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Leksa V. And the stars look down: science beyond the finite : From prehistorical science to postscience. EMBO Rep 2024:10.1038/s44319-024-00202-w. [PMID: 38969947 DOI: 10.1038/s44319-024-00202-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2024] [Revised: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 06/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/07/2024] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Vladimir Leksa
- Laboratory of Molecular Immunology, Institute of Molecular Biology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia.
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2
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Xia H, Zhang D, Wang J, Fagernäs Z, Li T, Li Y, Yao J, Lin D, Troché G, Smith GM, Chen X, Cheng T, Shen X, Han Y, Olsen JV, Shen Z, Pei Z, Hublin JJ, Chen F, Welker F. Middle and Late Pleistocene Denisovan subsistence at Baishiya Karst Cave. Nature 2024:10.1038/s41586-024-07612-9. [PMID: 38961285 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07612-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
Genetic and fragmented palaeoanthropological data suggest that Denisovans were once widely distributed across eastern Eurasia1-3. Despite limited archaeological evidence, this indicates that Denisovans were capable of adapting to a highly diverse range of environments. Here we integrate zooarchaeological and proteomic analyses of the late Middle to Late Pleistocene faunal assemblage from Baishiya Karst Cave on the Tibetan Plateau, where a Denisovan mandible and Denisovan sedimentary mitochondrial DNA were found3,4. Using zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry, we identify a new hominin rib specimen that dates to approximately 48-32 thousand years ago (layer 3). Shotgun proteomic analysis taxonomically assigns this specimen to the Denisovan lineage, extending their presence at Baishiya Karst Cave well into the Late Pleistocene. Throughout the stratigraphic sequence, the faunal assemblage is dominated by Caprinae, together with megaherbivores, carnivores, small mammals and birds. The high proportion of anthropogenic modifications on the bone surfaces suggests that Denisovans were the primary agent of faunal accumulation. The chaîne opératoire of carcass processing indicates that animal taxa were exploited for their meat, marrow and hides, while bone was also used as raw material for the production of tools. Our results shed light on the behaviour of Denisovans and their adaptations to the diverse and fluctuating environments of the late Middle and Late Pleistocene of eastern Eurasia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Xia
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
- Alpine Paleoecology and Human Adaptation Group (ALPHA), State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITPCAS), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China
- College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Dongju Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.
- Alpine Paleoecology and Human Adaptation Group (ALPHA), State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITPCAS), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
| | - Jian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
- School of Earth Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Zandra Fagernäs
- Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ting Li
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yuanxin Li
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Juanting Yao
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Dongpeng Lin
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Gaudry Troché
- Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Geoff M Smith
- School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
- Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Xiaoshan Chen
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Ting Cheng
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Xuke Shen
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yuanyuan Han
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
- Alpine Paleoecology and Human Adaptation Group (ALPHA), State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITPCAS), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China
| | - Jesper V Olsen
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Zhongwei Shen
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Zhiqi Pei
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
- Gansu Provincial Museum, Lanzhou, China
| | - Jean-Jacques Hublin
- Chaire de Paléoanthropologie, CIRB, Collège de France, Université PSL, CNRS, Paris, France
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Fahu Chen
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), Key Scientific Research Base of Bioarchaeology in Cold and Arid Regions (National Cultural Heritage Administration), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.
- Alpine Paleoecology and Human Adaptation Group (ALPHA), State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITPCAS), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Frido Welker
- Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
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3
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Cazenave M, Pina M, Hammond AS, Böhme M, Begun DR, Spassov N, Gazabón AV, Zanolli C, Bergeret-Medina A, Marchi D, Macchiarelli R, Wood B. Postcranial evidence does not support habitual bipedalism in Sahelanthropus tchadensis: A reply to Daver et al. (2022). J Hum Evol 2024:103557. [PMID: 38918139 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 06/02/2024] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Marine Cazenave
- Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, 04103, Germany; Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA; Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, 0084 Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Marta Pina
- South Bank Applied BioEngineering Research (SABER), School of Engineering, Division of Mechanical Engineering and Design, London South Bank University, SE1 0AA London, UK; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, 08193, Spain
| | - Ashley S Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA; New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP) at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Madelaine Böhme
- Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Department of Geoscience, Sigwartstr. 10, 72076 Tübingen, Germany; Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment, Sigwartstr. 10, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - David R Begun
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 2S2, Canada
| | - Nikolai Spassov
- Department of Paleontology and Mineralogy, National Museum of Natural History, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, BG-1000, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Alessandra Vecino Gazabón
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY 10024, USA; New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP) at AMNH, New York, NY 10024, USA; Richard Gilder Graduate School (RGGS) at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA
| | - Clément Zanolli
- Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, MCC, PACEA, UMR 5199, F-33600 Pessac, France; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, 1 Jan Smuts Avenue, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Damiano Marchi
- Department of Biology, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, 1 Jan Smuts Avenue, Braamfontein 2000, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Bernard Wood
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology and Department of Anthropology, George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
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4
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Plaitakis A, Sidiropoulou K, Kotzamani D, Litso I, Zaganas I, Spanaki C. Evolution of Glutamate Metabolism via GLUD2 Enhances Lactate-Dependent Synaptic Plasticity and Complex Cognition. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:5297. [PMID: 38791334 PMCID: PMC11120665 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25105297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2024] [Revised: 05/07/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Human evolution is characterized by rapid brain enlargement and the emergence of unique cognitive abilities. Besides its distinctive cytoarchitectural organization and extensive inter-neuronal connectivity, the human brain is also defined by high rates of synaptic, mainly glutamatergic, transmission, and energy utilization. While these adaptations' origins remain elusive, evolutionary changes occurred in synaptic glutamate metabolism in the common ancestor of humans and apes via the emergence of GLUD2, a gene encoding the human glutamate dehydrogenase 2 (hGDH2) isoenzyme. Driven by positive selection, hGDH2 became adapted to function upon intense excitatory firing, a process central to the long-term strengthening of synaptic connections. It also gained expression in brain astrocytes and cortical pyramidal neurons, including the CA1-CA3 hippocampal cells, neurons crucial to cognition. In mice transgenic for GLUD2, theta-burst-evoked long-term potentiation (LTP) is markedly enhanced in hippocampal CA3-CA1 synapses, with patch-clamp recordings from CA1 pyramidal neurons revealing increased sNMDA receptor currents. D-lactate blocked LTP enhancement, implying that glutamate metabolism via hGDH2 potentiates L-lactate-dependent glia-neuron interaction, a process essential to memory consolidation. The transgenic (Tg) mice exhibited increased dendritic spine density/synaptogenesis in the hippocampus and improved complex cognitive functions. Hence, enhancement of neuron-glia communication, via GLUD2 evolution, likely contributed to human cognitive advancement by potentiating synaptic plasticity and inter-neuronal connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Plaitakis
- Department of Neurology, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Voutes, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece; (D.K.); (I.L.); (I.Z.)
| | - Kyriaki Sidiropoulou
- Department of Biology, University of Crete, Voutes, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece;
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas (IMBB-FORTH), 70013 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
| | - Dimitra Kotzamani
- Department of Neurology, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Voutes, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece; (D.K.); (I.L.); (I.Z.)
| | - Ionela Litso
- Department of Neurology, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Voutes, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece; (D.K.); (I.L.); (I.Z.)
| | - Ioannis Zaganas
- Department of Neurology, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Voutes, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece; (D.K.); (I.L.); (I.Z.)
- Neurology Department, PaGNI University General Hospital of Heraklion, 71500 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
| | - Cleanthe Spanaki
- Department of Neurology, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Voutes, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece; (D.K.); (I.L.); (I.Z.)
- Neurology Department, PaGNI University General Hospital of Heraklion, 71500 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
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5
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Villamil CI, Middleton ER. Conserved patterns and locomotor-related evolutionary constraints in the hominoid vertebral column. J Hum Evol 2024; 190:103528. [PMID: 38579429 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2023] [Revised: 03/13/2024] [Accepted: 03/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/07/2024]
Abstract
The evolution of the hominoid lineage is characterized by pervasive homoplasy, notably in regions such as the vertebral column, which plays a central role in body support and locomotion. Few isolated and fewer associated vertebrae are known for most fossil hominoid taxa, but identified specimens indicate potentially high levels of convergence in terms of both form and number. Homoplasy thus complicates attempts to identify the anatomy of the last common ancestor of hominins and other taxa and stymies reconstructions of evolutionary scenarios. One way to clarify the role of homoplasy is by investigating constraints via phenotypic integration, which assesses covariation among traits, shapes evolutionary pathways, and itself evolves in response to selection. We assessed phenotypic integration and evolvability across the subaxial (cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral) vertebral column of macaques (n = 96), gibbons (n = 77), chimpanzees (n = 92), and modern humans (n = 151). We found a mid-cervical cluster that may have shifted cranially in hominoids, a persistent thoracic cluster that is most marked in chimpanzees, and an expanded lumbosacral cluster in hominoids that is most expanded in gibbons. Our results highlight the highly conserved nature of the vertebral column. Taxa appear to exploit existing patterns of integration and ontogenetic processes to shift, expand, or reduce cluster boundaries. Gibbons appear to be the most highly derived taxon in our sample, possibly in response to their highly specialized locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catalina I Villamil
- School of Chiropractic, Universidad Central del Caribe, Puerto Rico, PO Box 60327, Bayamón, USA.
| | - Emily R Middleton
- Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 3413 N. Downer Ave., Sabin Hall 390, Milwaukee, WI, USA
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6
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Foley RA, Mirazón Lahr M. Ghosts of extinct apes: genomic insights into African hominid evolution. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:456-466. [PMID: 38302324 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2023] [Revised: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
We are accustomed to regular announcements of new hominin fossils. There are now some 6000 hominin fossils, and up to 31 species. However, where are the announcements of African ape fossils? The answer is that there are almost none. Our knowledge of African ape evolution is based entirely on genomic analyses, which show that extant diversity is very young. This contrasts with the extensive and deep diversity of hominins known from fossils. Does this difference point to low and late diversification of ape lineages, or high rates of extinction? The comparative evolutionary dynamics of African hominids are central to interpreting living ape adaptations, as well as understanding the patterns of hominin evolution and the nature of the last common ancestor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert A Foley
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, The Henry Wellcome Building, Fitzwilliam Street, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, UK.
| | - Marta Mirazón Lahr
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, The Henry Wellcome Building, Fitzwilliam Street, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, UK
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7
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Powell VCR, Barr WA, Hammond AS, Wood BA. Behavioral and phylogenetic correlates of limb length proportions in extant apes and monkeys: Implications for interpreting hominin fossils. J Hum Evol 2024; 190:103494. [PMID: 38564844 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
The body proportions of extant animals help inform inferences about the behaviors of their extinct relatives, but relationships between body proportions, behavior, and phylogeny in extant primates remain unclear. Advances in behavioral data, molecular phylogenies, and multivariate analytical tools make it an opportune time to perform comprehensive comparative analyses of primate traditional limb length proportions (e.g., intermembral, humerofemoral, brachial, and crural indices), body size-adjusted long bone proportions, and principal components. In this study we used a mix of newly-collected and published data to investigate whether and how the limb length proportions of a diverse sample of primates, including monkeys, apes, and modern humans, are influenced by behavior and phylogeny. We reconfirm that the intermembral index, followed by the first principal component of traditional limb length proportions, is the single most effective variable distinguishing hominoids and other anthropoids. Combined limb length proportions and positional behaviors are strongly correlated in extant anthropoid groups, but phylogeny is a better predictor of limb length proportion variation than of behavior. We confirm convergences between members of the Atelidae and extant apes (especially Pan), members of the Hylobatidae and Pongo, and a potential divergence of Presbytis limb proportions from some other cercopithecoids, which correlate with adaptations for forelimb-dominated behaviors in some colobines. Collectively, these results substantiate hypotheses indicating that extinct hominins and other hominoid taxa can be distinguished by analyzing combinations of their limb length proportions at different taxonomic levels. From these results, we hypothesize that fossil skeletons characterized by notably disparate limb length proportions are unlikely to have exhibited similar behavioral patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vance C R Powell
- Department of Anatomy, Howard University College of Medicine, 520 W St. N.W., Washington, D.C., 20059, USA; Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., 20052, USA.
