muscle correspondence in extant hominoids forms an important comparative basis for inferring structure-function relationships in fossil hominids. However, there is still a lack of consensus on the correspondence between muscle attachment sites and surface morphology of the proximal femoral diaphysis in chimpanzees. Two alternative observations have been proposed regarding the attachment site positions of gluteus maximus (GM) and vastus lateralis (VL) relative to two prominent surface features of the proximal femoral diaphysis, the lateral spiral pilaster and the inferolateral fossa. Here, we use a combination of virtual and physical dissection in an attempt to identify the exact correspondence between muscle attachment sites and osteological features in two specimens of Pan troglodytes verus. The results show that the insertion of the GM tendon is consistently inferolateral to the lateral spiral pilaster, and that a part of the inferolateral fossa consistently forms the attachment site of the VL muscular fibers. While overall musculoskeletal features are similar in the two specimens examined in this study, GM and VL exhibit different degrees of segregation at the level of the inferolateral fossa. One specimen exhibited tendinous GM fibers penetrating the posteromedial part of VL, with both GM and VL inserting at the inferolateral fossa. In the other specimen, GM and VL were separated by a lateral intermuscular septum, which inserted into the inferolateral fossa. Variation of proximal femoral muscle attachments in chimpanzees is thus greater than previously thought. Our results indicate that a conspicuous osteological feature such as the inferolateral fossa does not necessarily correspond to the attachment site of a single muscle, but could serve as a boundary region between two muscles. Caution is thus warranted when interpreting the surface topography of muscle attachment sites and inferring locomotor functions.
- Published
- 2015
19. Neomorphosis and heterochrony of skull shape in dog domestication
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Dominic Gascho, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Cornelia Mainini, Madeleine Geiger, Allowen Evin, Marcelo R. Sánchez-Villagra, Universität Zürich [Zürich] = University of Zurich (UZH), Department of Zoology [Cambridge], University of Cambridge [UK] (CAM), Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier (UMR ISEM), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut de recherche pour le développement [IRD] : UR226-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University of Liverpool, University of Zurich, Geiger, Madeleine, École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de recherche pour le développement [IRD] : UR226, and Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE)
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0106 biological sciences ,0301 basic medicine ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,Ontogeny ,lcsh:Medicine ,Morphology (biology) ,Breeding ,Biology ,10125 Paleontological Institute and Museum ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Article ,Domestication ,03 medical and health sciences ,Dogs ,medicine ,Animals ,Juvenile ,lcsh:Science ,Neoteny ,Phylogeny ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Wolves ,Multidisciplinary ,Crania ,[SDV.BID.EVO]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Biodiversity/Populations and Evolution [q-bio.PE] ,[SDV.BA]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology ,Skull ,lcsh:R ,biology.organism_classification ,Biological Evolution ,10218 Institute of Legal Medicine ,Phenotype ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,560 Fossils & prehistoric life ,Evolutionary biology ,lcsh:Q ,Heterochrony - Abstract
The overall similarity of the skull shape of some dog breeds with that of juvenile wolves begs the question if and how ontogenetic changes such as paedomorphosis (evolutionary juvenilisation) played a role in domestication. Here we test for changes in patterns of development and growth during dog domestication. We present the first geometric morphometric study using ontogenetic series of dog and wolf crania, and samples of dogs with relatively ancestral morphology and from different time periods. We show that patterns of juvenile-to-adult morphological change are largely similar in wolves and domestic dogs, but differ in two ways. First, dog skulls show unique (neomorphic) features already shortly after birth, and these features persist throughout postnatal ontogeny. Second, at any given age, juvenile dogs exhibit skull shapes that resemble those of consistently younger wolves, even in dog breeds that do not exhibit a ‘juvenilized’ morphology as adults. These patterns exemplify the complex nature of evolutionary changes during dog domestication: the cranial morphology of adult dogs cannot simply be explained as either neomorphic or paedomorphic. The key to our understanding of dog domestication may lie in a closer comparative examination of developmental phases.
- Published
- 2017
20. Effects of cranial integration on hominid endocranial shape
- Author
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Thibaut Bienvenu, Marcia S. Ponce de León, University of Zurich, and Zollikofer, Christoph P E
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Male ,0301 basic medicine ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,Histology ,Morphology (biology) ,Biology ,2722 Histology ,1309 Developmental Biology ,1307 Cell Biology ,03 medical and health sciences ,Globular shape ,medicine ,1312 Molecular Biology ,Animals ,Humans ,10. No inequality ,Molecular Biology ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Skull Base ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Skull ,Brain morphometry ,Age Factors ,Brain ,Hominidae ,Original Articles ,Cell Biology ,Anatomy ,2702 Anatomy ,Biological Evolution ,030104 developmental biology ,Brain growth ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,1105 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Viscerocranium ,Neurocranium ,Female ,Small face ,Endocast ,Developmental Biology - Abstract
Because brains do not fossilize, the internal surface of the braincase (endocast) serves as an important source of information about brain growth, development, and evolution. Recent studies of endocranial morphology and development in great apes, fossil hominins, and modern humans have revealed taxon-specific differences. However, it remains to be investigated to which extent differences in endocranial morphology reflect differences in actual brain morphology and development, and to which extent they reflect different interactions of the brain and its case with the cranial base and face. Here we address this question by analyzing the effects of cranial integration on endocranial morphology. We test the 'spatial packing' and 'facial orientation' hypotheses, which propose that size and orientation of the neurocranium relative to the viscerocranium influence endocranial shape. Results show that a substantial proportion of endocranial shape variation along and across ontogenetic trajectories is due to cranial integration. Specifically, the uniquely globular shape of the human endocast mainly results from the combination of an exceptionally large brain with a comparatively small face. Overall, thus, cranial integration has pervasive effects on endocranial morphology, and only a comparatively small proportion of inter- and intra-taxon variation can directly be associated with variation in brain morphology.
