OBJECTIVES: Justinian plague and its subsequent outbreaks were major events influencing Early Medieval Europe. One of the affected communities was the population of Saint-Doulchard in France, where plague victim burials were concentrated in a cemetery enclosure ditch. This study aimed to obtain more information about their life-histories using the tools of isotope analysis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Dietary analysis using carbon and nitrogen isotopes was conducted on 97 individuals buried at Le Pressoir in Saint-Doulchard, with 36 of those originating from the enclosure ditch. This sample set includes all individuals analyzed for plague DNA in a previous study. Mobility analysis using strontium isotope analysis supplements the dietary study, with 47 analyzed humans. The results are supported by a reference sample set of 31 animal specimens for dietary analysis and 9 for mobility analysis. RESULTS: The dietary analysis results showed significantly different dietary behavior in individuals from the ditch burials, with better access to higher quality foods richer in animal protein. 87Sr/86Sr ratios are similar for both studied groups and indicate a shared or similar area of origin. DISCUSSION: The results suggest that the ditch burials contain an urban population from the nearby city of Bourges, which overall had a better diet than the rural population from Saint-Doulchard. It is implied that city's population might have been subjected to high mortality rates during the plague outbreak(s), which led to their interment in nearby rural cemeteries.
- MeSH
- dějiny středověku MeSH
- dieta * škodlivé účinky dějiny MeSH
- dítě MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- hřbitovy MeSH
- izotopy dusíku * analýza MeSH
- izotopy stroncia analýza MeSH
- izotopy uhlíku * analýza MeSH
- kojenec MeSH
- lidé středního věku MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- mladý dospělý MeSH
- mor * dějiny epidemiologie mortalita MeSH
- předškolní dítě MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- dějiny středověku MeSH
- dítě MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- kojenec MeSH
- lidé středního věku MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- mladý dospělý MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- předškolní dítě MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- historické články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Francie MeSH
OBJECTIVES: This study presents biological affinities between the last hunter-fisher-gatherers and first food-producing societies from the Nile Valley. We investigate odontometric and dental tissue proportion changes between these populations from the Middle Nile Valley and acknowledge the biological processes behind them. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Dental remains of 329 individuals from Nubia and Central Sudan that date from the Late Pleistocene to the mid-Holocene are studied. Using 3D imaging techniques, we investigated outer and inner metric aspects of upper central incisors, and first and second upper molars. RESULTS: Late Paleolithic and Mesolithic foragers display homogeneous crown dimensions, dental tissue proportions, and enamel thickness distribution. This contrasts with Neolithic trends for significant differences from earlier samples on inner and outer aspects. Finally, within the Neolithic sample differences are found between Nubian and Central Sudanese sites. DISCUSSION: Substantial dental variation appears to have occurred around 6000 bce in the Nile Valley, coinciding with the emergence of food-producing societies in the region. Archeological and biological records suggest little differences in dietary habits and dental health during this transition. Furthermore, the substantial variations identified here would have happened in an extremely short time, a few centuries at most. This does not support in situ diet-related adaptation. Rather, we suggest these data are consistent with some level of population discontinuity between the Mesolithic and Neolithic samples considered here. Complex settlement processes could also explain the differences between Nubia and Central Sudan, and with previous results based on nonmetric traits.