| | - W Andrew Barr
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., 20052, USA
| | - Ashley S Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, N.Y., 10024, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology at AMNH, New York, N.Y., 10024, USA
| | - Bernard A Wood
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., 20052, USA
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8
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Takahi M, Hamazaki Y, Ohnuma K, Imamura M. Cardiac differentiation of chimpanzee induced pluripotent stem cell lines with different subspecies backgrounds. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Anim 2024; 60:555-562. [PMID: 38753247 DOI: 10.1007/s11626-024-00914-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
The comparative analysis between humans and non-human primates is an instrumental approach for elucidating the evolutional traits and disease propensity of humans. However, in primates, cross-species analyses of their developmental events have encountered constraints because of the ethical and technical limitations in available sample collection, sequential monitoring, and manipulations. In an endeavor to surmount these challenges, in recent years, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have garnered escalating interest as an in vitro tool for cross-species analyses between humans and non-human primates. Meanwhile, compared to humans, there is less information on in vitro differentiation of non-human primate iPSCs, and their genetic diversity including subspecies may cause different eligibility to in vitro differentiation methods. Therefore, antecedent to embarking on a comparative analysis to humans, it is a prerequisite to develop the efficacious methodologies for in vitro differentiation regardless of the intraspecies genetic background in non-human primates. In this study, we executed the in vitro differentiation of cardiomyocytes from four chimpanzee iPSC lines with different subspecies and individual backgrounds. To induce cardiomyocytes from chimpanzee iPSCs, we evaluated our methodology for in vitro cardiac differentiation of human iPSCs. Eventually, with minor alterations, our cardiac differentiation method was applicable to all chimpanzee iPSC lines tested as assessed by the expression of cardiac marker genes and the beating ability. Hence, our in vitro differentiation method will advance iPSC-based research of chimpanzee cardiac development and also hold possible utility to cross-species analyses among primate species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mika Takahi
- Department of Science of Technology Innovation, Nagaoka University of Technology, 1603-1 Kamitomioka, Nagaoka, Niigata, 940-2188, Japan.
| | - Yusuke Hamazaki
- Molecular Biology Section, Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, 484-8506, Japan
| | - Kiyoshi Ohnuma
- Department of Science of Technology Innovation, Nagaoka University of Technology, 1603-1 Kamitomioka, Nagaoka, Niigata, 940-2188, Japan
| | - Masanori Imamura
- Molecular Biology Section, Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, 484-8506, Japan
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9
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Bouchet F, Zanolli C, Urciuoli A, Almécija S, Fortuny J, Robles JM, Beaudet A, Moyà-Solà S, Alba DM. The Miocene primate Pliobates is a pliopithecoid. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2822. [PMID: 38561329 PMCID: PMC10984959 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47034-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
The systematic status of the small-bodied catarrhine primate Pliobates cataloniae, from the Miocene (11.6 Ma) of Spain, is controversial because it displays a mosaic of primitive and derived features compared with extant hominoids (apes and humans). Cladistic analyses have recovered Pliobates as either a stem hominoid or as a pliopithecoid stem catarrhine (i.e., preceding the cercopithecoid-hominoid divergence). Here, we describe additional dental remains of P. cataloniae from another locality that display unambiguous synapomorphies of crouzeliid pliopithecoids. Our cladistic analyses support a close phylogenetic link with poorly-known small crouzeliids from Europe based on (cranio)dental characters but recover pliopithecoids as stem hominoids when postcranial characters are included. We conclude that Pliobates is a derived stem catarrhine that shows postcranial convergences with modern apes in the elbow and wrist joints-thus clarifying pliopithecoid evolution and illustrating the plausibility of independent acquisition of postcranial similarities between hylobatids and hominids.
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Grants
- This publication is part of R+D+I projects PID2020-116908GB-I00 (to S.M.S. and J.M.R.), PID2020-117289GB-I00 (to D.M.A. and J.M.R.), and PID2020-117118GB-I00 (to J.F.), funded by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación of the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación from Spain (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/). Research has also been funded by the Generalitat de Catalunya/CERCA Programme (to F.B., A.U., S.A., J.F., J.M.R., S.M.S., and D.M.A.); the Agència de Gestió d’Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Consolidated Research Groups 2022 SGR 00620 to D.M.A. and J.M.R., 2022 SGR 01184 to J.F., and 2022 SGR 01188 to S.M.S.); the Departament de Cultura of the Generalitat de Catalunya (CLT009/18/00071 to S.M.S. and CLT0009_22_000018 to D.M.A.); a predoctoral grant from the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (PRE2018-083299 to F.B.); a Margarita Salas postdoctoral fellowship funded by the European Union NextGenerationEU to A.U.; and a Ramón y Cajal grant (RYC2021-032857-I) financed by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación of the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación from Spain (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033) and the European Union «NextGenerationEU» / PRTR to J.F.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Bouchet
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Clément Zanolli
- Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, MCC, PACEA, UMR 5199, F-33600, Pessac, France
| | - Alessandro Urciuoli
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
- Division of Palaeoanthropology, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Universidad de Alcalá, Cátedra de Otoacústica Evolutiva y Paleoantropología (HM Hospitales-UAH), Departamento de Ciencias de la Vida, 28871 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain
| | - Sergio Almécija
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, 10024, USA
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY, 10016, USA
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josep M Robles
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Amélie Beaudet
- Laboratoire de Paléontologie, Évolution, Paléoécosystèmes et Paléoprimatologie (PALEVOPRIM), UMR 7262 CNRS, Univ. Poitiers, Poitiers, France
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, United Kingdom
- School of Geography, Archaeology, and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, WITS, 2050, South Africa
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, 08010, Barcelona, Spain
- Unitat d'Antropologia Biològica (Departament de Biologia Animal, de Biologia Vegetal i d'Ecologia), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
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10
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Druelle F, Ghislieri M, Molina-Vila P, Rimbaud B, Agostini V, Berillon G. A comparative study of muscle activity and synergies during walking in baboons and humans. J Hum Evol 2024; 189:103513. [PMID: 38401300 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/26/2024]
Abstract
Bipedal locomotion was a major functional change during hominin evolution, yet, our understanding of this gradual and complex process remains strongly debated. Based on fossil discoveries, it is possible to address functional hypotheses related to bipedal anatomy, however, motor control remains intangible with this approach. Using comparative models which occasionally walk bipedally has proved to be relevant to shed light on the evolutionary transition toward habitual bipedalism. Here, we explored the organization of the neuromuscular control using surface electromyography (sEMG) for six extrinsic muscles in two baboon individuals when they walk quadrupedally and bipedally on the ground. We compared their muscular coordination to five human subjects walking bipedally. We extracted muscle synergies from the sEMG envelopes using the non-negative matrix factorization algorithm which allows decomposing the sEMG data in the linear combination of two non-negative matrixes (muscle weight vectors and activation coefficients). We calculated different parameters to estimate the complexity of the sEMG signals, the duration of the activation of the synergies, and the generalizability of the muscle synergy model across species and walking conditions. We found that the motor control strategy is less complex in baboons when they walk bipedally, with an increased muscular activity and muscle coactivation. When comparing the baboon bipedal and quadrupedal pattern of walking to human bipedalism, we observed that the baboon bipedal pattern of walking is closer to human bipedalism for both baboons, although substantial differences remain. Overall, our findings show that the muscle activity of a non-adapted biped effectively fulfills the basic mechanical requirements (propulsion and balance) for walking bipedally, but substantial refinements are possible to optimize the efficiency of bipedal locomotion. In the evolutionary context of an expanding reliance on bipedal behaviors, even minor morphological alterations, reducing muscle coactivation, could have faced strong selection pressure, ultimately driving bipedal evolution in hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Druelle
- Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique, UMR 7194, CNRS-MNHN-UPVD, Musée de l'Homme, 17 place du Trocadéro, 75116 Paris, France; Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France; Functional Morphology Laboratory, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken (Building D), Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Marco Ghislieri
- Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy; PoliTo(BIO)Med Lab, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy
| | - Pablo Molina-Vila
- Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France
| | - Brigitte Rimbaud
- Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France
| | - Valentina Agostini
- Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy; PoliTo(BIO)Med Lab, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24, 10129 Turin, Italy
| | - Gilles Berillon
- Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique, UMR 7194, CNRS-MNHN-UPVD, Musée de l'Homme, 17 place du Trocadéro, 75116 Paris, France; Primatology Station of the CNRS, UAR 846, 2230 route des quatre tours, 13790 Rousset, France
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11
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Zhang Y, Ni X, Li Q, Stidham T, Lu D, Gao F, Zhang C, Harrison T. Lufengpithecus inner ear provides evidence of a common locomotor repertoire ancestral to human bipedalism. Innovation (N Y) 2024; 5:100580. [PMID: 38476202 PMCID: PMC10928440 DOI: 10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Various lines of evidence have been used to infer the origin of human bipedalism, but the paucity of hominoid postcranial fossils and the diversity of inferred locomotor modes have tended to confound the reconstruction of ancestral morphotypes. Examination of the bony labyrinth morphology of the inner ear of extinct and living hominoids provides independent evidence for inferring the evolution of hominoid locomotor patterns. New computed tomography data and morphometric analyses of the Late Miocene ape Lufengpithecus indicate that it and other stem great apes possess labyrinths similar to one another and show that hominoids initially evolved from a positional repertoire that included orthogrady, below-branch forelimb suspension and progression, above-branch bipedalism, climbing, clambering, and leaping (hylobatid-like) to one that comprised above-branch quadrupedalism, below-branch forelimb suspension, vertical climbing, limited leaping, terrestrial quadrupedal running and walking, possibly with knuckle walking, and short bouts of bipedalism (chimpanzee-like). The bony labyrinth morphology of Lufengpithecus indicates that it probably conforms more closely to the last common ancestors of crown hominoids and hominids in its locomotor behavior than do other Miocene hominoids. Human bipedalism evolved from this common archetypal Lufengpithecus-like locomotor repertoire. The low evolutionary rate of semicircular canal morphology suggests that Lufengpithecus experienced a relative stasis in locomotor behavior, probably due to the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau, which created a stable environment in the Miocene of southwestern China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yinan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xijun Ni
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Qiang Li
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Thomas Stidham
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dan Lu
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Feng Gao
- Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archeology, Kunming 650118, China
| | - Chi Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Terry Harrison
- Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
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12
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Alba DM, Bouchet F, Fortuny J, Robles JM, Galindo J, Luján ÀH, Moyà-Solà S, Zanolli C. New remains of the Miocene great ape Anoiapithecus brevirostris from Abocador de Can Mata. J Hum Evol 2024; 188:103497. [PMID: 38402672 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 01/09/2024] [Accepted: 01/12/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Florian Bouchet
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josep M Robles
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Galindo
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Àngel H Luján
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain; Unitat d'Antropologia Biològica (Dept. BABVE), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Clément Zanolli
- Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, MCC, PACEA, UMR 5199, F-33600, Pessac, France.