- Published
- 2017
21. A Stable Finite-Difference Scheme for Population Growth and Diffusion on a Map
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Simone Callegari, John David Weissmann, George Lake, Natalie Tkachenko, Wesley P. Petersen, and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
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0301 basic medicine ,Atmospheric Science ,Diffusion equation ,Paleoclimate ,lcsh:Medicine ,Population dispersal ,030105 genetics & heredity ,Diffusion ,Neumann boundary condition ,Population growth ,lcsh:Science ,Productivity ,Climatology ,education.field_of_study ,Numerical Analysis ,Multidisciplinary ,Geography ,Ecology ,Physics ,Solver ,Emigration and Immigration ,Computer simulation ,Finite element method ,Paleogeography ,Physical Sciences ,Carrying Capacity ,Map ,Geology ,Algorithms ,Research Article ,Human ,Optimization ,Ecological Metrics ,Population ,Finite Element Analysis ,03 medical and health sciences ,Population Metrics ,Carrying capacity ,Applied mathematics ,Humans ,education ,Paleoclimatology ,Population Density ,Traveling Waves ,Population Biology ,Western Hemisphere ,Numerical analysis ,Ecology and Environmental Sciences ,lcsh:R ,Biology and Life Sciences ,Paleontology ,Numerical Analysis, Computer-Assisted ,Upper Pleistocene ,Interpolation ,030104 developmental biology ,Linear Models ,Waves ,Earth Sciences ,lcsh:Q ,Paleoecology ,Paleobiology ,Paleogenetics ,World map ,Mathematics - Abstract
We describe a general Godunov-type splitting for numerical simulations of the Fisher–Kolmogorov–Petrovski–Piskunov growth and diffusion equation on a world map with Neumann boundary conditions. The procedure is semi-implicit, hence quite stable. Our principal application for this solver is modeling human population dispersal over geographical maps with changing paleovegetation and paleoclimate in the late Pleistocene. As a proxy for carrying capacity we use Net Primary Productivity (NPP) to predict times for human arrival in the Americas., PLoS ONE, 12 (1), ISSN:1932-6203
- Published
- 2017
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22. Individual-based modelling of population growth and diffusion in discrete time
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Wesley P. Petersen, Simone Callegari, John David Weissmann, Natalie Tkachenko, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, George Lake, University of Zurich, and Tkachenko, Natalie
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0301 basic medicine ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,Population Dynamics ,Social Sciences ,lcsh:Medicine ,01 natural sciences ,Human population dynamics ,Quantitative Biology::Populations and Evolution ,Limit (mathematics) ,Statistical physics ,lcsh:Science ,Mathematics ,Mass Diffusivity ,Multidisciplinary ,Continuum (measurement) ,Ecology ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Physics ,Simulation and Modeling ,Chemistry ,Discrete time and continuous time ,Archaeology ,Physical Sciences ,Carrying Capacity ,Research Article ,Ecological Metrics ,1100 General Agricultural and Biological Sciences ,Research and Analysis Methods ,03 medical and health sciences ,Population Metrics ,1300 General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology ,0103 physical sciences ,Population growth ,Carrying capacity ,Humans ,010306 general physics ,Population Growth ,Probability ,Population Density ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Traveling Waves ,Chemical Physics ,Population Biology ,Ecology and Environmental Sciences ,lcsh:R ,Biology and Life Sciences ,Models, Theoretical ,030104 developmental biology ,Archaeological Dating ,Waves ,Biological dispersal ,lcsh:Q ,Constant (mathematics) - Abstract
Individual-based models (IBMs) of human populations capture spatio-temporal dynamics using rules that govern the birth, behavior, and death of individuals. We explore a stochastic IBM of logistic growth-diffusion with constant time steps and independent, simultaneous actions of birth, death, and movement that approaches the Fisher-Kolmogorov model in the continuum limit. This model is well-suited to parallelization on high-performance computers. We explore its emergent properties with analytical approximations and numerical simulations in parameter ranges relevant to human population dynamics and ecology, and reproduce continuous-time results in the limit of small transition probabilities. Our model prediction indicates that the population density and dispersal speed are affected by fluctuations in the number of individuals. The discrete-time model displays novel properties owing to the binomial character of the fluctuations: in certain regimes of the growth model, a decrease in time step size drives the system away from the continuum limit. These effects are especially important at local population sizes of, PLoS ONE, 12 (4), ISSN:1932-6203
- Published
- 2017
23. Virtual Reconstruction and Geometric Morphometrics as Tools for Paleopathology: A New Approach to Study Rare Developmental Disorders of the Skeleton
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Marcia S. Ponce de León, and Marco Milella
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Morphometrics ,Histology ,Anatomy ,Biology ,Skeleton (computer programming) ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Virtual reconstruction ,medicine ,Triradiate cartilage ,Neoteny ,Paleopathology ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Pelvis ,Biotechnology - Abstract
Survey studies of osteoarchaeological collections occasionally yield specimens exhibiting rare skeletal developmental disorders. Beyond paleopathological diagnosis, however, it is often difficult to gain insight into the processes, mechanisms, and consequences of the pathology, notably because archaeological specimens are often fragmentary. Here, we propose a combination of virtual reconstruction (VR) and geometric morphometrics (GM) to address these issues. As an example, we use VR to reconstruct the only known archaeological specimen exhibiting persistence of the pelvic triradiate cartilage and compare it via GM with a set of healthy pelvises representing both sexes and different ontogenetic stages. Our results evidence (i) a marked deviation of the pathological pelvis from the adult mean shape, (ii) the retention of typical male features, and (iii) the retention of a paedomorphic ratio between iliac and ischiopubic size. Altogether, such data offer new insights into the modularity and integration of pelvic ontogeny, while at the same time demonstrating the usefulness of a combined VR/GM approach as complement to classical methods of paleopathology.
- Published
- 2014
24. Mammalian skull heterochrony reveals modular evolution and a link between cranial development and brain size
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Marcelo R. Sánchez-Villagra, Nguyen Truong Son, Analía M. Forasiepi, Naoki Morimoto, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Daisuke Koyabu, Hideki Endo, Junpei Kimura, Satoshi D. Ohdachi, Ingmar Werneburg, University of Zurich, and Koyabu, Daisuke
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,0106 biological sciences ,General Physics and Astronomy ,1600 General Chemistry ,10125 Paleontological Institute and Museum ,Biology ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology ,Article ,03 medical and health sciences ,1300 General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology ,Osteogenesis ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Endochondral ossification ,030304 developmental biology ,Mammals ,0303 health sciences ,Multidisciplinary ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Ossification ,Skull ,Encephalization ,Brain ,General Chemistry ,Anatomy ,Evolution of mammals ,Biological Evolution ,3100 General Physics and Astronomy ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,560 Fossils & prehistoric life ,Neurocranium ,Brain size ,medicine.symptom ,Heterochrony - Abstract
The multiple skeletal components of the skull originate asynchronously and their developmental schedule varies across amniotes. Here we present the embryonic ossification sequence of 134 species, covering all major groups of mammals and their close relatives. This comprehensive data set allows reconstruction of the heterochronic and modular evolution of the skull and the condition of the last common ancestor of mammals. We show that the mode of ossification (dermal or endochondral) unites bones into integrated evolutionary modules of heterochronic changes and imposes evolutionary constraints on cranial heterochrony. However, some skull-roof bones, such as the supraoccipital, exhibit evolutionary degrees of freedom in these constraints. Ossification timing of the neurocranium was considerably accelerated during the origin of mammals. Furthermore, association between developmental timing of the supraoccipital and brain size was identified among amniotes. We argue that cranial heterochrony in mammals has occurred in concert with encephalization but within a conserved modular organization., The skeletal components of the skull develop at different times in mammals. Here, Koyabu et al. show that the mode of bone ossification constrains the timing of bone formation and find an association between the developmental timing of the supraoccipital bone and brain size.
- Published
- 2014
25. Different in death: Different in life? Diet and mobility correlates of irregular burials in a Roman necropolis from Bologna (Northern Italy, 1st–4th century CE)
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Thomas Kuhn, Maria Giovanna Belcastro, Valentina Mariotti, Thomas Doppler, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Marco Milella, Claudia Gerling, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Mark E. Cooper, Milella, Marco, Gerling, Claudia, Doppler, Thoma, Kuhn, Thoma, Cooper, Matthew, Mariotti, Valentina, Belcastro, Maria Giovanna, Ponce de León, Marcia S., Zollikofer, Christoph P.E., and University of Zurich
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,010506 paleontology ,Archeology ,Context (language use) ,01 natural sciences ,Peninsula ,0601 history and archaeology ,sotopes Irregular burials Diet Mobility Roman Empire Bologna Italy ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Mobility ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,060102 archaeology ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Isotope ,06 humanities and the arts ,Archaeology ,Diet ,Roman Empire ,Northern italy ,Italy ,Geographic origin ,3302 Archeology ,1204 Archeology (arts and humanities) ,Social differences ,Irregular burial ,Bologna - Abstract
The study of migration within the Roman Empire has been a focus of the bioarchaeological and biogeochemical research during the last decade. The possible association of diet and sex, age, and funerary treatment during the 1st-4th centuries CE have been extensively explored in Britain, and Central-Southern Italy. Conversely, no knowledge is available about these processes for the North of the Italian Peninsula. In the present work we analyse a set (N = 16) of Roman inhumations from Bologna (Northern Italy, 1st-4th century CE), some of which are characterized by unusual features (prone depositions, transfixion of the skeleton by iron nails). Analysis of strontium, oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon isotopes is used to test for the possible correlation between funerary treatment, geographic origin, and diet. Here we provide the first biogeochemical data for a Northern Italian Imperial sample, wherein our results show no clear association between these variables, suggesting that funerary variability, at least in the analysed context, was shaped by a variety of heterogeneous factors, and not a representation of vertical social differences or differential geographic origins.