- MeSH
- dějiny starověku MeSH
- dieta dějiny MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- moláry anatomie a histologie MeSH
- paleodontologie * MeSH
- řezáky anatomie a histologie MeSH
- zuby anatomie a histologie chemie MeSH
- Check Tag
- dějiny starověku MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- historické články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Súdán MeSH
- Klíčová slova
- archeogenetika, pravěk,
- MeSH
- archeologie * MeSH
- dějiny starověku MeSH
- genetický výzkum * MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- populační genetika * MeSH
- Check Tag
- dějiny starověku MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- historické články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Česká republika MeSH
- Evropa MeSH
In forensic contexts, sternal anatomical varieties represent useful tools for the identification of an individual, either by comparison of ante-mortem and post-mortem data, or by potential comparison of data from biologically related individuals. Sternal body variation is also used to detect the biological affinity of individuals in bioarchaeology. However, no study has been made available to date on the degree to which the overall shape of the sternal body reflects the degree of biological relatedness. We, therefore, analyzed the sternal body shape of 10 individuals with known genealogical data, members of one family over three generations including inbred individuals (19th-20th centuries, Bohemia, Czech Republic), and a control sample of 12 biologically unrelated individuals. First, closely biologically related individuals were compared with unrelated individuals based on 10 variables expressing the morphological characteristics of the sternum, and then all individuals were compared based on Fourier analysis depending on their degree of relationship. The results showed that there is a greater degree of shape similarity in biologically related individuals than in unrelated individuals, and variability decreases with an increasing degree of relatedness. Inbred individuals showed the lowest sternum-shape distances and degree of variability, while unrelated individuals, showed the highest distances and variability. Moreover, in some cases, the documented relationships were also supported by a similar morphology of the ossified and fused xiphoid process. Thus, sternal shape analysis expands the possibilities for individual identification and the detection of the biological affinity of individuals for both the forensic sciences and bioarchaeology.
- MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- osteogeneze MeSH
- pitva MeSH
- rodinné vztahy MeSH
- somatotypy * MeSH
- sternum * MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
The article introduces the enhancements made to the IsoArcH database for isotope paleopathology. This includes the addition of new metadata fields, which allow for describing abnormal anatomical or physiological conditions in humans and animals at either the individual or sample level. To showcase the novel features of the database, the article features a unique dataset of carbon and nitrogen isotope values obtained on bulk bone collagen from 42 clinically-documented cases of the Jedlička pathological-anatomical reference collection, dating from the 19th century CE and curated at the National Museum in Prague, Czechia. The dataset includes 70 combined isotopic measurements from individuals who underwent anatomizations between 1841 and 1900 and had distinct bone diseases/disorders: i.e. syphilis, rickets, osteosarcoma, osteomyelitis, and healed fractures. Finally, the article highlights the value of the data in helping the isotope bioarchaeology and paleopathology communities in their understanding of disease processes.
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
PURPOSE: To report atypical anatomical variation of an osseous suprascapular canal, and to elaborate on its clinical significance as a potential anatomical factor that could obscure a direct posterior surgical approach and suprascapular nerve block. METHODS: Osteological observational study of the scapula with emphasis on the suprascapular space. The pool of investigated sample size was collectively 768 specimens composed of 529 adult dry scapulae (240 paired, 289 un-paired), 54 children dry scapulae, 135 wet scapulae observed during cadaveric dissections, 47 retrospective 3D CT reconstructions, and 3 retrospective full sequence shoulder MRI. The two reported cases came from the 240 (120 skeleton) observed paired scapulae. Furthermore, the osseous suprascapular canal was examined by X-rays and its internal path was exposed by CT sections. A narrative review was conducted to investigate any relevant reports on the subject matter. RESULTS: Two left dry bone scapulae with unilateral osseous suprascapular canal were found. The incidence of this atypical morphology of an osseous canal is probably five cases reported in three studies including this cases study. CONCLUSIONS: The reported cases aid in explaining additional possible anatomical factors that could lead to below threshold anesthetic effect in posterior suprascapular nerve block procedures. Therefore, it is more practical to visualize the suprascapular canal by some imaging method before attempting to blindly access the suprascapular nerve in nerve block or posterior surgical approach due to the rare potential existence of an ossified barrier hindering the procedure. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: V Basic Science Research.