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13
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Aramendi J, Mabulla A, Baquedano E, Domínguez-Rodrigo M. Biomechanical and taxonomic diversity in the Early Pleistocene in East Africa: Structural analysis of a recently discovered femur shaft from Olduvai Gorge (bed I). J Hum Evol 2024; 186:103469. [PMID: 38071888 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Revised: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023]
Abstract
Recent Plio-Pleistocene hominin findings have revealed the complexity of human evolutionary history and the difficulties involved in its interpretation. Moreover, the study of hominin long bone remains is particularly problematic, since it commonly depends on the analysis of fragmentary skeletal elements that in many cases are merely represented by small diaphyseal portions and appear in an isolated fashion in the fossil record. Nevertheless, the study of the postcranial skeleton is particularly important to ascertain locomotor patterns. Here we report on the discovery of a robust hominin femoral fragment (OH 84) at the site of Amin Mturi Korongo dated to 1.84 Ma (Olduvai Bed I). External anatomy and internal bone structure of OH 84 were analyzed and compared with previously published data for modern humans and chimpanzees, as well as for Australopithecus, Paranthropus and Homo specimens ranging from the Late Pliocene to Late Pleistocene. Biomechanical analyses based on transverse cross-sections and the comparison of OH 84 with another robust Olduvai specimen (OH 80) suggest that OH 84 might be tentatively allocated to Paranthropus boisei. More importantly, the identification of a unique combination of traits in OH 84 could indicate both terrestrial bipedalism and an arboreal component in the locomotor repertoire of this individual. If interpreted correctly, OH 84 could thus add to the already mounting evidence of substantial locomotor diversity among Early Pleistocene hominins. Likewise, our results also highlight the difficulties in accurately interpreting the link between form and function in the human fossil record based on fragmentary remains, and ultimately in distinguishing between coeval hominin groups due to the heterogeneous pattern of inter- and intraspecific morphological variability detected among fossil femora.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Aramendi
- McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, CB2 1TN, UK.
| | - Audax Mabulla
- Department of Archaeology and Heritage Studies, University of Dar Es Salaam, P.O. Box 35050, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Enrique Baquedano
- Archaeological and Paleontological Museum of the Community of Madrid, Plaza de Las Bernardas s/n, 28801, Alcalá de Henares, Spain; Institute of Evolution in Africa (IDEA), University of Alcalá and Archaeological and Paleontological Museum of the Community of Madrid, C/Covarrubias 36, 28010, Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel Domínguez-Rodrigo
- Institute of Evolution in Africa (IDEA), University of Alcalá and Archaeological and Paleontological Museum of the Community of Madrid, C/Covarrubias 36, 28010, Madrid, Spain; University of Alcalá, Department of History and Philosophy, Area of Prehistory, C/Colegios 2, 28801, Alcalá de Henares, Spain; Rice University, Department of Anthropology, 6100 Main St., Houston, TX, 77005 1827, USA
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14
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López-Rey JM, Cambra-Moo Ó, González Martín A, Candelas González N, Sánchez-Andrés Á, Tawane M, Cazenave M, Williams SA, Bastir M, García-Martínez D. Covariation between the shape and mineralized tissues of the rib cross section in Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes and Sts 14. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2024; 183:157-164. [PMID: 37724468 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Studying rib torsion is crucial for understanding the evolution of the hominid ribcage. Interestingly, there are variables of the rib cross section that could be associated with rib torsion and, consequently, with the morphology of the thorax. The aim of this research is to conduct a comparative study of the shape and mineralized tissues of the rib cross section in different hominids to test for significant differences and, if possible, associate them to different thoracic morphotypes. MATERIALS AND METHODS The sample consists of the rib cross sections at the midshaft taken from 10 Homo sapiens and 10 Pan troglodytes adult individuals, as well as from A. africanus Sts 14. The shape of these rib cross sections was quantified using geometric morphometrics, while the mineralized tissues were evaluated using the compartmentalization index. Subsequently, covariation between both parameters was tested by a Spearman's ρ test, a permutation test and a linear regression. RESULTS Generally, P. troglodytes individuals exhibit rib cross sections that are rounder and more mineralized compared to those of H. sapiens. However, the covariation between both parameters was only observed in typical ribs (levels 3-10). Although covariation was not found in the rib cross sections of Sts 14, their parameters are closer to P. troglodytes. DISCUSSION On the one hand, the differences observed in the rib cross sections between H. sapiens and P. troglodytes might be related to different degrees of rib torsion and, consequently, to different thoracic 3D configurations. These findings can be functionally explained by considering their distinct modes of breathing and locomotion. On the other hand, although the rib cross sections belonging to Sts 14 are more similar to those of P. troglodytes, previous publications determined that their overall morphology is closer to modern humans. This discrepancy could reflect a diversity of post-cranial adaptations in Australopithecus.
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Affiliation(s)
- José M López-Rey
- Laboratorio de Poblaciones del Pasado (LAPP), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Paleoanthropology Group, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Óscar Cambra-Moo
- Laboratorio de Poblaciones del Pasado (LAPP), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Armando González Martín
- Laboratorio de Poblaciones del Pasado (LAPP), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Nieves Candelas González
- Laboratorio de Poblaciones del Pasado (LAPP), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Mirriam Tawane
- Department of Paleontology, Ditsong National Museum of Natural History, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Marine Cazenave
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Scott A Williams
- Center for the Study of Human Origins (CSHO), Department of Anthropology, New York University (NYU), New York, New York, USA
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, New York, USA
| | - Markus Bastir
- Paleoanthropology Group, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Daniel García-Martínez
- Physical Anthropology Unit, Department of Biodiversity, Ecology, and Evolution, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Division of Paleobiology, Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), Burgos, Spain
- Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
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15
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de Groot NG, Heijmans CM, van der Wiel MK, Bruijnesteijn J, Bontrop RE. The KIR repertoire of a West African chimpanzee population is characterized by limited gene, allele, and haplotype variation. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1308316. [PMID: 38149259 PMCID: PMC10750417 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1308316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction The killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) play a pivotal role in modulating the NK cell responses, for instance, through interaction with major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules. Both gene systems map to different chromosomes but co-evolved during evolution. The human KIR gene family is characterized by abundant allelic polymorphism and copy number variation. In contrast, our knowledge of the KIR repertoire in chimpanzees is limited to 39 reported alleles, with no available population data. Only three genomic KIR region configurations have been mapped, and seventeen additional ones were deduced by genotyping. Methods Previously, we documented that the chimpanzee MHC class I repertoire has been skewed due to an ancient selective sweep. To understand the depth of the sweep, we set out to determine the full-length KIR transcriptome - in our MHC characterized pedigreed West African chimpanzee cohort - using SMRT sequencing (PacBio). In addition, the genomic organization of 14 KIR haplotypes was characterized by applying a Cas9-mediated enrichment approach in concert with long-read sequencing by Oxford Nanopore Technologies. Results In the cohort, we discovered 35 undescribed and 15 already recorded Patr-KIR alleles, and a novel hybrid KIR gene. Some KIR transcripts are subject to evolutionary conserved alternative splicing events. A detailed insight on the KIR region dynamics (location and order of genes) was obtained, however, only five new KIR region configurations were detected. The population data allowed to investigate the distribution of the MHC-C1 and C2-epitope specificity of the inhibitory lineage III KIR repertoire, and appears to be skewed towards C2. Discussion Although the KIR region is known to evolve fast, as observed in other primate species, our overall conclusion is that the genomic architecture and repertoire in West African chimpanzees exhibit only limited to moderate levels of variation. Hence, the ancient selective sweep that affected the chimpanzee MHC class I region may also have impacted the KIR system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natasja G. de Groot
- Comparative Genetics and Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, Netherlands
| | - Corrine M.C. Heijmans
- Comparative Genetics and Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, Netherlands
| | - Marit K.H. van der Wiel
- Comparative Genetics and Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, Netherlands
| | - Jesse Bruijnesteijn
- Comparative Genetics and Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, Netherlands
| | - Ronald E. Bontrop
- Comparative Genetics and Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, Netherlands
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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16
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Arranz SG, Casanovas-Vilar I, Žliobaitė I, Abella J, Angelone C, Azanza B, Bernor R, Cirilli O, DeMiguel D, Furió M, Pandolfi L, Robles JM, Sánchez IM, van den Hoek Ostende LW, Alba DM. Paleoenvironmental inferences on the Late Miocene hominoid-bearing site of Can Llobateres (NE Iberian Peninsula): An ecometric approach based on functional dental traits. J Hum Evol 2023; 185:103441. [PMID: 37857126 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Revised: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Hispanopithecus laietanus from the Late Miocene (9.8 Ma) of Can Llobateres 1 (CLL1; Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula) represents one of the latest occurrences of fossil apes in Western mainland Europe, where they are last recorded at ∼9.5 Ma. The paleoenvironment of CLL1 is thus relevant for understanding the extinction of European hominoids. To refine paleoenvironmental inferences for CLL1, we apply ecometric models based on functional crown type (FCT) variables-a scoring scheme devised to capture macroscopic functional traits of occlusal shape and wear surfaces of herbivorous large mammal molars. Paleotemperature and paleoprecipitation estimates for CLL1 are provided based on published regional regression models linking average FCT of large herbivorous mammal communities to climatic conditions. A mapping to Whittaker's present-day biome classification is also attempted based on these estimates, as well as a case-based reasoning via canonical variate analysis of FCT variables from five relevant biomes. Estimates of mean annual temperature (25 °C) and mean annual precipitation (881 mm) classify CLL1 as a tropical seasonal forest/savanna, only in partial agreement with the canonical variate analysis results, which classify CLL1 as a tropical rainforest with a higher probability. The former biome agrees better with previous inferences derived from fossil plants and mammals, as well as preliminary isotopic data. The misclassification of CLL1 as a tropical forest is attributed to the mixture of forest-adapted taxa with others adapted to more open environments, given that faunal and plant composition indicates the presence of a dense wetland/riparian forest with more open woodlands nearby. The tested FCT ecometric approaches do not provide unambiguous biome classification for CLL1. Nevertheless, our results are consistent with those from other approaches, thus suggesting that FCT variables are potentially useful to investigate paleoenvironmental changes through time and space-including those that led to the extinction of European Miocene apes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara G Arranz
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Isaac Casanovas-Vilar
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Indrė Žliobaitė
- Department of Computer Science, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, 00014 Helsinky, Finland; Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 64, 00014 Helsinky, Finland
| | - Juan Abella
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Grup d'Investigació en Paleontologia de Vertebrats del Cenozoic (PVC-GIUV), Departament de Botànica i Geologia, Universitat de València, 46100 Burjassot, València, Spain; Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Pje. Rumipamba N. 341 y Av. de los Shyris (Parque La Carolina), Quito, Ecuador
| | - Chiara Angelone
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università degli Studi Roma Tre, 00146 Roma, Italy; Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100044 Beijing, China
| | - Beatriz Azanza
- Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, and Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA), Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Raymond Bernor
- College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy, Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, Howard University, 520 W St. N.W., 20059, Washington D.C., USA; Human Origins Program, Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, 20013, Washington D.C., USA
| | - Omar Cirilli
- College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy, Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, Howard University, 520 W St. N.W., 20059, Washington D.C., USA; Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, MRC 121, 20013, Washington, D.C., USA
| | - Daniel DeMiguel
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, and Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA), Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009, Zaragoza, Spain; ARAID Foundation, 50018, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Marc Furió
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Serra Húnter Fellow, Departament de Geologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Luca Pandolfi
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università della Basilicata, Via dell'Ateneo Lucano, 10, 85100, Potenza, Italy
| | - Josep M Robles
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Israel M Sánchez
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, c/ Columnes s/n, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
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17
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Guo X, Retallack GJ, Liu J. Paleoenvironments of Late Devonian tetrapods in China. Sci Rep 2023; 13:20378. [PMID: 37990036 PMCID: PMC10663569 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47728-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The major evolutionary transition from fish to amphibian included Late Devonian tetrapods that were neither fish nor amphibian. They had thick necks and small limbs with many digits on elongate flexuous bodies more suitable for water than land. Habitats of Devonian tetrapods are of interest in assessing selective pressures on their later evolution for land within three proposed habitats: 1, tidal flats, 2, desert ponds, and 3, woodland streams. Here we assess paleoenvironments of the Late Devonian tetrapod Sinostega from paleosols in Shixiagou Canyon near Zhongning, Ningxia, China. Fossil tetrapods, fish, molluscs, and plants of the Zhongning Formation are associated with different kinds of paleosols, representing early successional vegetation, seasonal wetlands, desert shrublands, and riparian woodlands, and paleoclimates ranging from semiarid moderately seasonal to monsoonal subhumid. The tetrapod Sinostega was found in a paleochannel of a meandering stream below a deep-calcic paleosol supporting well drained progymnosperm woodland in a monsoonal subhumid paleoclimate. This habitat is similar to that of the tetrapods Densignathus, Hynerpeton, and an indeterminate watcheeriid from Pennsylvania, USA. Chinese and Pennsylvanian Late Devonian tetrapods lived in productive woodland streams, choked with woody debris as a refuge from large predators. Habitats of other Devonian tetrapods have yet to be assessed from studies of associated paleosols as evidence for their ancient climate and vegetation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuelian Guo
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Mineral Resources of Gansu Province, School of Earth Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, People's Republic of China
| | - Gregory J Retallack
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, 97403-1272, USA.