- Published
- 2019
26. Reply to Mitteroecker and Fischer: Developmental solutions to the obstetrical dilemma are not Gouldian spandrels
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Alik Huseynov, and University of Zurich
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,0106 biological sciences ,Adult ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Pelvis ,03 medical and health sciences ,Visual guidance ,Humans ,Animals ,Letters ,Female pelvis ,030304 developmental biology ,Statistical hypothesis testing ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,0303 health sciences ,Multidisciplinary ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Replicate ,Biological Evolution ,Obstetrics ,Variation (linguistics) ,Obstetrical dilemma ,Finches ,Psychology ,Cognitive psychology - Abstract
In our study on human pelvic development (1), we propose two hypotheses explaining the narrowing of the female pelvis during postreproductive life. Hypothesis 1 proposes ultimate, evolutionary causes, reflecting selective pressures acting on postreproductive life. Hypothesis 2 proposes proximate, developmental causes, reflecting reduced estrogen levels during postreproductive life. Mitteroecker and Fischer (2) replicate one part of our study—that concerning adult pelvic development—with an independent dataset, taking into account age effects on pelvic shape variation not considered in their earlier study (3). (Note that the smoothing functions used in our study only serve for visual guidance, not for statistical testing.) Rather than testing our hypotheses (1) with new … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: marcia{at}aim.uzh.ch. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
- Published
- 2016
27. Developmental evidence for obstetric adaptation of the human female pelvis
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Alik Huseynov, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Christian J. Kellenberger, Dominic Gascho, Ricarda Hinzpeter, Walter Coudyzer, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, University of Zurich, and Huseynov, Alik
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,medicine.medical_specialty ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Physiology ,340 Law ,Fertility ,610 Medicine & health ,pelvis ,Biology ,03 medical and health sciences ,Fetal Stage ,evolution ,medicine ,sex steroids ,Bipedalism ,development ,Pelvis ,media_common ,Gynecology ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Multidisciplinary ,obstetrical dilemma ,10042 Clinic for Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology ,Biological Sciences ,10218 Institute of Legal Medicine ,Sexual dimorphism ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,10036 Medical Clinic ,Obstetrical dilemma ,Developmental plasticity ,Adaptation - Abstract
The bony pelvis of adult humans exhibits marked sexual dimorphism, which is traditionally interpreted in the framework of the "obstetrical dilemma" hypothesis: Giving birth to large-brained/large-bodied babies requires a wide pelvis, whereas efficient bipedal locomotion requires a narrow pelvis. This hypothesis has been challenged recently on biomechanical, metabolic, and biocultural grounds, so that it remains unclear which factors are responsible for sex-specific differences in adult pelvic morphology. Here we address this issue from a developmental perspective. We use methods of biomedical imaging and geometric morphometrics to analyze changes in pelvic morphology from late fetal stages to adulthood in a known-age/known-sex forensic/clinical sample. Results show that, until puberty, female and male pelves exhibit only moderate sexual dimorphism and follow largely similar developmental trajectories. With the onset of puberty, however, the female trajectory diverges substantially from the common course, resulting in rapid expansion of obstetrically relevant pelvic dimensions up to the age of 25-30 y. From 40 y onward females resume a mode of pelvic development similar to males, resulting in significant reduction of obstetric dimensions. This complex developmental trajectory is likely linked to the pubertal rise and premenopausal fall of estradiol levels and results in the obstetrically most adequate pelvic morphology during the time of maximum female fertility. The evidence that hormones mediate female pelvic development and morphology supports the view that solutions of the obstetrical dilemma depend not only on selection and adaptation but also on developmental plasticity as a response to ecological/nutritional factors during a female's lifetime.
- Published
- 2016
28. Metopic suture of Taung (Australopithecus africanus) and its implications for hominin brain evolution
- Author
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, Naoki Morimoto, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, and Dean Falk
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Fibrous joint ,0303 health sciences ,060101 anthropology ,Multidisciplinary ,Hominidae ,Ossification ,06 humanities and the arts ,Anatomy ,Biology ,biology.organism_classification ,Anterior fontanelle ,03 medical and health sciences ,Skull ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,medicine ,0601 history and archaeology ,Bipedalism ,medicine.symptom ,Australopithecus africanus ,Endocast ,030304 developmental biology - Abstract
The type specimen for Australopithecus africanus (Taung) includes a natural endocast that reproduces most of the external morphology of the right cerebral hemisphere and a fragment of fossilized face that articulates with the endocast. Despite the fact that Taung died between 3 and 4 y of age, the endocast reproduces a small triangular-shaped remnant of the anterior fontanelle, from which a clear metopic suture (MS) courses rostrally along the midline [Hrdlička A (1925) Am J Phys Anthropol 8:379–392]. Here we describe and interpret this feature of Taung in light of comparative fossil and actualistic data on the timing of MS closure. In great apes, the MS normally fuses shortly after birth, such that unfused MS similar to Taung’s are rare. In humans, however, MS fuses well after birth, and partially or unfused MS are frequent. In gracile fossil adult hominins that lived between ∼3.0 and 1.5 million y ago, MS are also relatively frequent, indicating that the modern human-like pattern of late MS fusion may have become adaptive during early hominin evolution. Selective pressures favoring delayed fusion might have resulted from three aspects of perinatal ontogeny: ( i ) the difficulty of giving birth to large-headed neonates through birth canals that were reconfigured for bipedalism (the “obstetric dilemma”), ( ii ) high early postnatal brain growth rates, and ( iii ) reorganization and expansion of the frontal neocortex. Overall, our data indicate that hominin brain evolution occurred within a complex network of fetopelvic constraints, which required modification of frontal neurocranial ossification patterns.
- Published
- 2012
29. Skull 5 from Dmanisi: Descriptive anatomy, comparative studies, and evolutionary significance
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, David Lordkipanidze, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Ann Margvelashvili, and G. Philip Rightmire
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Male ,Georgia (Republic) ,Supraorbital ridge ,03 medical and health sciences ,Homo rudolfensis ,medicine ,Animals ,0601 history and archaeology ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Phylogeny ,060101 anthropology ,biology ,Fossils ,Skull ,Hominidae ,06 humanities and the arts ,Anatomy ,biology.organism_classification ,Biological Evolution ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Homo habilis ,Homo sapiens ,Anthropology ,Homo erectus ,Australopithecus afarensis ,Paranthropus boisei - Abstract
A fifth hominin skull (cranium D4500 and mandible D2600) from Dmanisi is massively constructed, with a large face and a very small brain. Traits documented for the first time in a basal member of the Homo clade include the uniquely low ratio of endocranial volume to basicranial width, reduced vertex height, angular vault profile, smooth nasal sill coupled with a long and sloping maxillary clivus, elongated palate, and tall mandibular corpus. The convex clivus and receding symphysis of skull 5 produce a muzzle-like form similar to that of Australopithecus afarensis. While the Dmanisi cranium is very robust, differing from OH 13, OH 24, and KNM-ER 1813, it resembles Homo habilis specimens in the “squared off” outline of its maxilla in facial view, maxillary sulcus, rounded and receding zygomatic arch, and flexed zygomaticoalveolar pillar. These characters distinguish early Homo from species of Australopithecus and Paranthropus. Skull 5 is unlike Homo rudolfensis cranium KNM-ER 1470. Although it appears generally primitive, skull 5 possesses a bar-like supraorbital torus, elongated temporal squama, occipital transverse torus, and petrotympanic traits considered to be derived for Homo erectus. As a group, the Dmanisi crania and mandibles display substantial anatomical and metric variation. A key question is whether the fossils document age-related growth and sex dimorphism within a single population, or whether two (or more) distinct taxa may be present at the site. We use the coefficient of variation to compare Dmanisi with Paranthropus boisei, H. erectus, and recent Homo sapiens, finding few signals that the Dmanisi sample is excessively variable in comparison to these reference taxa. Using cranial measurements and principal components analysis, we explore the proposal that the Dmanisi skulls can be grouped within a regionally diverse hypodigm for H. erectus. Our results provide only weak support for this hypothesis. Finally, we consider all available morphological and paleobiological evidence in an attempt to clarify the phyletic relationship of Dmanisi to Homo species evolving >2.0 to 1.0 Ma.