- MeSH
- dítě MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- lopatka anatomie a histologie MeSH
- nervová blokáda * škodlivé účinky MeSH
- pozorovací studie jako téma MeSH
- rameno anatomie a histologie MeSH
- retrospektivní studie MeSH
- úžinové syndromy * etiologie MeSH
- Check Tag
- dítě MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- přehledy MeSH
Diploic veins (DV) run within the cranial diploe, where they leave channels that can be studied in osteological samples. This study investigates overall DV variability in human adults and the effects of sex, age, cranial dimensions, and dysmorphogenesis associated with craniosynostosis (CS). The morphology of macroscopic diploic channels was analyzed in a set of the qualitative and quantitative variables in computed tomography-images of crania of anatomically normal and craniosynostotic adult individuals. Macroscopic diploic channels occur most frequently in the frontal and parietal bones, often with a bilaterally symmetrical pattern. DV-features (especially DV-pattern) are characterized by high individual diversity. On average, there are 5.4 ± 3.5 large macroscopic channels (with diameters >1 mm) per individual, with a mean diameter of 1.7 ± 0.4 mm. Age and sex have minor effects on DV, and cranial proportions significantly influence DV only in CS skulls. CS is associated with changes in the DV numbers, distributions, and diameters. Craniosynostotic skulls, especially brachycephalic skulls, generally present smaller DV diameters, and dolichocephalic skulls display increased number of frontal DV. CS, associated with altered cranial dimensions, suture imbalance, increased intracranial pressure, and with changes of the endocranial craniovascular system, significantly also affects the macroscopic morphology of DV in adults, in terms of both structural (topological redistribution) and functional factors. The research on craniovascular morphology and CS may be of interest in biological anthropology, paleopathology, medicine (e.g., surgical planning), but also in zoology and paleontology.
ABSTRACT: The examination of documented skeletal remains provides an exceptional opportunity for biohistorical research to answer questions about an individual's life and death. Research in this area also makes it possible to assess the reliability of historical records from the period of interest, which is often the subject of discussion, especially in cases of historically known individuals. The remains of K.B.C. (1895-1940), a prominent local landowner and politician, were exhumed because of the repair of a family tomb in Jíloviště, Czech Republic. The aim of this study was to analyze pathological changes in his bones and to interpret these by comparing them with the results of a historical medical records review of private family and public archives regarding his diseases and death, thus verifying their credibility. Morphological and X-ray examinations of the bones revealed several serious pathological changes, whose presence fully corresponded to the studied documents. This showed the records' reliability, and it was thus possible to accurately interpret the lesions found. The results demonstrated the need for interdisciplinary collaboration in the analysis of such cases, including the assistance of the living descendants of the studied individuals, if possible.
- MeSH
- chorobopisy MeSH
- kosti a kostní tkáň * MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- reprodukovatelnost výsledků MeSH
- tělesné pozůstatky * MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
Cementochronology has long been associated in the literature with a high correlation between chronological and estimated age, and low differences between the two ages. The excessive accuracy was rather suspicious, and the method did not even appear in common forensic practice. An important step towards more widespread use of the method is the need to standardize work procedures, including indexes for recording the quality of cementum, preparation of thin sections and the age calculation. In our study, we used the standardized protocol for the preparation of thin sections in a set of Czech modern teeth of known age and sex. In the initial phase, 11.5% of the teeth were discarded due to severe caries in the medial part of the root. In a set of single extractions (55 teeth from 55 individuals), we focused on the detailed results of the age estimation, using precision and accuracy indicators. We also used different dental development data to calculate age, given inconsistencies in the use of eruption / mineralization. In a set of multiple extractions (68 teeth from 22 individuals), intra-individual variability was examined. The result of the application of the standardized protocol is an estimate of age with an absolute inaccuracy of -1.7 years and a relative inaccuracy of 5.4%. Calculation of precision and accuracy in the set of single extractions, however, showed the method's limitations: the imprecision measuring the variability of cementum increments counts increased with chronological age, as did the inaccuracy. The use of different dental development data did not significantly increase the accuracy of the age estimation results. Intra-individual variability remains poorly understood - in the set of multiple extractions the differences within one individual ranged between 0.9 and 10.8 years.
- MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- prořezávání zubů MeSH
- určení zubního věku * metody MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