| | - Jinhao Liu
- Key Laboratory of Western China's Mineral Resources of Gansu Province, School of Earth Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, People's Republic of China
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18
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Post NW, Gilbert CC, Pugh KD, Mongle CS. Implications of outgroup selection in the phylogenetic inference of hominoids and fossil hominins. J Hum Evol 2023; 184:103437. [PMID: 37783198 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the phylogenetic relationships among hominins and other hominoid species is critical to the study of human origins. However, phylogenetic inferences are dependent on both the character data and taxon sampling used. Previous studies of hominin phylogenetics have used Papio and Colobus as outgroups in their analyses; however, these extant monkeys possess many derived traits that may confound the polarities of morphological changes among living apes and hominins. Here, we consider Victoriapithecus and Ekembo as more suitable outgroups. Both Victoriapithecus and Ekembo are anatomically well known and are widely accepted as morphologically primitive stem cercopithecoid and hominoid taxa, respectively, making them more appropriate for inferring polarity for later-occurring hominoid- and hominin-focused analyses. Craniodental characters for both taxa were scored and then added to a previously published matrix of fossil hominin and extant hominoid taxa, replacing outgroups Papio and Colobus over a series of iterative analyses using both parsimony and Bayesian inference methods. Neither the addition nor replacement of outgroup taxa changed tree topology in any analysis. Importantly, however, bootstrap support values and posterior probabilities for nodes supporting their relationships generally increased compared to previous analyses. These increases were the highest at extant hominoid and basal hominin nodes, recovering the molecular ape phylogeny with considerably higher support and strengthening the inferred relationships among basal hominins. Interestingly, however, the inclusion of both extant and fossil outgroups reduced support for the crown hominid node. Our findings suggest that, in addition to improving character polarity estimation, including fossil outgroups generally strengthens confidence in relationships among extant hominoid and basal hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas W Post
- Richard Gilder Graduate School, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192, USA; Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Christopher C Gilbert
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, NY 10024, USA; Department of Anthropology, Hunter College of the City University of New York, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10065-5024, USA; PhD Program in Anthropology, Graduate Center of the City University of New York, 365 5th Ave, New York, NY 10016-4309, USA; Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192, USA
| | - Kelsey D Pugh
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, NY 10024, USA; Department of Anthropology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA
| | - Carrie S Mongle
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192, USA; Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA; Turkana Basin Institute, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364, USA.
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19
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Pugh KD, Catalano SA, Pérez de los Ríos M, Fortuny J, Shearer BM, Vecino Gazabón A, Hammond AS, Moyà-Solà S, Alba DM, Almécija S. The reconstructed cranium of Pierolapithecus and the evolution of the great ape face. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2218778120. [PMID: 37844214 PMCID: PMC10622906 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2218778120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Pierolapithecus catalaunicus (~12 million years ago, northeastern Spain) is key to understanding the mosaic nature of hominid (great ape and human) evolution. Notably, its skeleton indicates that an orthograde (upright) body plan preceded suspensory adaptations in hominid evolution. However, there is ongoing debate about this species, partly because the sole known cranium, preserving a nearly complete face, suffers from taphonomic damage. We 1) carried out a micro computerized tomography (CT) based virtual reconstruction of the Pierolapithecus cranium, 2) assessed its morphological affinities using a series of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) morphometric analyses, and 3) modeled the evolution of key aspects of ape face form. The reconstruction clarifies many aspects of the facial morphology of Pierolapithecus. Our results indicate that it is most similar to great apes (fossil and extant) in overall face shape and size and is morphologically distinct from other Middle Miocene apes. Crown great apes can be distinguished from other taxa in several facial metrics (e.g., low midfacial prognathism, relatively tall faces) and only some of these features are found in Pierolapithecus, which is most consistent with a stem (basal) hominid position. The inferred morphology at all ancestral nodes within the hominoid (ape and human) tree is closer to great apes than to hylobatids (gibbons and siamangs), which are convergent with other smaller anthropoids. Our analyses support a hominid ancestor that was distinct from all extant and fossil hominids in overall facial shape and shared many features with Pierolapithecus. This reconstructed ancestral morphotype represents a testable hypothesis that can be reevaluated as new fossils are discovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelsey D. Pugh
- Department of Anthropology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, Brooklyn, NY11210
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
| | - Santiago A. Catalano
- Unidad Ejecutora Lillo, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas—Fundación Miguel Lillo, San Miguel de Tucumán4000, Argentina
- Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, San Miguel de Tucumán4000, Argentina
| | - Miriam Pérez de los Ríos
- Unidad de Antropología física, Departamento de Biodiversidad, Ecología y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid28040, Spain
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
| | - Brian M. Shearer
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
- Department of Cell Biology, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY10016
- Department of Foundations of Medicine, New York University Long Island Grossman School of Medicine, Mineola, NY11501
| | - Alessandra Vecino Gazabón
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
- Richard Gilder Graduate School, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
| | - Ashley S. Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
| | - Salvador Moyà-Solà
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, Barcelona08010, Spain
- Unitat d’Antropologia Biològica, Departament de Biologia Animal, Biologia Vegetal i Ecologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
| | - David M. Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
| | - Sergio Almécija
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY10024
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY10024
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona08193, Spain
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20
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Lee ECS, Young NM, Rainbow MJ. A comparative approach for characterizing the relationship among morphology, range-of-motion and locomotor behaviour in the primate shoulder. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20231446. [PMID: 37848066 PMCID: PMC10581761 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Shoulder shape directly impacts forelimb function by contributing to glenohumeral (GH) range-of-motion (ROM). However, identifying traits that contribute most to ROM and visualizing how they do so remains challenging, ultimately limiting our ability to reconstruct function and behaviour in fossil species. To address these limitations, we developed an in silico proximity-driven model to simulate and visualize three-dimensional (3D) GH rotations in living primate species with diverse locomotor profiles, identify those shapes that are most predictive of ROM using geometric morphometrics, and apply subsequent insights to interpret function and behaviour in the fossil hominin Australopithecus sediba. We found that ROM metrics that incorporated 3D rotations best discriminated locomotor groups, and the magnitude of ROM (mobility) was decoupled from the anatomical location of ROM (e.g. high abduction versus low abduction). Morphological traits that enhanced mobility were decoupled from those that enabled overhead positions, and all non-human apes possessed the latter but not necessarily the former. Model simulation in A. sediba predicted high mobility and a ROM centred at lower abduction levels than in living apes but higher than in modern humans. Together these results identify novel form-to-function relationships in the shoulder and enhance visualization tools to reconstruct past function and behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin C. S. Lee
- Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 2V9
| | - Nathan M. Young
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA
| | - Michael J. Rainbow
- Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 2V9
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21
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Frynta D, Elmi HSA, Janovcová M, Rudolfová V, Štolhoferová I, Rexová K, Král D, Sommer D, Berti DA, Landová E, Frýdlová P. Are vipers prototypic fear-evoking snakes? A cross-cultural comparison of Somalis and Czechs. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1233667. [PMID: 37928591 PMCID: PMC10620321 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1233667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Snakes are known as highly fear-evoking animals, eliciting preferential attention and fast detection in humans. We examined the human fear response to snakes in the context of both current and evolutionary experiences, conducting our research in the cradle of humankind, the Horn of Africa. This region is characterized by the frequent occurrence of various snake species, including deadly venomous viperids (adders) and elapids (cobras and mambas). We conducted experiments in Somaliland and compared the results with data from Czech respondents to address the still unresolved questions: To which extent is human fear of snakes affected by evolutionary or current experience and local culture? Can people of both nationalities recognize venomous snakes as a category, or are they only afraid of certain species that are most dangerous in a given area? Are respondents of both nationalities equally afraid of deadly snakes from both families (Viperidae, Elapidae)? We employed a well-established picture-sorting approach, consisting of 48 snake species belonging to four distinct groups. Our results revealed significant agreement among Somali as well as Czech respondents. We found a highly significant effect of the stimulus on perceived fear in both populations. Vipers appeared to be the most salient stimuli in both populations, as they occupied the highest positions according to the reported level of subjectively perceived fear. The position of vipers strongly contrasts with the fear ranking of deadly venomous elapids, which were in lower positions. Fear scores of vipers were significantly higher in both populations, and their best predictor was the body width of the snake. The evolutionary, cultural, and cognitive aspects of this phenomenon are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Frynta
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Hassan Sh Abdirahman Elmi
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Education, Amoud University, Borama, Somalia
| | - Markéta Janovcová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Veronika Rudolfová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Iveta Štolhoferová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Kateřina Rexová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - David Král
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - David Sommer
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Daniel Alex Berti
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Eva Landová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Petra Frýdlová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
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22
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Bobe R, Aldeias V, Alemseged Z, Anemone RL, Archer W, Aumaître G, Bamford MK, Biro D, Bourlès DL, Doyle Boyd M, Braun DR, Capelli C, d’Oliveira Coelho J, Habermann JM, Head JJ, Keddadouche K, Kupczik K, Lebatard AE, Lüdecke T, Macôa A, Martínez FI, Mathe J, Mendes C, Paulo LM, Pinto M, Presnyakova D, Püschel TA, Regala FT, Sier M, Ferreira da Silva MJ, Stalmans M, Carvalho S. The first Miocene fossils from coastal woodlands in the southern East African Rift. iScience 2023; 26:107644. [PMID: 37701811 PMCID: PMC10494320 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2021] [Revised: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 08/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023] Open
Abstract
The Miocene was a key time in the evolution of African ecosystems witnessing the origin of the African apes and the isolation of eastern coastal forests through an expanding arid corridor. Until recently, however, Miocene sites from the southeastern regions of the continent were unknown. Here, we report the first Miocene fossil teeth from the shoulders of the Urema Rift in Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique. We provide the first 1) radiometric ages of the Mazamba Formation, 2) reconstructions of paleovegetation in the region based on pedogenic carbonates and fossil wood, and 3) descriptions of fossil teeth. Gorongosa is unique in the East African Rift in combining marine invertebrates, marine vertebrates, reptiles, terrestrial mammals, and fossil woods in coastal paleoenvironments. The Gorongosa fossil sites offer the first evidence of woodlands and forests on the coastal margins of southeastern Africa during the Miocene, and an exceptional assemblage of fossils including new species.