- Published
- 2015
30. Skeletal correlates of quadrupedalism and climbing in the anthropoid forelimb: Implications for inferring locomotion in Miocene catarrhines
- Author
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Thomas R. Rein, and Terry Harrison
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Male ,Arboreal locomotion ,Humeral torsion ,Ulna ,Models, Biological ,Finger Phalanges ,Phylogenetics ,Quadrupedalism ,Catarrhini ,Forelimb ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Least-Squares Analysis ,Phylogeny ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Pliopithecus ,biology ,Phylogenetic tree ,Fossils ,Paleontology ,Haplorhini ,Anatomy ,Humerus ,biology.organism_classification ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Anthropology ,Climbing ,Female ,Locomotion - Abstract
Several well-known Miocene catarrhines, including Proconsul heseloni, have been inferred to combine quadrupedal walking in an arboreal substrate with a significant amount of climbing during locomotion. The degree to which some of these species were adapted to perform these behaviors is not fully understood due to the mosaic of 'ape-like' and 'monkey-like' traits identified in the forelimb. Given these unique combinations of forelimb features in the fossils, we report on forelimb traits that should be emphasized when investigating skeletal adaptation to quadrupedalism (defined in this manuscript as symmetrical gait movement on horizontal supports, excluding knuckle-walking) and climbing (including both vertical climbing and clambering). We investigate the correspondence between: 1) quadrupedalism and two well-known forelimb traits, humeral torsion and olecranon process length, and 2) climbing and phalangeal curvature. We also test the degree of phylogenetic signal in these relationships using phylogenetic generalized least-squares and branch length transformation methods in order to determine the models of best-fit. We present models that can be used to predict proportions of quadrupedalism and climbing in extant and extinct anthropoid taxa. Each trait-behavior correlation is significant and characterized by an absence of phylogenetic signal. Thus, we employ models assuming a star phylogeny to predict locomotor proportions. The climbing model based on phalangeal curvature and a proxy for size provides the most accurate predictions of behavior across anthropoids. The two quadrupedalism models are less accurate, but distinguish highly quadrupedal species from those that are not. Predictive equations based on these traits support the inference that P. heseloni performed a high proportion of quadrupedalism with a significant climbing component. The degree of phalangeal curvature measured in Pliopithecus vindobonensis predicts that this Miocene catarrhine species performed a proportion of climbing similar to Proconsul, while humeral torsion and olecranon process length provide conflicting inferences of quadrupedal locomotion in this species.
- Published
- 2011
31. A bidirectional interface growth model for cranial interosseous suture morphogenesis
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John David Weissmann and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
- Subjects
Histology ,Morphogenesis ,Cell Biology ,Anatomy ,Growth model ,Biology ,Simulation system ,Fractal dimension ,Key factors ,Suture (anatomy) ,Natural distribution ,Biological system ,Molecular Biology ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Developmental Biology ,Morphogen - Abstract
Interosseous sutures exhibit highly variable patterns of interdigitation and corrugation. Recent research has identified fundamental molecular mechanisms of suture formation, and computer models have been used to simulate suture morphogenesis. However, the role of bone strain in the development of complex sutures is largely unknown, and measuring suture morphologies beyond the evaluation of fractal dimensions remains a challenge. Here we propose a morphogenetic model of suture formation, which is based on the paradigm of Laplacian interface growth. Computer simulations of suture morphogenesis under various boundary conditions generate a wide variety of synthetic sutural forms. Their morphologies are quantified with a combination of Fourier analysis and principal components analysis, and compared with natural morphological variation in an ontogenetic sample of human interparietal suture lines. Morphometric analyses indicate that natural sutural shapes exhibit a complex distribution in morphospace. The distribution of synthetic sutures closely matches the natural distribution. In both natural and synthetic systems, sutural complexity increases during morphogenesis. Exploration of the parameter space of the simulation system indicates that variation in strain and/or morphogen sensitivity and viscosity of sutural tissue may be key factors in generating the large variability of natural suture complexity.
- Published
- 2011
32. Exploring Femoral Diaphyseal Shape Variation in Wild and Captive Chimpanzees by Means of Morphometric Mapping: A Test of Wolff's Law
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Marcia S. Ponce de León, and Naoki Morimoto
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Male ,Histology ,Pan troglodytes ,Ontogeny ,Long bone ,Animals, Wild ,Motor Activity ,Biology ,Models, Biological ,Bone remodeling ,Weight-Bearing ,medicine ,Animals ,Femur ,Wolff's law ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Anthropometry ,X-Ray Microtomography ,Anatomy ,Adaptation, Physiological ,Biomechanical Phenomena ,Diaphysis ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted ,Female ,Cortical bone ,Bone Remodeling ,Diaphyses ,Adaptation ,Biotechnology - Abstract
Long bone shafts (diaphyses) serve as load-bearing structures during locomotion, implying a close relationship between diaphyseal form and its locomotor function. Diaphyseal form-function relationships, however, are complex, as they are mediated by various factors such as developmental programs, evolutionary adaptation, and functional adaptation through bone remodeling during an individual's lifetime. The effects of the latter process (“Wolff's Law”) are best assessed by comparing diaphyseal morphologies of conspecific individuals under different locomotor regimes. Here we use morphometric mapping (MM) to analyze the morphology of entire femoral diaphyses in an ontogenetic series of wild and captive common chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes troglodytes). MM reveals patterns of variation of diaphyseal structural and functional properties, which cannot be recognized with conventional cross-sectional analysis and/or geometric morphometric methods. Our data show that diaphyseal shape, cortical bone distribution and inferred cross-sectional biomechanical properties vary both along ontogenetic trajectories and independent of ontogeny. Mean ontogenetic trajectories of wild and captive chimpanzees, however, were found to be statistically identical. This indicates that the basic developmental program of the diaphysis is not altered by different loading conditions. Significant differences in diaphyseal shape between groups could only be identified in the distal diaphysis, where wild chimpanzees exhibit higher mediolateral relative to anteroposterior cortical bone thickness. Overall, thus, the hypothesis that Wolff's Law predominantly governs long bone diaphyseal morphology is rejected. Anat Rec, 2011. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
- Published
- 2011
33. Heterochrony and developmental modularity of cranial osteogenesis in lipotyphlan mammals
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Kenneth C. Catania, Sen-ichi Oda, Marcelo R. Sánchez-Villagra, Motokazu Ando, Gen Suwa, Daisuke Koyabu, Hideki Endo, Kazuhiko Koyasu, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Christian Mitgutsch, University of Zurich, and Koyabu, D
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,0106 biological sciences ,skull ,lcsh:Evolution ,Zoology ,integration ,10125 Paleontological Institute and Museum ,Biology ,phylogeny ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,1309 Developmental Biology ,03 medical and health sciences ,1311 Genetics ,heterochrony ,lcsh:QH359-425 ,embryology ,Genetics ,medicine ,Micro ct ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,030304 developmental biology ,0303 health sciences ,Modularity (networks) ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Ossification ,Research ,Eulipotyphla ,ossification ,Skull ,1105 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,560 Fossils & prehistoric life ,Evolutionary biology ,medicine.symptom ,Heterochrony ,micro CT ,Developmental Biology - Abstract
Background Here we provide the most comprehensive study to date on the cranial ossification sequence in Lipotyphla, the group which includes shrews, moles and hedgehogs. This unique group, which encapsulates diverse ecological modes, such as terrestrial, subterranean, and aquatic lifestyles, is used to examine the evolutionary lability of cranial osteogenesis and to investigate the modularity of development. Results An acceleration of developmental timing of the vomeronasal complex has occurred in the common ancestor of moles. However, ossification of the nasal bone has shifted late in the more terrestrial shrew mole. Among the lipotyphlans, sequence heterochrony shows no significant association with modules derived from developmental origins (that is, neural crest cells vs. mesoderm derived parts) or with those derived from ossification modes (that is, dermal vs. endochondral ossification). Conclusions The drastic acceleration of vomeronasal development in moles is most likely coupled with the increased importance of the rostrum for digging and its use as a specialized tactile surface, both fossorial adaptations. The late development of the nasal in shrew moles, a condition also displayed by hedgehogs and shrews, is suggested to be the result of an ecological reversal to terrestrial lifestyle and reduced functional importance of the rostrum. As an overall pattern in lipotyphlans, our results reject the hypothesis that ossification sequence heterochrony occurs in modular fashion when considering the developmental patterns of the skull. We suggest that shifts in the cranial ossification sequence are not evolutionarily constrained by developmental origins or mode of ossification.
- Published
- 2011
34. The evolution of hominin ontogenies
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Marcia S. Ponce de León and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
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Fossils ,Skull ,Brain ,Paleontology ,Hominidae ,Morphology (biology) ,Cell Biology ,Biological evolution ,Models, Theoretical ,Biology ,Biological Evolution ,Anthropology, Physical ,Extant taxon ,Evolutionary biology ,Paleoanthropology ,Animals ,Humans ,Tooth ,Phylogeny ,Developmental Biology - Abstract
Since the beginnings of paleoanthropology, immature fossil hominin specimens have marked important but highly contested cornerstones of research. Long deemed as not representative of a fossil species' morphology, immature hominins are now in the center of scientific attention, and an increasing interest in evolutionary developmental questions has made developmental paleoanthropology a vibrant field of research. Here we report on recent advances in this field, which result from a combination of new methods to reconstruct fossil ontogenies with insights from evo-devo research on extant species.