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Affiliation(s)
- René Bobe
- Gorongosa National Park, Sofala, Mozambique
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
- Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior (ICArEHB), Universidade do Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
| | - Vera Aldeias
- Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior (ICArEHB), Universidade do Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
| | - Zeresenay Alemseged
- Department of Organismal Biology & Anatomy, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Robert L. Anemone
- University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Department of Anthropology, Greensboro, NC 27402-6170, USA
| | - Will Archer
- Max Planck Partner Group, Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, National Museum, Bloemfontein, South Africa
- Department of Geology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | | | - Marion K. Bamford
- Evolutionary Studies Institute and School of Geosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Dora Biro
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3RB, UK
| | | | - Melissa Doyle Boyd
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - David R. Braun
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
- Technological Primate Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Cristian Capelli
- Dipartimento delle Scienze Chimiche, della Vita e della Sostenibilità Ambientale, Università di Parma, 43124 Parma, Italy
| | - João d’Oliveira Coelho
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
- Centre for Functional Ecology, University of Coimbra, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Jörg M. Habermann
- GeoZentrum Nordbayern, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, 91054 Erlangen, Germany
| | - Jason J. Head
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | | | - Kornelius Kupczik
- Departamento de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Anne-Elisabeth Lebatard
- Centre Européen de Recherche et d'Enseignement de Géosciences de l'Environnement, CEREGE - UM 34 Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, Collège de France, INRAE, OSU Institut Pythéas, Technopole Environnement Arbois - Méditerranée, Domaine du Petit Arbois, Avenue Louis Philibert, Les Milles-Aix en Provence BP80, 13545 AIX en Provence, Cedex 04, France
| | - Tina Lüdecke
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
- Emmy Noether Group for Hominin Meat Consumption, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, 55128 Mainz, Germany
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Amélia Macôa
- Departamento de Arqueologia e Antropologia, Faculdade de Letras e Ciências Sociais, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Felipe I. Martínez
- Escuela de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Jacinto Mathe
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
| | - Clara Mendes
- Departamento de Arqueologia e Antropologia, Faculdade de Letras e Ciências Sociais, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Luis Meira Paulo
- AESDA – Associação de Estudos Subterrâneos e Defesa do Ambiente, Torres Vedras, Portugal
| | - Maria Pinto
- AESDA – Associação de Estudos Subterrâneos e Defesa do Ambiente, Torres Vedras, Portugal
| | - Darya Presnyakova
- CNRS Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille, France
- Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, 72074 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Thomas A. Püschel
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Division, School of Biological Sciences, University of Reading, Reading RG6 6LA, UK
| | - Frederico Tátá Regala
- Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior (ICArEHB), Universidade do Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
| | - Mark Sier
- CENIEH, 09002 Burgos, Spain
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands
| | - Maria Joana Ferreira da Silva
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação Em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- ONE - Organisms and Environment Group, Cardiff University, School of Biosciences, Sir Martin Evans Building, c5:15, Cardiff CF10 3AX, UK
| | | | - Susana Carvalho
- Gorongosa National Park, Sofala, Mozambique
- Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
- Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior (ICArEHB), Universidade do Algarve, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
- Centre for Functional Ecology, University of Coimbra, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal
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23
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Fannin LD, Joy MS, Dominy NJ, McGraw WS, DeSilva JM. Downclimbing and the evolution of ape forelimb morphologies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230145. [PMID: 37680499 PMCID: PMC10480693 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
The forelimbs of hominoid primates (apes) are decidedly more flexible than those of monkeys, especially at the shoulder, elbow and wrist joints. It is tempting to link the greater mobility of these joints to the functional demands of vertical climbing and below-branch suspension, but field-based kinematic studies have found few differences between chimpanzees and monkeys when comparing forelimb excursion angles during vertical ascent (upclimbing). There is, however, a strong theoretical argument for focusing instead on vertical descent (downclimbing), which motivated us to quantify the effects of climbing directionality on the forelimb kinematics of wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and sooty mangabeys (Cercocebus atys). We found that the shoulders and elbows of chimpanzees and sooty mangabeys subtended larger joint angles during bouts of downclimbing, and that the magnitude of this difference was greatest among chimpanzees. Our results cast new light on the functional importance of downclimbing, while also burnishing functional hypotheses that emphasize the role of vertical climbing during the evolution of apes, including the human lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke D. Fannin
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
- Ecology, Evolution, Environment and Society, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Mary S. Joy
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Nathaniel J. Dominy
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - W. Scott McGraw
- Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Jeremy M. DeSilva
- Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
- Ecology, Evolution, Environment and Society, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
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24
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MacLatchy LM, Cote SM, Deino AL, Kityo RM, Mugume AAT, Rossie JB, Sanders WJ, Cosman MN, Driese SG, Fox DL, Freeman AJ, Jansma RJW, Jenkins KEH, Kinyanjui RN, Lukens WE, McNulty KP, Novello A, Peppe DJ, Strömberg CAE, Uno KT, Winkler AJ, Kingston JD. The evolution of hominoid locomotor versatility: Evidence from Moroto, a 21 Ma site in Uganda. Science 2023; 380:eabq2835. [PMID: 37053310 DOI: 10.1126/science.abq2835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/15/2023]
Abstract
Living hominoids are distinguished by upright torsos and versatile locomotion. It is hypothesized that these features evolved for feeding on fruit from terminal branches in forests. To investigate the evolutionary context of hominoid adaptive origins, we analyzed multiple paleoenvironmental proxies in conjunction with hominoid fossils from the Moroto II site in Uganda. The data indicate seasonally dry woodlands with the earliest evidence of abundant C4 grasses in Africa based on a confirmed age of 21 million years ago (Ma). We demonstrate that the leaf-eating hominoid Morotopithecus consumed water-stressed vegetation, and postcrania from the site indicate ape-like locomotor adaptations. These findings suggest that the origin of hominoid locomotor versatility is associated with foraging on leaves in heterogeneous, open woodlands rather than forests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura M MacLatchy
- Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Susanne M Cote
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Alan L Deino
- Berkeley Geochronology Center, Berkeley, CA 94709, USA
| | - Robert M Kityo
- Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Amon A T Mugume
- Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
- Uganda National Museum, Department of Museums and Monuments, Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Kampala, Uganda
| | - James B Rossie
- Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - William J Sanders
- Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Miranda N Cosman
- Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Steven G Driese
- Department of Geosciences, Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798, USA
| | - David L Fox
- Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - April J Freeman
- Department of Geosciences, Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798, USA
| | - Rutger J W Jansma
- Institute of Human Origins, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
| | - Kirsten E H Jenkins
- Department of Social Sciences, Tacoma Community College, Tacoma, WA 98466, USA
| | - Rahab N Kinyanjui
- Earth Sciences Department, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
- Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology, Jena D-07743, Germany
- Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013, USA
| | - William E Lukens
- Department of Geology & Environmental Science, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA 22807, USA
| | - Kieran P McNulty
- Department of Anthropology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Alice Novello
- CEREGE, Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, Collège de France, INRAE, Aix en Provence, France
- Department of Biology & Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Daniel J Peppe
- Department of Geosciences, Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798, USA
| | - Caroline A E Strömberg
- Department of Biology & Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Kevin T Uno
- Division of Biology and Paleo Environment, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, NY 10964, USA
| | - Alisa J Winkler
- Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275, USA
- Section of Anatomy, Department of Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - John D Kingston
- Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
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Hagen EH, Blackwell AD, Lightner AD, Sullivan RJ. Homo medicus: The transition to meat eating increased pathogen pressure and the use of pharmacological plants in Homo. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2023; 180:589-617. [PMID: 36815505 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Revised: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023]
Abstract
The human lineage transitioned to a more carnivorous niche 2.6 mya and evolved a large body size and slower life history, which likely increased zoonotic pathogen pressure. Evidence for this increase includes increased zoonotic infections in modern hunter-gatherers and bushmeat hunters, exceptionally low stomach pH compared to other primates, and divergence in immune-related genes. These all point to change, and probably intensification, in the infectious disease environment of Homo compared to earlier hominins and other apes. At the same time, the brain, an organ in which immune responses are constrained, began to triple in size. We propose that the combination of increased zoonotic pathogen pressure and the challenges of defending a large brain and body from pathogens in a long-lived mammal, selected for intensification of the plant-based self-medication strategies already in place in apes and other primates. In support, there is evidence of medicinal plant use by hominins in the middle Paleolithic, and all cultures today have sophisticated, plant-based medical systems, add spices to food, and regularly consume psychoactive plant substances that are harmful to helminths and other pathogens. We propose that the computational challenges of discovering effective plant-based treatments, the consequent ability to consume more energy-rich animal foods, and the reduced reliance on energetically-costly immune responses helped select for increased cognitive abilities and unique exchange relationships in Homo. In the story of human evolution, which has long emphasized hunting skills, medical skills had an equal role to play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward H Hagen
- Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
| | - Aaron D Blackwell
- Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
| | - Aaron D Lightner
- Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
- Department of the Study of Religion, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Roger J Sullivan
- Department of Anthropology, California State University, Sacramento, California, USA
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Zanolli C, Bouchet F, Fortuny J, Bernardini F, Tuniz C, Alba DM. A reassessment of the distinctiveness of dryopithecine genera from the Iberian Miocene based on enamel-dentine junction geometric morphometric analyses. J Hum Evol 2023; 177:103326. [PMID: 36863301 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 01/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/04/2023]
Abstract
A vast diversity of catarrhines primates has been uncovered in the Middle to Late Miocene (12.5-9.6 Ma) of the Vallès-Penedès Basin (northeastern Spain), including several hominid species (Pierolapithecus catalaunicus, Anoiapithecus brevirostris, Dryopithecus fontani, Hispanopithecus laietanus, and Hispanopithecus crusafonti) plus some remains attributed to 'Sivapithecus' occidentalis (of uncertain taxonomic validity). However, Pierolapithecus and Anoiapithecus have also been considered junior synonyms of Dryopithecus by some authors, which entail a lower generic diversity and an inflated intrageneric variation of the latter genus. Since the distinction of these taxa partly relies on dental features, the detailed and quantitative analysis of tooth shape might help disentangling the taxonomic diversity of these Miocene hominids. Using diffeomorphic surface matching and three-dimensional geometric morphometrics, we investigate the enamel-dentine junction shape (which is a reliable taxonomic proxy) of these Miocene hominids, with the aim of investigating their degree of intra- and intergeneric variation compared with that of extant great ape genera. We conducted statistical analyses, including between-group principal component analyses, canonical variate analyses, and permutation tests, to investigate whether the individual and combined (i.e., Dryopithecus s.l.) variation of the extinct genera exceeds that of the extant great apes. Our results indicate that Pierolapithecus, Anoiapithecus, Dryopithecus, and Hispanopithecus show morphological differences of enamel-dentine junction shape relative to the extant great apes that are consistent with their attribution to different genera. Specifically, the variation displayed by the Middle Miocene taxa combined exceeds that of extant great ape genera, thus undermining the single-genus hypothesis. 'Sivapithecus' occidentalis specimens fall close to Dryopithecus but in the absence of well-preserved comparable teeth for Pierolapithecus and Anoiapithecus, their taxonomic attribution remains uncertain. Among the Hispanopithecus sample, IPS1802 from Can Llobateres stands out and might either be an outlier in terms of morphology, or represent another dryopithecine taxon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clément Zanolli
- Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, MCC, PACEA, UMR 5199, F-33600 Pessac, France.
| | - Florian Bouchet
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Josep Fortuny
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Federico Bernardini
- Department of Humanistic Studies, Università Ca'Foscari, Venezia, Italy; Multidisciplinary Laboratory, 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Via Beirut 31, 34151 Trieste, Italy
| | - Claudio Tuniz
- Multidisciplinary Laboratory, 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Via Beirut 31, 34151 Trieste, Italy
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
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Lu LL, Yao YF, Wang GA, Xie G, Lu KQ, Sun B, Li JF, Bruch AA, Ferguson DK, Cui YM, Wang Q, Zhou XY, Gao F, Wang YF. Palaeobotanical evidence reveals the living conditions of Miocene Lufengpithecus in East Asia. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2023; 23:155. [PMID: 36945024 PMCID: PMC10031969 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-023-04165-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding the relationship between human evolution and environmental changes is the key to lifting the veil on human origin. The hypothesis that environmental changes triggered the divergence of humans from apes (ca. 9.3-6.5 million years ago, Ma) has been poorly tested because of limited continuous environmental data from fossil localities. Lufengpithecus (12.5-6.0 Ma) found on the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau (SEMTP) across the ape-human split provides a good chance for testing this hypothesis. RESULTS Here, we reconstructed the habitats of L. keiyuanensis (12.5-11.6 Ma) with comprehensive vegetation, climate, and potential food web data by palaeobotanical evidence, together with other multidisciplinary data and partly tested the environment-driven hypothesis by revealing the living conditions of Lufengpithecus. CONCLUSION A detailed comparison of hominoids on different continents reveals their behaviour and fate divergence across the ape-human split against the background of global climate change, i.e., the stable living conditions of SEMTP not only provided a so-called 'refuge' for arboreal Lufengpithecus but also acted as a 'double-edged sword', preventing their further evolution while vegetation shifts in East Africa probably stimulated the emergence of human bipedalism, and the intense climatic changes in Europe possibly prevented those hominoids from surviving that time interval. Our findings provide interesting insight into the environmental impacts on the behavioural evolution of hominoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li-Li Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Yi-Feng Yao
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Guo-An Wang
- Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China
| | - Gan Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
| | - Kai-Qing Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
| | - Bin Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
| | - Jin-Feng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
| | - Angela A Bruch
- ROCEEH Research Centre, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum, Senckenberganlage 25, 60325, Frankfurt, Germany
| | - David K Ferguson
- Department of Paleontology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, A-1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Yi-Ming Cui
- Lushan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 332900, Jiujiang, China
| | - Qiang Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Xin-Ying Zhou
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100044, Beijing, China.