- Published
- 2010
35. First evidence of a bipartite medial cuneiform in the hominin fossil record: a case report from the Early Pleistocene site of Dmanisi
- Author
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, David Lordkipanidze, Tea Jashashvili, and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
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Georgia republic ,Histology ,Fossil Record ,Early Pleistocene ,Cell Biology ,Biological evolution ,Anatomy ,Articular surface ,Biology ,biology.organism_classification ,Medial cuneiform ,Extant taxon ,Molecular Biology ,Australopithecus africanus ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Developmental Biology - Abstract
A medial cuneiform exhibiting complete bipartition was discovered at the Early Pleistocene site of Dmanisi, Georgia. The specimen is the oldest known instance of this anatomical variant in the hominin fossil record. Here we compare developmental variation of the medial cuneiform in fossil hominins, extant humans and great apes, and discuss potential implications of bipartition for hominin foot phylogeny and function. Complete bipartition is rare among modern humans (< 1%); incomplete bipartition was found in 2 of 200 examined great ape specimens and also appears in the form of a divided distal articular surface in the Stw573c Australopithecus africanus specimen. Although various developmental pathways lead to medial cuneiform bipartition, it appears that the bipartite bone does not deviate significantly from normal overall morphology. Together, these data indicate that bipartition represents a phyletically old developmental variant of the medial cuneiform, which does not, however, affect the species-specific morphology and function of this bone.
- Published
- 2010
36. A Morphogenetic Model of Cranial Pneumatization Based on the Invasive Tissue Hypothesis
- Author
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer and John David Weissmann
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Models, Anatomic ,Mucous tissue ,Empirical data ,Histology ,Craniology ,Model parameters ,Biology ,Models, Biological ,Maxilla ,Morphogenesis ,Animals ,Humans ,Compartment (development) ,Computer Simulation ,Process (anatomy) ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Skull ,Nasopharyngeal cavity ,Genetic Variation ,Temporal Bone ,Hominidae ,Anatomy ,Biological Evolution ,Biomechanical Phenomena ,Physical Concepts ,System parameters ,Tomography, X-Ray Computed ,Biotechnology - Abstract
The interpretation of patterns of cranial pneumatization in terms of evolution, development, and function is controversial, because these structures exhibit extreme diversity and variability among and within taxa. However, there is general consensus that air-filled spaces are formed by invasion of mucous epithelial tissue from the nasopharyngeal cavity into the surrounding cranial bones. This investigation presents a morphogenetic model of pneumatization, which combines empirical data about epithelial growth with physical concepts of surface growth. The study develops a model that defines growth equations with a minimum number of system parameters to simulate the invasion of mucous tissue and air-filled spaces into the cancellous compartment of cranial bones. Computer simulations show that tuning a small set of model parameters permits generation of a wide diversity of morphologies mimicking natural air-filled spaces. Comparison of virtual with actual morphologies yields new insights into possible factors controlling the process of cranial pneumatization.
- Published
- 2008
37. Neanderthal brain size at birth provides insights into the evolution of human life history
- Author
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Lubov Golovanova, Galina Romanova, Hajime Ishida, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Takeru Akazawa, Osamu Kondo, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Vladimir B. Doronichev, and University of Zurich
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,Adult ,Neanderthal ,Hominidae ,Biology ,Russia ,Paleontology ,Cave ,biology.animal ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Child ,Skeleton ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,geography ,Multidisciplinary ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Syria ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Fossils ,Skull ,Infant, Newborn ,Parturition ,Brain ,Infant ,Organ Size ,Human brain ,Biological Sciences ,biology.organism_classification ,Biological Evolution ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Homo sapiens ,Evolutionary biology ,Child, Preschool ,Brain size ,Obstetrical dilemma ,Female ,Homo erectus - Abstract
From birth to adulthood, the human brain expands by a factor of 3.3, compared with 2.5 in chimpanzees [DeSilva J and Lesnik J (2006) Chimpanzee neonatal brain size: Implications for brain growth in Homo erectus. J Hum Evol 51: 207–212]. How the required extra amount of human brain growth is achieved and what its implications are for human life history and cognitive development are still a matter of debate. Likewise, because comparative fossil evidence is scarce, when and how the modern human pattern of brain growth arose during evolution is largely unknown. Virtual reconstructions of a Neanderthal neonate from Mezmaiskaya Cave (Russia) and of two Neanderthal infant skeletons from Dederiyeh Cave (Syria) now provide new comparative insights: Neanderthal brain size at birth was similar to that in recent Homo sapiens and most likely subject to similar obstetric constraints. Neanderthal brain growth rates during early infancy were higher, however. This pattern of growth resulted in larger adult brain sizes but not in earlier completion of brain growth. Because large brains growing at high rates require large, late-maturing, mothers [Leigh SR and Blomquist GE (2007) in Campbell CJ et al. Primates in perspective; pp 396–407], it is likely that Neanderthal life history was similarly slow, or even slower-paced, than in recent H. sapiens .
- Published
- 2008
38. Postcranial evidence from early Homo from Dmanisi, Georgia
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Maia Bukhsianidze, Oriol Oms, Lorenzo Rook, Bienvenido Martínez-Navarro, Abesalom Vekua, Alexander Mouskhelishvili, Reid Ferring, Martha Tappen, Medea Nioradze, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, G. Philip Rightmire, Gocha Kiladze, Herman Pontzer, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Ralf Dietrich Kahlke, David Lordkipanidze, Tea Jashashvili, and Jordi Agustí
- Subjects
Homo naledi ,Multidisciplinary ,Adolescent ,biology ,Fossils ,Hominidae ,Postcrania ,biology.organism_classification ,Georgia (Republic) ,Homo floresiensis ,Paleontology ,Homo habilis ,Homo rudolfensis ,Homo ergaster ,Animals ,Body Size ,Humans ,Leg Bones ,Homo erectus ,History, Ancient ,Locomotion ,Skeleton - Abstract
The Plio-Pleistocene site of Dmanisi, Georgia, has yielded a rich fossil and archaeological record documenting an early presence of the genus Homo outside Africa. Although the craniomandibular morphology of early Homo is well known as a result of finds from Dmanisi and African localities, data about its postcranial morphology are still relatively scarce. Here we describe newly excavated postcranial material from Dmanisi comprising a partial skeleton of an adolescent individual, associated with skull D2700/D2735, and the remains from three adult individuals. This material shows that the postcranial anatomy of the Dmanisi hominins has a surprising mosaic of primitive and derived features. The primitive features include a small body size, a low encephalization quotient and absence of humeral torsion; the derived features include modern-human-like body proportions and lower limb morphology indicative of the capability for long-distance travel. Thus, the earliest known hominins to have lived outside of Africa in the temperate zones of Eurasia did not yet display the full set of derived skeletal features.
- Published
- 2007
39. Visualizing shape transformation between chimpanzee and human braincases
- Author
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Matthias Specht, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Renaud Lebrun, Anthropological Institute and Museum, Universität Zürich [Zürich] = University of Zurich (UZH), Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier (UMR ISEM), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut de recherche pour le développement [IRD] : UR226-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University of Zurich, and Specht, Matthias
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,Surface (mathematics) ,1707 Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition ,Computer science ,[SDV.NEU.NB]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Neurons and Cognition [q-bio.NC]/Neurobiology ,Mesh parameterization ,Shape transformation ,02 engineering and technology ,000 Computer science, knowledge & systems ,142-005 142-005 ,1704 Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Computer graphics ,Biological constraints ,[SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology ,0202 electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering ,Computer vision ,10. No inequality ,Scientific visualization ,Geometric morphometrics ,Morphing ,business.industry ,Brain ,[INFO.INFO-CV]Computer Science [cs]/Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition [cs.CV] ,020207 software engineering ,Pattern recognition ,Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design ,1712 Software ,Surface parameterization ,Paleoanthropology ,Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition ,Artificial intelligence ,[SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology ,business ,Software - Abstract
International audience; The quantitative comparison of the form of the braincase is a central issue in paleoanthropology (i.e., the study of human evolution based on fossil evidence). The major difficulty is that there are only few locations defining biological correspondence between individual braincases. In this paper, we use mesh parameterization techniques to tackle this problem. We propose a method to conformally parameterize the genus-0 surface of the braincase on the sphere and to calibrate the parameterization to match biological constraints. The resulting consistent parameterization gives detailed information about shape differences between the braincase of human and chimp. This opens up new perspectives for the quantitative comparison of "featureless" biological structures.