| | - Feng Gao
- Department of Paleoanthropolpgy, Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, 650118, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
| | - Yu-Fei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun Xiangshan, 100093, Beijing, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
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Stamos PA, Alemseged Z. Hominin locomotion and evolution in the Late Miocene to Late Pliocene. J Hum Evol 2023; 178:103332. [PMID: 36947894 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2022] [Revised: 01/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
In this review, we present on the evolution of the locomotor adaptation of hominins in the Late Miocene to Late Pliocene, with emphasis on some of the prominent advances and debates that have occurred over the past fifty years. We start with the challenging issue of defining hominin locomotor grades that are currently used liberally and offer our own working definitions of facultative, habitual, and obligate bipedalism. We then discuss the nature of the Pan-Homo last common ancestor and characterize the locomotor adaptation of Sahelanthropus, Orrorin, and Ardipithecus-often referred to as facultative bipeds-and examine the debates on the extent of bipedality and arboreality in these taxa. Moreover, the question of Middle Pliocene hominin locomotor diversity is addressed based on information derived from the 'Little Foot' specimen from Sterkfontein, footprints from Laetoli, and the Burtele Foot in Ethiopia. Our review suggests that the most convincing evidence for locomotor diversity comes from Burtele, whereas the evidence from Sterkfontein and Laetoli is unconvincing and equivocal, respectively. Finally, we address the decades old issue of the significance of arboreality in the otherwise habitual biped, Australopithecus, with emphasis on Australopithecus afarensis and its implications for the paleobiology of these creatures. We conclude that many of the apelike features encountered, mostly in the upper part of the Australopithecus skeleton, were retained for their significance in climbing. Approaches that have investigated character plasticity and those exploring internal bone structure have shown that the shoulder and limbs in Au. afarensis and Australopithecus africanus were involved in arboreal activities that are thought to be key for feeding, nesting, and predator avoidance. We conclude that many of the so-called retained ape-like features persisted due to stabilizing selection, that early hominins engaged in a considerable amount of arboreality even after Australopithecus had become a habitual biped, and arboreality only ceased to be an important component of hominin locomotor behavior after the emergence of Homo erectus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter A Stamos
- Department of Organismal Biology & Anatomy, The University of Chicago, Anatomy Bldg 201, 1027 E 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Zeresenay Alemseged
- Department of Organismal Biology & Anatomy, The University of Chicago, Anatomy Bldg 201, 1027 E 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
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Arias-Martorell J, Urciuoli A, Almécija S, Alba DM, Nakatsukasa M. The radial head of the Middle Miocene ape Nacholapithecus kerioi: Morphometric affinities, locomotor inferences, and implications for the evolution of the hominoid humeroradial joint. J Hum Evol 2023; 178:103345. [PMID: 36933453 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2022] [Revised: 02/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Julia Arias-Martorell
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Auntònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; School of Anthropology and Conservation, Marlowe Building, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NR, UK.
| | - Alessandro Urciuoli
- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Division of Palaeoanthropology, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Auntònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sergio Almécija
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Auntònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Auntònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Masato Nakatsukasa
- Laboratory of Physical Anthropology, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, 606-8502 Kyoto, Japan
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Identifying the Most Probable Mammal Reservoir Hosts for Monkeypox Virus Based on Ecological Niche Comparisons. Viruses 2023; 15:v15030727. [PMID: 36992436 PMCID: PMC10057484 DOI: 10.3390/v15030727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous human cases or epidemics have suggested that Monkeypox virus (MPXV) can be transmitted through contact with animals of African rainforests. Although MPXV has been identified in many mammal species, most are likely secondary hosts, and the reservoir host has yet to be discovered. In this study, we provide the full list of African mammal genera (and species) in which MPXV was previously detected, and predict the geographic distributions of all species of these genera based on museum specimens and an ecological niche modelling (ENM) method. Then, we reconstruct the ecological niche of MPXV using georeferenced data on animal MPXV sequences and human index cases, and conduct overlap analyses with the ecological niches inferred for 99 mammal species, in order to identify the most probable animal reservoir. Our results show that the MPXV niche covers three African rainforests: the Congo Basin, and Upper and Lower Guinean forests. The four mammal species showing the best niche overlap with MPXV are all arboreal rodents, including three squirrels: Funisciurus anerythrus, Funisciurus pyrropus, Heliosciurus rufobrachium, and Graphiurus lorraineus. We conclude that the most probable MPXV reservoir is F. anerythrus based on two niche overlap metrics, the areas of higher probabilities of occurrence, and available data on MPXV detection.
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31
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Cazenave M, Kivell TL. Challenges and perspectives on functional interpretations of australopith postcrania and the reconstruction of hominin locomotion. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103304. [PMID: 36563461 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
In 1994, Hunt published the 'postural feeding hypothesis'-a seminal paper on the origins of hominin bipedalism-founded on the detailed study of chimpanzee positional behavior and the functional inferences derived from the upper and lower limb morphology of the Australopithecus afarensis A.L. 288-1 partial skeleton. Hunt proposed a model for understanding the potential selective pressures on hominins, made robust, testable predictions based on Au. afarensis functional morphology, and presented a hypothesis that aimed to explain the dual functional signals of the Au. afarensis and, more generally, early hominin postcranium. Here we synthesize what we have learned about Au. afarensis functional morphology and the dual functional signals of two new australopith discoveries with relatively complete skeletons (Australopithecus sediba and StW 573 'Australopithecus prometheus'). We follow this with a discussion of three research approaches that have been developed for the purpose of drawing behavioral inferences in early hominins: (1) developments in the study of extant apes as models for understanding hominin origins; (2) novel and continued developments to quantify bipedal gait and locomotor economy in extant primates to infer the locomotor costs from the anatomy of fossil taxa; and (3) novel developments in the study of internal bone structure to extract functional signals from fossil remains. In conclusion of this review, we discuss some of the inherent challenges of the approaches and methodologies adopted to reconstruct the locomotor modes and behavioral repertoires in extinct primate taxa, and notably the assessment of habitual terrestrial bipedalism in early hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marine Cazenave
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA; Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK; Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK; Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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Urciuoli A, Alba DM. Systematics of Miocene apes: State of the art of a neverending controversy. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103309. [PMID: 36716680 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Hominoids diverged from cercopithecoids during the Oligocene in Afro-Arabia, initially radiating in that continent and subsequently dispersing into Eurasia. From the Late Miocene onward, the geographic range of hominoids progressively shrank, except for hominins, which dispersed out of Africa during the Pleistocene. Although the overall picture of hominoid evolution is clear based on available fossil evidence, many uncertainties persist regarding the phylogeny and paleobiogeography of Miocene apes (nonhominin hominoids), owing to their sparse record, pervasive homoplasy, and the decimated current diversity of this group. We review Miocene ape systematics and evolution by focusing on the most parsimonious cladograms published during the last decade. First, we provide a historical account of the progress made in Miocene ape phylogeny and paleobiogeography, report an updated classification of Miocene apes, and provide a list of Miocene ape species-locality occurrences together with an analysis of their paleobiodiversity dynamics. Second, we discuss various critical issues of Miocene ape phylogeny and paleobiogeography (hylobatid and crown hominid origins, plus the relationships of Oreopithecus) in the light of the highly divergent results obtained from cladistic analyses of craniodental and postcranial characters separately. We conclude that cladistic efforts to disentangle Miocene ape phylogeny are potentially biased by a long-branch attraction problem caused by the numerous postcranial similarities shared between hylobatids and hominids-despite the increasingly held view that they are likely homoplastic to a large extent, as illustrated by Sivapithecus and Pierolapithecus-and further aggravated by abundant missing data owing to incomplete preservation. Finally, we argue that-besides the recovery of additional fossils, the retrieval of paleoproteomic data, and a better integration between cladistics and geometric morphometrics-Miocene ape phylogenetics should take advantage of total-evidence (tip-dating) Bayesian methods of phylogenetic inference combining morphologic, molecular, and chronostratigraphic data. This would hopefully help ascertain whether hylobatid divergence was more basal than currently supported.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Urciuoli
- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain; Division of Palaeoanthropology, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
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33
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Glowacki L. The evolution of peace. Behav Brain Sci 2022; 47:e1. [PMID: 36524358 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x22002862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
While some species have affiliative and even cooperative interactions between individuals of different social groups, humans are alone in having durable, positive-sum, interdependent relationships across unrelated social groups. Our capacity to have harmonious relationships that cross group boundaries is an important aspect of our species' success, allowing for the exchange of ideas, materials, and ultimately enabling cumulative cultural evolution. Knowledge about the conditions required for peaceful intergroup relationships is critical for understanding the success of our species and building a more peaceful world. How do humans create harmonious relationships across group boundaries and when did this capacity emerge in the human lineage? Answering these questions involves considering the costs and benefits of intergroup cooperation and aggression, for oneself, one's group, and one's neighbor. Taking a game theoretical perspective provides new insights into the difficulties of removing the threat of war and reveals an ironic logic to peace - the factors that enable peace also facilitate the increased scale and destructiveness of conflict. In what follows, I explore the conditions required for peace, why they are so difficult to achieve, and when we expect peace to have emerged in the human lineage. I argue that intergroup cooperation was an important component of human relationships and a selective force in our species history beginning at least 300 thousand years. But the preconditions for peace only emerged in the past 100 thousand years and likely coexisted with intermittent intergroup violence which would have also been an important and selective force in our species' history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke Glowacki
- Department of Anthropology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA ://www.hsb-lab.org/
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Sarringhaus L, Lewton KL, Iqbal S, Carlson KJ. Ape femoral-humeral rigidities and arboreal locomotion. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2022; 179:624-639. [PMID: 36790629 PMCID: PMC9828227 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES This study investigates patterns of bone functional adaptations in extant apes through comparing hindlimb to forelimb bone rigidity ratios in groups with varying levels of arboreality. MATERIALS AND METHODS Using CT scans, bone rigidity (J) was calculated at three regions of interest (ROI) along femoral and humeral diaphyses in Homo, Pongo, Pan, and Gorilla with further comparisons made between species and subspecies divisions within Pan and Gorilla. RESULTS Consistent with previous work on extant hominoids, species exhibited differences in midshaft femoral to humeral (F/H) rigidity ratios. Results of the present study confirm that these midshaft differences extend to 35% and 65% diaphyseal ROIs. Modern humans, exhibiting larger ratios, and orangutans, exhibiting smaller ratios, bracketed the intermediate African apes in comparisons. Within some African apes, limb rigidity ratios varied significantly between taxonomic groups. Eastern gorillas exhibited the highest mean ratios and chimpanzees the lowest at all three ROIs. In posthoc comparisons, chimpanzees and bonobos did not differ in relative limb rigidity ratios at any of the three ROIs. However, western gorillas were more similar to bonobos than eastern gorillas at 50% and 35% ROIs, but not at the 65% ROI. CONCLUSION Species, and to a lesser extent subspecies, can be distinguished by F/H limb rigidity ratios according to broad positional behavior patterns at multiple regions of interest along the diaphyses. Similarity of bonobos and western gorillas is in line with behavioral data of bonobos being the most terrestrial of Pan species, and western gorillas the most arboreal of the Gorilla groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren Sarringhaus
- Department of Evolutionary AnthropologyDuke UniversityDurhamNorth CarolinaUSA,Department of AnthropologyUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMichiganUSA,Department of BiologyJames Madison UniversityHarrisonburgVirginiaUSA
| | - Kristi L. Lewton
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of MedicineUniversity of Southern CaliforniaLos AngelesCaliforniaUSA
| | - Safiyyah Iqbal
- School of Animal, Plant and Environmental SciencesUniversity of the WitwatersrandJohannesburgSouth Africa
| | - Kristian J. Carlson
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of MedicineUniversity of Southern CaliforniaLos AngelesCaliforniaUSA,Evolutionary Studies InstituteUniversity of the WitwatersrandJohannesburgSouth Africa
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35
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Baboon perspectives on the ecology and behavior of early human ancestors. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2116182119. [PMID: 36279425 PMCID: PMC9659385 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2116182119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
For more than 70 y researchers have looked to baboons (monkeys of the genus
Papio
) as a source of hypotheses about the ecology and behavior of early hominins (early human ancestors and their close relatives). This approach has undergone a resurgence in the last decade as a result of rapidly increasing knowledge from experimental and field studies of baboons and from archeological and paleontological studies of hominins. The result is a rich array of analogies, scenarios, and other stimuli to thought about the ecology and behavior of early hominins. The main intent here is to illustrate baboon perspectives on early hominins, with emphasis on recent developments. This begins with a discussion of baboons and hominins as we know them currently and explains the reasons for drawing comparisons between them. These include occupation of diverse environments, combination of arboreal and terrestrial capabilities, relatively large body size, and sexual dimorphism. The remainder of the paper illustrates the main points with a small number of examples drawn from diverse areas of interest: diet (grasses and fish), danger (leopards and crocodiles), social organization (troops and multilevel societies), social relationships (male–male, male–female, female–female), communication (possible foundations of language), cognition (use of social information, comparison of self to others), and bipedalism (a speculative developmental hypothesis about the neurological basis). The conclusion is optimistic about the future of baboon perspectives on early hominins.