- Published
- 2007
40. Peştera cu Oase 2 and the cranial morphology of early modern Europeans
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Mircea Gherase, João Zilhão, Erik Trinkaus, Laurenţiu Sarcinǎ, Hélène Rougier, Ştefan Milota, Oana Teodora Moldovan, Silviu Constantin, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Ricardo Rodrigo, Marcia S. Ponce de León, and Robert G. Franciscus
- Subjects
Mastoid process ,education.field_of_study ,Multidisciplinary ,Fossils ,Romania ,Occipital bun ,Skull ,Population ,Age Factors ,Mandible ,Paleontology ,Anatomy ,Biological Sciences ,Supraorbital ridge ,Europe ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Neurocranium ,medicine ,Humans ,Facial skeleton ,education ,Phylogeny ,Geology - Abstract
Between 2003 and 2005, the Peştera cu Oase, Romania yielded a largely complete early modern human cranium, Oase 2, scattered on the surface of a Late Pleistocene hydraulically displaced bone bed containing principally the remains of Ursus spelaeus . Multiple lines of evidence indicate an age of ≈40.5 thousand calendar years before the present (≈35 ka 14 C B.P.). Morphological comparison of the adolescent Oase 2 cranium to relevant Late Pleistocene human samples documents a suite of derived modern human and/or non-Neandertal features, including absence of a supraorbital torus, subrectangular orbits, prominent canine fossae, narrow nasal aperture, level nasal floor, angled and anteriorly oriented zygomatic bones, a high neurocranium with prominent parietal bosses and marked sagittal parietal curvature, superiorly positioned temporal zygomatic root, vertical auditory porous, laterally bulbous mastoid processes, superiorly positioned posterior semicircular canal, absence of a nuchal torus and a suprainiac fossa, and a small occipital bun. However, these features are associated with an exceptionally flat frontal arc, a moderately large juxtamastoid eminence, extremely large molars that become progressively larger distally, complex occlusal morphology of the upper third molar, and relatively anteriorly positioned zygomatic arches. Moreover, the featureless occipital region and small mastoid process are at variance with the large facial skeleton and dentition. This unusual mosaic in Oase 2, some of which is paralleled in the Oase 1 mandible, indicates both complex population dynamics as modern humans dispersed into Europe and significant ongoing human evolution once modern humans were established within Europe.
- Published
- 2007
41. POPULATION GENETICS. Genomic evidence for the Pleistocene and recent population history of Native Americans
- Author
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Maanasa, Raghavan, Matthias, Steinrücken, Kelley, Harris, Stephan, Schiffels, Simon, Rasmussen, Michael, DeGiorgio, Anders, Albrechtsen, Cristina, Valdiosera, María C, Ávila-Arcos, Anna-Sapfo, Malaspinas, Anders, Eriksson, Ida, Moltke, Mait, Metspalu, Julian R, Homburger, Jeff, Wall, Omar E, Cornejo, J Víctor, Moreno-Mayar, Thorfinn S, Korneliussen, Tracey, Pierre, Morten, Rasmussen, Paula F, Campos, Peter, de Barros Damgaard, Morten E, Allentoft, John, Lindo, Ene, Metspalu, Ricardo, Rodríguez-Varela, Josefina, Mansilla, Celeste, Henrickson, Andaine, Seguin-Orlando, Helena, Malmström, Thomas, Stafford, Suyash S, Shringarpure, Andrés, Moreno-Estrada, Monika, Karmin, Kristiina, Tambets, Anders, Bergström, Yali, Xue, Vera, Warmuth, Andrew D, Friend, Joy, Singarayer, Paul, Valdes, Francois, Balloux, Ilán, Leboreiro, Jose Luis, Vera, Hector, Rangel-Villalobos, Davide, Pettener, Donata, Luiselli, Loren G, Davis, Evelyne, Heyer, Christoph P E, Zollikofer, Marcia S, Ponce de León, Colin I, Smith, Vaughan, Grimes, Kelly-Anne, Pike, Michael, Deal, Benjamin T, Fuller, Bernardo, Arriaza, Vivien, Standen, Maria F, Luz, Francois, Ricaut, Niede, Guidon, Ludmila, Osipova, Mikhail I, Voevoda, Olga L, Posukh, Oleg, Balanovsky, Maria, Lavryashina, Yuri, Bogunov, Elza, Khusnutdinova, Marina, Gubina, Elena, Balanovska, Sardana, Fedorova, Sergey, Litvinov, Boris, Malyarchuk, Miroslava, Derenko, M J, Mosher, David, Archer, Jerome, Cybulski, Barbara, Petzelt, Joycelynn, Mitchell, Rosita, Worl, Paul J, Norman, Peter, Parham, Brian M, Kemp, Toomas, Kivisild, Chris, Tyler-Smith, Manjinder S, Sandhu, Michael, Crawford, Richard, Villems, David Glenn, Smith, Michael R, Waters, Ted, Goebel, John R, Johnson, Ripan S, Malhi, Mattias, Jakobsson, David J, Meltzer, Andrea, Manica, Richard, Durbin, Carlos D, Bustamante, Yun S, Song, Rasmus, Nielsen, Eske, Willerslev, Raghavan M, Steinrücken M, Harris K, Schiffels S, Rasmussen S, DeGiorgio M, Albrechtsen A, Valdiosera C, Ávila-Arcos MC, Malaspinas AS, Eriksson A, Moltke I, Metspalu M, Homburger JR, Wall J, Cornejo OE, Moreno-Mayar JV, Korneliussen TS, Pierre T, Rasmussen M, Campos PF, Damgaard Pde B, Allentoft ME, Lindo J, Metspalu E, Rodríguez-Varela R, Mansilla J, Henrickson C, Seguin-Orlando A, Malmström H, Stafford T Jr, Shringarpure SS, Moreno-Estrada A, Karmin M, Tambets K, Bergström A, Xue Y, Warmuth V, Friend AD, Singarayer J, Valdes P, Balloux F, Leboreiro I, Vera JL, Rangel-Villalobos H, Pettener D, Luiselli D, Davis LG, Heyer E, Zollikofer CP, Ponce de León MS, Smith CI, Grimes V, Pike KA, Deal M, Fuller BT, Arriaza B, Standen V, Luz MF, Ricaut F, Guidon N, Osipova L, Voevoda MI, Posukh OL, Balanovsky O, Lavryashina M, Bogunov Y, Khusnutdinova E, Gubina M, Balanovska E, Fedorova S, Litvinov S, Malyarchuk B, Derenko M, Mosher MJ, Archer D, Cybulski J, Petzelt B, Mitchell J, Worl R, Norman PJ, Parham P, Kemp BM, Kivisild T, Tyler-Smith C, Sandhu MS, Crawford M, Villems R, Smith DG, Waters MR, Goebel T, Johnson JR, Malhi RS, Jakobsson M, Meltzer DJ, Manica A, Durbin R, Bustamante CD, Song YS, Nielsen R, and Willerslev E
- Subjects
Gene Flow ,Siberia ,Models, Genetic ,Athabascans and Amerindians ,Human Migration ,Genetic history of Native American ,Indians, North American ,Humans ,Genomics ,Americas ,Population genetic ,History, Ancient ,Article - Abstract
How and when the Americas were populated remains contentious. Using ancient and modern genome-wide data, we find that the ancestors of all present-day Native Americans, including Athabascans and Amerindians, entered the Americas as a single migration wave from Siberia no earlier than 23 thousand years ago (KYA), and after no more than 8,000-year isolation period in Beringia. Following their arrival to the Americas, ancestral Native Americans diversified into two basal genetic branches around 13 KYA, one that is now dispersed across North and South America and the other is restricted to North America. Subsequent gene flow resulted in some Native Americans sharing ancestry with present-day East Asians (including Siberians) and, more distantly, Australo-Melanesians. Putative ‘Paleoamerican’ relict populations, including the historical Mexican Pericúes and South American Fuego-Patagonians, are not directly related to modern Australo-Melanesians as suggested by the Paleoamerican Model.