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de Diego M, Casado A, Gómez M, Ciurana N, Rodríguez P, Avià Y, Cuesta-Torralvo E, García N, San José I, Barbosa M, de Paz F, Pastor JF, Potau JM. Elbow Extensor Muscles in Humans and Chimpanzees: Adaptations to Different Uses of the Upper Extremity in Hominoid Primates. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12212987. [PMID: 36359111 PMCID: PMC9655010 DOI: 10.3390/ani12212987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Chimpanzees and humans are both species of hominoid primates that are closely related phylogenetically. One of the key differences between these two species is their use of their upper extremities. Humans use this limb mainly in manipulative tasks, while chimpanzees also use it during locomotion. In this study, we have analyzed the muscle architecture and the expression of the myosin heavy chain isoforms in the two elbow extensor muscles, the triceps brachii and the anconeus, in humans and chimpanzees, in order to find differences that could be related to the different uses of the upper extremities in these species. We have found that the triceps brachii of chimpanzees is more prepared for strength and power as an adaptation to locomotion, while the same muscle in humans is more prepared for speed and resistance to fatigue as an adaptation to manipulative activities. Our results increase the knowledge we have of the musculoskeletal system of chimpanzees and can be applied in various fields, such as comparative anatomy, evolutionary anatomy or anthropology. Abstract The anatomical and functional characteristics of the elbow extensor muscles (triceps brachii and anconeus) have not been widely studied in non-human hominoid primates, despite their great functional importance. In the present study, we have analyzed the muscle architecture and the expression of the myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoforms in the elbow extensors in humans and chimpanzees. Our main objective was to identify differences in these muscles that could be related to the different uses of the upper extremity in the two species. In five humans and five chimpanzees, we have analyzed muscle mass (MM), muscle fascicle length (MFL), and the physiological cross-sectional area (PCSA). In addition, we have assessed the expression of the MHC isoforms by RT-PCR. We have found high MM and PCSA values and higher expression of the MHC-IIx isoform in the triceps brachii of chimpanzees, while in humans, the triceps brachii has high MFL values and a higher expression of the MHC-I and MHC-IIa isoforms. In contrast, there were no significant differences between humans and chimpanzees in any of the values for the anconeus. These findings could be related to the participation of the triceps brachii in the locomotion of chimpanzees and to the use of the upper extremity in manipulative functions in humans. The results obtained in the anconeus support its primary function as a stabilizer of the elbow joint in the two species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina de Diego
- Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Aroa Casado
- Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d’Arqueologia de la Universitat de Barcelona (IAUB), Faculty of Geography and History, University of Barcelona (UB), 08001 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mónica Gómez
- Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Neus Ciurana
- Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Patrícia Rodríguez
- Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Yasmina Avià
- Institut d’Arqueologia de la Universitat de Barcelona (IAUB), Faculty of Geography and History, University of Barcelona (UB), 08001 Barcelona, Spain
- Biological Anthropology Unit, Department of Animal Biology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Elisabeth Cuesta-Torralvo
- Institut d’Arqueologia de la Universitat de Barcelona (IAUB), Faculty of Geography and History, University of Barcelona (UB), 08001 Barcelona, Spain
- Biological Anthropology Unit, Department of Animal Biology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Natividad García
- Department of Anatomy and Radiology, University of Valladolid, 47005 Valladolid, Spain
| | - Isabel San José
- Department of Anatomy and Radiology, University of Valladolid, 47005 Valladolid, Spain
| | - Mercedes Barbosa
- Department of Anatomy and Radiology, University of Valladolid, 47005 Valladolid, Spain
| | - Félix de Paz
- Department of Anatomy and Radiology, University of Valladolid, 47005 Valladolid, Spain
| | - Juan Francisco Pastor
- Department of Anatomy and Radiology, University of Valladolid, 47005 Valladolid, Spain
| | - Josep Maria Potau
- Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d’Arqueologia de la Universitat de Barcelona (IAUB), Faculty of Geography and History, University of Barcelona (UB), 08001 Barcelona, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-9-3402-1906
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Hagen EH. The Biological Roots of Music and Dance : Extending the Credible Signaling Hypothesis to Predator Deterrence. HUMAN NATURE (HAWTHORNE, N.Y.) 2022; 33:261-279. [PMID: 35986877 DOI: 10.1007/s12110-022-09429-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
After they diverged from panins, hominins evolved an increasingly committed terrestrial lifestyle in open habitats that exposed them to increased predation pressure from Africa's formidable predator guild. In the Pleistocene, Homo transitioned to a more carnivorous lifestyle that would have further increased predation pressure. An effective defense against predators would have required a high degree of cooperation by the smaller and slower hominins. It is in the interest of predator and potential prey to avoid encounters that will be costly for both. A wide variety of species, including carnivores and apes and other primates, have therefore evolved visual and auditory signals that deter predators by credibly signaling detection and/or the ability to effectively defend themselves. In some cooperative species, these predator deterrent signals involve highly synchronized visual and auditory displays among group members. Hagen and Bryant (Human Nature, 14(1), 21-51, 2003) proposed that synchronized visual and auditory displays credibly signal coalition quality. Here, this hypothesis is extended to include credible signals to predators that they have been detected and would be met with a highly coordinated defensive response, thereby deterring an attack. Within-group signaling functions are also proposed. The evolved cognitive abilities underlying these behaviors were foundations for the evolution of fully human music and dance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward H Hagen
- Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, 14204 NE Salmon Creek Ave, Vancouver, WA, 98686, USA.
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Foecke KK, Hammond AS, Kelley J. Portable x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy geochemical sourcing of Miocene primate fossils from Kenya. J Hum Evol 2022; 170:103234. [PMID: 36001899 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Revised: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the biogeography and evolution of Miocene catarrhines relies on accurate specimen provenience. It has long been speculated that some catarrhine specimens among the early collections from Miocene sites in Kenya have incorrect provenience data. The provenience of one of these, the holotype of Equatorius africanus (NHM M16649), was previously revised based on x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. Here we use nondestructive portable x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to test the provenience of additional catarrhine specimens that, based hat two specimens purportedly from the Early Miocene site of Rusinga (KNM-RU 1681 and KNM-RU 1999) are instead from Maboko, three specimens purportedly from the Middle Miocene site of Fort Ternan (KNM-FT 8, KNM-FT 41, and KNM-FT 3318) are instead from Songhor, and one specimen accessioned as being from Songhor (KNM-SO 5352) is from that site. Elemental data reveal that two of the specimens (KNM-FT 3318 and KNM-RU 1681) are likely to have been collected at sites other than their museum-accessioned provenience, while two others (KNM-RU 1999, and KNM-FT 41) were confirmed to have correct provenience. Results for both KNM-FT 8 and KNM-SO 5352, while somewhat equivocal, are best interpreted as supporting their accessioned provenience. Our results have implications for the distribution of certain catarrhine species during the Miocene in Kenya. Confirmation of the provenience of the specimens also facilitates taxonomic attribution, and resulted in additions to the morphological characterizations of some species. The protocol presented here has potential for wider application to assessing questions of provenience for fossils from other locations and periods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly K Foecke
- Center for Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA.
| | - Ashley S Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA; New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, NY, USA
| | - Jay Kelley
- Institute of Human Origins and School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA; Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
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Alba DM, Robles JM, Casanovas-Vilar I, Beamud E, Bernor RL, Cirilli O, DeMiguel D, Galindo J, Llopart I, Pons-Monjo G, Sánchez IM, Vinuesa V, Garcés M. A revised (earliest Vallesian) age for the hominoid-bearing locality of Can Mata 1 based on new magnetostratigraphic and biostratigraphic data from Abocador de Can Mata (Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula). J Hum Evol 2022; 170:103237. [PMID: 35988385 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Revised: 07/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The Abocador de Can Mata (ACM) composite stratigraphic sequence (els Hostalets de Pierola, Vallès-Penedès Basin, NE Iberian Peninsula) has yielded a diverse primate assemblage from the late Aragonian (Middle to Late Miocene). Detailed litho-, bio-, and magnetostratigraphic control has enabled an accurate dating of these fossil remains. Comparable data, however, were lacking for the nearby locality of Can Mata 1 (CM1), which yielded a dryopithecine canine of a female individual. Given the lack of hipparionin equids and giraffids, CM1 has been correlated to the latest Aragonian (Mammal Neogene [MN] zone MN7+8). Here we revise the age of CM1 based on fieldwork and associated paleomagnetic samplings undertaken in 2018-2021. Our results extend the ACM composite sequence upward and indicate that CM1 correlates to the earliest Vallesian (MN9). The updated ACM sequence has a thickness of ∼300 m and comprises 12 magnetozones correlated to subchrons C5Ar.1r to C5n.2n (∼12.6-11.1 Ma; latest MN6 to earliest MN9, late Aragonian to earliest Vallesian). CM1 is correlated to C5r.1r (11.146-11.056 Ma), with an interpolated age of 11.11 Ma, thus postdating the dispersal of hipparionin horses into the Vallès-Penedès Basin-which is correlated to the previous subchron C5r.1n, with an interpolated age of 11.18 Ma, and by definition marks the beginning of the Vallesian. CM1 also minimally postdates the earliest record of giraffids at ACM-representing their earliest well-dated occurrence in the basin-being correlated to C5r.1n with an interpolated age of 11.11 Ma. We conclude that CM1 has an earliest Vallesian (MN9) age of ∼11.1 Ma, intermediate between the Aragonian dryopithecins and the Vallesian hispanopithecins. Ongoing paleontological surveillance at ACM thus offers the prospect to yield additional earliest Vallesian ape remains, which are essential to clarify their taxonomic allocation as well as to confirm whether hispanopithecins evolved locally from dryopithecins rather than immigrating from elsewhere during MN9.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Alba
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Josep M Robles
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Isaac Casanovas-Vilar
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Elisabet Beamud
- Paleomagnetic Laboratory CCiTUB-Geo3Bcn CSIC, c/ Lluís Solé i Sabarís s/n, 08028 Barcelona, Spain; Institut Geomodels, Grup de Recerca Consolidat de Geodinàmica i Anàlisi de Conques, Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Raymond L Bernor
- College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy, Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, 520 W St. N.W., 20059, Washington, DC, USA; Human Origins Program, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution, 20560, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Omar Cirilli
- College of Medicine, Department of Anatomy, Laboratory of Evolutionary Biology, 520 W St. N.W., 20059, Washington, DC, USA; Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Paleo[Fab]Lab, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via G. La Pira 4, 50121, Firenze, Italy
| | - Daniel DeMiguel
- ARAID Foundation/Universidad de Zaragoza, Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra, and Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA), Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Galindo
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Itziar Llopart
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Guillem Pons-Monjo
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Israel M Sánchez
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Víctor Vinuesa
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miguel Garcés
- Institut Geomodels, Grup de Recerca Consolidat de Geodinàmica i Anàlisi de Conques, Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain; Departament de Dinàmica de la Terra i de l'Oceà, Facultat de Ciències de la Terra, Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
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Aguilar LK, Collins CE, Ward CV, Hammond AS. Pathways to primate hip function. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:211762. [PMID: 35845850 PMCID: PMC9277236 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Understanding how diverse locomotor repertoires evolved in anthropoid primates is key to reconstructing the clade's evolution. Locomotor behaviour is often inferred from proximal femur morphology, yet the relationship of femoral variation to locomotor diversity is poorly understood. Extant acrobatic primates have greater ranges of hip joint mobility-particularly abduction-than those using more stereotyped locomotion, but how bony morphologies of the femur and pelvis interact to produce different locomotor abilities is unknown. We conducted hypothesis-driven path analyses via regularized structural equation modelling (SEM) to determine which morphological traits are the strongest predictors of hip abduction in anthropoid primates. Seven femoral morphological traits and two hip abduction measures were obtained from 25 primate species, split into broad locomotor and taxonomic groups. Through variable selection and fit testing techniques, insignificant predictors were removed to create the most parsimonious final models. Some morphological predictors, such as femur shaft length and neck-shaft angle, were important across models. Different trait combinations best predicted hip abduction by locomotor or taxonomic group, demonstrating group-specific linkages among morphology, mobility and behaviour. Our study illustrates the strength of SEM for identifying biologically important relationships between morphology and performance, which will have future applications for palaeobiological and biomechanical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucrecia K. Aguilar
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Clint E. Collins
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University – Sacramento, Sacramento, CA 95819, USA
| | - Carol V. Ward
- Department of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Ashley S. Hammond
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
- New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, NY 10024, USA
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41
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Crespi BJ, Flinn MV, Summers K. Runaway Social Selection in Human Evolution. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.894506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Darwin posited that social competition among conspecifics could be a powerful selective pressure. Alexander proposed a model of human evolution involving a runaway process of social competition based on Darwin’s insight. Here we briefly review Alexander’s logic, and then expand upon his model by elucidating six core arenas of social selection that involve runaway, positive-feedback processes, and that were likely involved in the evolution of the remarkable combination of adaptations in humans. We discuss how these ideas fit with the hypothesis that a key life history innovation that opened the door to runaway social selection, and cumulative culture, during hominin evolution was increased cooperation among individuals in small fission-fusion groups.