- Published
- 2015
42. The ancestry and affiliations of Kennewick Man
- Author
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Ripan S. Malhi, Eske Willerslev, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Ida Moltke, Ludovic Orlando, Morten Rasmussen, Cristina Valdiosera, J. Víctor Moreno-Mayar, Carlos Bustamante, Rasmus Nielsen, Thomas W. Stafford, Morten E. Allentoft, Thorfinn Sand Korneliussen, Hakon Jonsson, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, David J. Meltzer, Martin Sikora, G. David Poznik, Anders Albrechtsen, University of Zurich, and Willerslev, Eske
- Subjects
Cranial morphology ,Male ,Washington ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,common ,Genomic data ,Population ,Biology ,Article ,Polynesians ,HISTORY ,Humans ,Scientific debate ,AMERICA ,education ,POPULATION ,Phylogeny ,Skeleton ,education.field_of_study ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,Multidisciplinary ,Native american ,Genome, Human ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Skull ,DNA ,Genomics ,humanities ,GORDON CREEK WOMAN ,GENOME ,common.group ,Indians, North American ,Ethnology ,Americas ,Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act ,Repatriation - Abstract
Kennewick Man, referred to as the Ancient One by Native Americans, is a male human skeleton discovered in Washington state (USA) in 1996 and initially radiocarbon dated to 8,340-9,200 calibrated years before present (BP). His population affinities have been the subject of scientific debate and legal controversy. Based on an initial study of cranial morphology it was asserted that Kennewick Man was neither Native American nor closely related to the claimant Plateau tribes of the Pacific Northwest, who claimed ancestral relationship and requested repatriation under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). The morphological analysis was important to judicial decisions that Kennewick Man was not Native American and that therefore NAGPRA did not apply. Instead of repatriation, additional studies of the remains were permitted. Subsequent craniometric analysis affirmed Kennewick Man to be more closely related to circumpacific groups such as the Ainu and Polynesians than he is to modern Native Americans. In order to resolve Kennewick Man's ancestry and affiliations, we have sequenced his genome to ∼1× coverage and compared it to worldwide genomic data including for the Ainu and Polynesians. We find that Kennewick Man is closer to modern Native Americans than to any other population worldwide. Among the Native American groups for whom genome-wide data are available for comparison, several seem to be descended from a population closely related to that of Kennewick Man, including the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (Colville), one of the five tribes claiming Kennewick Man. We revisit the cranial analyses and find that, as opposed to genome-wide comparisons, it is not possible on that basis to affiliate Kennewick Man to specific contemporary groups. We therefore conclude based on genetic comparisons that Kennewick Man shows continuity with Native North Americans over at least the last eight millennia.
- Published
- 2015
43. A fourth hominin skull from Dmanisi, Georgia
- Author
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Reid Ferring, G. Philip Rightmire, Abesalom Vekua, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Gocha Kiladze, Alexander Mouskhelishvili, David Lordkipanidze, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Martha Tappen, Medea Nioradze, and Jordi Agustí
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,Systematics ,Early Pleistocene ,Cephalometry ,Mandible ,Georgia (Republic) ,Mastoid ,Paleontology ,Maxilla ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Assemblage (archaeology) ,History, Ancient ,Phylogeny ,Sex Characteristics ,biology ,Fossils ,Skull ,Brain ,Hominidae ,Organ Size ,biology.organism_classification ,Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous) ,Time of death ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Archaeology ,Human evolution ,Evolutionary biology ,Occipital Bone ,Frontal Bone ,Bone Remodeling ,Anatomy ,Homo erectus ,Tooth - Abstract
Newly discovered Homo remains, stone artifacts, and animal fossils from Dmanisi, Republic of Georgia, provide a basis for better understanding patterns of hominin evolution and behavior in Eurasia ca. 1.77 million years ago. Here we describe a fourth skull that is nearly complete, lacking all but one of its teeth at the time of death. Both the maxillae and the mandible exhibit extensive bone loss due to resorption. This individual is similar to others from the site but supplies information about variation in brain size and craniofacial anatomy within the Dmanisi paleodeme. Although this assemblage presents numerous primitive characters, the Dmanisi skulls are best accommodated within the species H. erectus. On anatomical grounds, it is argued that the relatively small-brained and lightly built Dmanisi hominins may be ancestral to African and Far Eastern branches of H. erectus showing more derived morphology.
- Published
- 2006
44. New material of the earliest hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad
- Author
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Michel Brunet, Daniel E. Lieberman, Patrick Vignaud, Franck Guy, David Pilbeam, Andossa Likius, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Hassane Taïsso Mackaye, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Laboratoire de géobiologie, biochronologie et paléontologie humaine (LGBPH), Université de Poitiers-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Peabody Museum Harvard University, Harvard University [Cambridge], Departement de Paleontologie, Université de N'Djaména, AnthropologischesInstitut und Museum, and Universität Zürich [Zürich] = University of Zurich (UZH)
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0106 biological sciences ,Chad ,Hominidae ,Mandible ,Late Miocene ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Theria ,03 medical and health sciences ,Paleontology ,Eutheria ,Ardipithecus ,Animals ,History, Ancient ,Phylogeny ,ComputingMilieux_MISCELLANEOUS ,030304 developmental biology ,0303 health sciences ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,Fossils ,Skull ,biology.organism_classification ,Geography ,Human evolution ,[SDU.STU.PG]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Paleontology ,Tooth ,Sahelanthropus ,Orrorin - Abstract
The discovery of the skull known as Toumai four years ago in Chad began a controversy. Faunal studies suggested an age close to 7 million years; a small cranium suggested chimpanzee-like brain size. The team that found Toumai considered it to be a hominid on our side of the chimp-human divide, but others thought it more ape-like. Important finds of teeth and jaw pieces of the Toumai species, Sahelanthropus tchadensis, now help to distance the species from apes, suggesting that it is a hominid closely related to the last common ancestor of chimps and humans. A virtual reconstruction of the Toumai cranium provides more evidence of a close relationship to humans — and this week's cover. You are looking at the face of the earliest known hominid. (Cover by MPFT; M. Brunet, E. Daynes, Ph. Plailly and A. Garaudel contributed). Discoveries in Chad by the Mission Paleoanthropologique Franco-Tchadienne have substantially changed our understanding of early human evolution in Africa1,2,3. In particular, the TM 266 locality in the Toros-Menalla fossiliferous area yielded a nearly complete cranium (TM 266-01-60-1), a mandible, and several isolated teeth assigned to Sahelanthropus tchadensis3 and biochronologically dated to the late Miocene epoch (about 7 million years ago). Despite the relative completeness of the TM 266 cranium, there has been some controversy about its morphology and its status in the hominid clade4,5. Here we describe new dental and mandibular specimens from three Toros-Menalla (Chad) fossiliferous localities (TM 247, TM 266 and TM 292) of the same age6. This new material, including a lower canine consistent with a non-honing C/P3 complex, post-canine teeth with primitive root morphology and intermediate radial enamel thickness, is attributed to S. tchadensis. It expands the hypodigm of the species and provides additional anatomical characters that confirm the morphological differences between S. tchadensis and African apes. S. tchadensis presents several key derived features consistent with its position in the hominid clade close to the last common ancestor of chimpanzees and humans.
- Published
- 2005
45. Brain development is similar in Neanderthals and modern humans
- Author
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, Takeru Akazawa, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Thibaut Bienvenu, University of Zurich, and Zollikofer, Christoph P E
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0301 basic medicine ,10207 Department of Anthropology ,Brain development ,Neanderthal ,Zoology ,1100 General Agricultural and Biological Sciences ,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Globular shape ,1300 General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology ,biology.animal ,Cognitive development ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Life history ,Neanderthals ,biology ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Fossils ,Brain morphometry ,Skull ,Brain ,Human brain ,Biological Evolution ,030104 developmental biology ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Evolutionary biology ,General Agricultural and Biological Sciences ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery - Abstract
Summary While the braincase of adult Neanderthals had a similar volume to that of modern humans from the same period, differences in endocranial shape suggest that brain morphology differed between modern humans and Neanderthals. When and how these differences arose during evolution and development is a topic of ongoing research, with potential implications for species-specific differences in brain and cognitive development, and in life history [1,2]. Earlier research suggested that Neanderthals followed an ancestral mode of brain development, similar to that of our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees [2–4]. Modern humans, by contrast, were suggested to follow a uniquely derived mode of brain development just after birth, giving rise to the characteristically globular shape of the adult human brain case [2,4,5]. Here, we re-examine this hypothesis using an extended sample of Neanderthal infants. We document endocranial development during the decisive first two years of postnatal life. The new data indicate that Neanderthals followed largely similar modes of endocranial development to modern humans. These findings challenge the notion that human brain and cognitive development after birth is uniquely derived [2,4].
- Published
- 2016
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
46. Evidence for interpersonal violence in the St. Césaire Neanderthal
- Author
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Marcia S. Ponce de León, François Lévêque, Bernard Vandermeersch, and Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
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Time Factors ,History ,Neanderthal ,Injury control ,Accident prevention ,Social Sciences ,Poison control ,Violence ,biology.animal ,Cranial vault ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,Interpersonal Relations ,Behavior ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,Skull ,Hominidae ,Interpersonal violence ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Archaeology ,Anthropology ,Châtelperronian ,Ethnology ,France ,Tomography, X-Ray Computed - Abstract
The St. Césaire 1 Neanderthal skeleton of a young adult individual is unique in its association with Châtelperronian artifacts from a level dated to ca. 36,000 years ago. Computer-tomographic imaging and computer-assisted reconstruction of the skull revealed a healed fracture in the cranial vault. When paleopathological and forensic diagnostic standards are applied, the bony scar bears direct evidence for the impact of a sharp implement, which was presumably directed toward the individual during an act of interpersonal violence. These findings add to the evidence that Neanderthals used implements not only for hunting and food processing, but also in other behavioral contexts. It is hypothesized that the high intra-group damage potential inherent to weapons might have represented a major factor during the evolution of hominid social behavior.
- Published
- 2002
47. Response to comment on 'A complete skull from Dmanisi, Georgia, and the evolutionary biology of early Homo'
- Author
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G. Philip Rightmire, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Ann Margvelashvili, and David Lordkipanidze
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Multidisciplinary ,Fossils ,Skull ,Hominidae ,Biology ,Biological Evolution ,Intraspecific competition ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Variation (linguistics) ,Taxon ,Evolutionary biology ,Face ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans - Abstract
Schwartz et al . hold that variation among the Dmanisi skulls reflects taxic diversity. The morphological observations to support their hypothesis, however, are partly incorrect, and not calibrated against intraspecific variation in living taxa. After proper adjustment, Schwartz et al .’s data are fully compatible with the hypothesis of a single paleodeme of early Homo at Dmanisi.
- Published
- 2014
48. Neanderthal cranial ontogeny and its implications for late hominid diversity
- Author
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer and Marcia S. Ponce de León
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Adult ,Autapomorphy ,Neanderthal ,Adolescent ,Cephalometry ,Hominidae ,Lineage (evolution) ,Ontogeny ,Zoology ,Mandible ,Eutheria ,biology.animal ,Animals ,Humans ,Child ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,Fossils ,Skull ,Genetic Variation ,biology.organism_classification ,Biological Evolution ,Homo sapiens ,Child, Preschool ,Heterochrony - Abstract
Homo neanderthalensis has a unique combination of craniofacial features that are distinct from fossil and extant ‘anatomically modern’ Homo sapiens (modern humans). Morphological evidence, direct isotopic dates1 and fossil mitochondrial DNA from three Neanderthals2,3 indicate that the Neanderthals were a separate evolutionary lineage for at least 500,000 yr. However, it is unknown when and how Neanderthal craniofacial autapomorphies (unique, derived characters) emerged during ontogeny. Here we use computerized fossil reconstruction4 and geometric morphometrics5,6 to show that characteristic differences in cranial and mandibular shape between Neanderthals and modern humans arose very early during development, possibly prenatally, and were maintained throughout postnatal ontogeny. Postnatal differences in cranial ontogeny between the two taxa are characterized primarily by heterochronic modifications of a common spatial pattern of development. Evidence for early ontogenetic divergence together with evolutionary stasis of taxon-specific patterns of ontogeny is consistent with separation of Neanderthals and modern humans at the species level.
- Published
- 2001
49. New evidence from Le Moustier 1: Computer-assisted reconstruction and morphometry of the skull
- Author
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Christoph P. E. Zollikofer and Marcia S. Ponce de León
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Neanderthal ,biology ,medicine.diagnostic_test ,Incus ,Left incus ,Computed tomography ,Anatomy ,Occipital region ,Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous) ,Skull ,Compressive deformation ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,biology.animal ,Middle ear ,medicine - Abstract
MultiMedia Laboratorium, Institut fu¨r Informatik, Universita¨tZu¨rich-Irchel,Zu¨rich, SwitzerlandABSTRACTIn this study, we present a new computerized reconstruction of the LeMoustier 1 Neanderthal skull and discuss its significance for Neanderthalgrowth and variability. Because of the precarious state of preservation of theoriginal material, we applied entirely noninvasive methods of fossil recon-struction and morphometry, using a combination of computed tomography,computer graphics, and stereolithography.After electronic restoration, the isolated original pieces were recom-posed on the computer screen using external and internal anatomical cluesto position the bone fragments and mirror images to complete missing parts.The inferred effects of general compressive deformation that occurredduring fossilization were corrected by virtual decompression of the skull.The resulting new reconstruction of the Le Moustier 1 skull shows morpho-logicfeaturesclosetothetypicalNeanderthaladultstate.Residualasymme-try of skeletal parts can be traced to in vivo skeletal modification: the leftmandibularjointshowssignsofahealedcondylarfracture,andtheanatomyof the occipital region suggests mild plagiocephaly.Using micro-CT analysis, the left incus could be recovered from thematrix filling of the middle ear cavity. Its morphometric dimensions aresimilar to those of the La Ferrassie III incus. The morphometric characteris-tics of the inner ear deviate substantially from the condition reported astypical for Neanderthals and fall within the range of modern humanvariability. Anat Rec 254:474–489, 1999.
- Published
- 1999
50. Tooth wear and dentoalveolar remodeling are key factors of morphological variation in the Dmanisi mandibles
- Author
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Timo Peltomäki, Marcia S. Ponce de León, Ann Margvelashvili, David Lordkipanidze, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer, University of Zurich, and Margvelashvili, A
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10207 Department of Anthropology ,Materials science ,Dental Wear ,Morphological variation ,Mandible ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,stomatognathic system ,Tooth loss ,medicine ,Animals ,Humans ,0601 history and archaeology ,Orthodontics ,1000 Multidisciplinary ,060101 anthropology ,Multidisciplinary ,Dentition ,Life span ,300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology ,Fossils ,Hominidae ,030206 dentistry ,06 humanities and the arts ,Tooth Attrition ,Biological Sciences ,Biological Evolution ,Masticatory force ,stomatognathic diseases ,Key factors ,Tooth wear ,Tooth Wear ,medicine.symptom - Abstract
The Plio-Pleistocene hominin sample from Dmanisi (Georgia), dated to 1.77 million years ago, is unique in offering detailed insights into patterns of morphological variation within a paleodeme of early Homo. Cranial and dentoalveolar morphologies exhibit a high degree of diversity, but the causes of variation are still relatively unexplored. Here we show that wear-related dentoalveolar remodeling is one of the principal mechanisms causing mandibular shape variation in fossil Homo and in modern human hunter–gatherer populations. We identify a consistent pattern of mandibular morphological alteration, suggesting that dental wear and compensatory remodeling mechanisms remained fairly constant throughout the evolution of the genus Homo. With increasing occlusal and interproximal tooth wear, the teeth continue to erupt, the posterior dentition tends to drift in a mesial direction, and the front teeth become more upright. The resulting changes in dentognathic size and shape are substantial and need to be taken into account in comparative taxonomic analyses of isolated hominin mandibles. Our data further show that excessive tooth wear eventually leads to a breakdown of the normal remodeling mechanisms, resulting in dentognathic pathologies, tooth loss, and loss of masticatory function. Complete breakdown of dentognathic homeostasis, however, is unlikely to have limited the life span of early Homo because this effect was likely mediated by the preparation of soft foods.
- Published
- 2013
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