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Calcar femorale variation in extant and fossil hominids: Implications for identifying bipedal locomotion in fossil hominins. J Hum Evol 2022; 167:103183. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Gómez M, Casado A, de Diego M, Pastor JF, Potau JM. Anatomical and molecular analyses of the deltoid muscle in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and modern humans (Homo sapiens): Similarities and differences due to the uses of the upper extremity. Am J Primatol 2022; 84:e23390. [PMID: 35561001 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Revised: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
In the deltoid muscles of Pan troglodytes and Homo sapiens, we have analyzed the muscle architecture and the expression of the myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoforms. Our aim was to identify differences between the two species that could be related to their different uses of the upper limb. The deltoid muscle of six adult Pan troglodytes and six adult Homo sapiens were dissected. The muscle fascicle length (MFL) and the physiological cross-sectional area (PCSA) of each muscle were calculated in absolute and normalized values. The expression pattern of the MHC-I, MHC-IIa and MHC-IIx isoforms was analyzed in the same muscles by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Only the acromial deltoid (AD) presented significant architectural differences between the two species, with higher MFL values in humans and higher PCSA values in chimpanzees. No significant differences in the expression pattern of the MHC isoforms were identified. The higher PCSA values in the AD of Pan troglodytes indicate a greater capacity of force generation in chimpanzees than in humans, which may be related to a greater use of the upper limb in locomotion, specifically in arboreal locomotion like vertical climbing. The functional differences between chimpanzees and humans in the deltoid muscle are more related to muscle architecture than to a differential expression of MHC isoforms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mónica Gómez
- Department of Surgery and Surgical Specializations, Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Aroa Casado
- Department of Surgery and Surgical Specializations, Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Arqueologia de la Universitat de Barcelona (IAUB), Faculty of Geography and History, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marina de Diego
- Department of Surgery and Surgical Specializations, Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Josep Maria Potau
- Department of Surgery and Surgical Specializations, Unit of Human Anatomy and Embryology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Arqueologia de la Universitat de Barcelona (IAUB), Faculty of Geography and History, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
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44
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Rosas A. In memoriam, Emiliano Aguirre Enríquez (1925-2021). J Hum Evol 2022; 167:103194. [PMID: 35461055 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Revised: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 03/18/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Rosas
- Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Calle José Gutierrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
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45
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Haslam M. Insights from orangutans into the evolution of tool use. Nature 2022; 604:427-428. [PMID: 35413997 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-022-00872-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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46
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A fistful of fossils: The rise and fall of the Orce Man and the politics of paleoanthropological science. J Hum Evol 2022. [PMID: 35276489 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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47
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Schmidt ERE, Polleux F. Genetic Mechanisms Underlying the Evolution of Connectivity in the Human Cortex. Front Neural Circuits 2022; 15:787164. [PMID: 35069126 PMCID: PMC8777274 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2021.787164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the most salient features defining modern humans is our remarkable cognitive capacity, which is unrivaled by any other species. Although we still lack a complete understanding of how the human brain gives rise to these unique abilities, the past several decades have witnessed significant progress in uncovering some of the genetic, cellular, and molecular mechanisms shaping the development and function of the human brain. These features include an expansion of brain size and in particular cortical expansion, distinct physiological properties of human neurons, and modified synaptic development. Together they specify the human brain as a large primate brain with a unique underlying neuronal circuit architecture. Here, we review some of the known human-specific features of neuronal connectivity, and we outline how novel insights into the human genome led to the identification of human-specific genetic modifiers that played a role in the evolution of human brain development and function. Novel experimental paradigms are starting to provide a framework for understanding how the emergence of these human-specific genomic innovations shaped the structure and function of neuronal circuits in the human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewoud R. E. Schmidt
- Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
- *Correspondence: Ewoud R. E. Schmidt
| | - Franck Polleux
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Kavli Institute for Brain Science, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Franck Polleux
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Girodengo M, Ultanir SK, Bateman JM. Mechanistic target of rapamycin signaling in human nervous system development and disease. Front Mol Neurosci 2022; 15:1005631. [PMID: 36226315 PMCID: PMC9549271 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.1005631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a highly conserved serine/threonine kinase that regulates fundamental cellular processes including growth control, autophagy and metabolism. mTOR has key functions in nervous system development and mis-regulation of mTOR signaling causes aberrant neurodevelopment and neurological diseases, collectively called mTORopathies. In this mini review we discuss recent studies that have deepened our understanding of the key roles of the mTOR pathway in human nervous system development and disease. Recent advances in single-cell transcriptomics have been exploited to reveal specific roles for mTOR signaling in human cortical development that may have contributed to the evolutionary divergence from our primate ancestors. Cerebral organoid technology has been utilized to show that mTOR signaling is active in and regulates outer radial glial cells (RGCs), a population of neural stem cells that distinguish the human developing cortex. mTOR signaling has a well-established role in hamartoma syndromes such as tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and other mTORopathies. New ultra-sensitive techniques for identification of somatic mTOR pathway mutations have shed light on the neurodevelopmental origin and phenotypic heterogeneity seen in mTORopathy patients. These emerging studies suggest that mTOR signaling may facilitate developmental processes specific to human cortical development but also, when mis-regulated, cause cortical malformations and neurological disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Girodengo
- Kinases and Brain Development Lab, The Francis Crick Institute, London, United Kingdom.,King's College London, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sila K Ultanir
- Kinases and Brain Development Lab, The Francis Crick Institute, London, United Kingdom
| | - Joseph M Bateman
- King's College London, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, London, United Kingdom
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Anaya A, Patel BA, Orr CM, Ward CV, Almécija S. Evolutionary trends of the lateral foot in catarrhine primates: Contextualizing the fourth metatarsal of Australopithecus afarensis. J Hum Evol 2021; 161:103078. [PMID: 34749002 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2020] [Revised: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
In 2000, a complete fourth metatarsal (Mt4) of the ∼3- to 4-Million-year-old hominin Australopithecus afarensis was recovered in Hadar, Ethiopia. This metatarsal presented a mostly human-like morphology, suggesting that a rigid lateral foot may have evolved as early as ∼3.2 Ma. The lateral foot is integral in providing stability during the push off phase of gait and is key in understanding the transition to upright, striding bipedalism. Previous comparisons of this fossil were limited to Pan troglodytes, Gorilla gorilla, and modern humans. This study builds on previous studies by contextualizing the Mt4 morphology of A. afarensis (A.L. 333-160) within a diverse comparative sample of nonhuman hominoids (n = 144) and cercopithecids (n = 138) and incorporates other early hominins (n = 3) and fossil hominoids that precede the Pan-Homo split (n = 4) to better assess the polarity of changes in lateral foot morphology surrounding this divergence. We investigate seven morphological features argued to be functionally linked to human-like bipedalism. Our results show that some human-like characters used to assess midfoot and lateral foot stiffness in the hominin fossil record are present in our Miocene ape sample as well as in living cercopithecids. Furthermore, modern nonhuman hominoids can be generally distinguished from other species in most metrics. These results suggest that the possession of a rigid foot in hominins could represent a conserved trait, whereas the specialized pedal grasping mechanics of extant apes may be more derived, in which case some traits often used to infer bipedal locomotion in early hominins may, instead, reflect a lower reliance on pedal grasping. Another possibility is that early hominins reverted from modern ape Mt4 morphology into a more plesiomorphic condition when terrestrial bipedality became a dominant behavior. More fossils dating around the Pan-Homo divergence time are necessary to test these competing hypotheses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alisha Anaya
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27705, USA; Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, 10024, USA.
| | - Biren A Patel
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, 90033, USA; Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA
| | - Caley M Orr
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA; Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Carol V Ward
- Department of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65212, USA
| | - Sergio Almécija
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY, 10024, USA; New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY, 10024, USA; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
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50
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Thompson NE, Rubinstein D, Parrella-O'Donnell W, Brett MA, Demes B, Larson SG, O'Neill MC. The loss of the 'pelvic step' in human evolution. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:271233. [PMID: 34412111 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.240440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Human bipedalism entails relatively short strides compared with facultatively bipedal primates. Unique non-sagittal-plane motions associated with bipedalism may account for part of this discrepancy. Pelvic rotation anteriorly translates the hip, contributing to bipedal stride length (i.e. the 'pelvic step'). Facultative bipedalism in non-human primates entails much larger pelvic rotation than in humans, suggesting that a larger pelvic step may contribute to their relatively longer strides. We collected data on the pelvic step in bipedal chimpanzees and over a wide speed range of human walking. At matched dimensionless speeds, humans have 26.7% shorter dimensionless strides, and a pelvic step 5.4 times smaller than bipedal chimpanzees. Differences in pelvic rotation explain 31.8% of the difference in dimensionless stride length between the two species. We suggest that relative stride lengths and the pelvic step have been significantly reduced throughout the course of hominin evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan E Thompson
- Department of Anatomy, NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine, Old Westbury, NY 11568,USA
| | | | | | - Matthew A Brett
- NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine, Old Westbury, NY 11568,USA
| | - Brigitte Demes
- Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794,USA
| | - Susan G Larson
- Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794,USA
| | - Matthew C O'Neill
- Department of Anatomy, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308,USA
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