Geometric morphometric methods for three-dimensional virtual reconstruction of a fragmented cranium: the case of Angelo Poliziano.

The process of forensic identification of missing individuals is frequently reliant on the superimposition of cranial remains onto an individual's picture and/or facial reconstruction. In the latter, the integrity of the skull or a cranium is an important factor in successful identification. Here, we recommend the usage of computerized virtual reconstruction and geometric morphometrics for the purposes of individual reconstruction and identification in forensics. We apply these methods to reconstruct a complete cranium from facial remains that allegedly belong to the famous Italian humanist of the fifteenth century, Angelo Poliziano (1454-1494). Raw data was obtained by computed tomography scans of the Poliziano face and a complete reference skull of a 37-year-old Italian male. Given that the amount of distortion of the facial remains is unknown, two reconstructions are proposed: The first calculates the average shape between the original and its reflection, and the second discards the less preserved left side of the cranium under the assumption that there is no deformation on the right. Both reconstructions perform well in the superimposition with the original preserved facial surface in a virtual environment. The reconstruction by means of averaging between the original and reflection yielded better results during the superimposition with portraits of Poliziano. We argue that the combination of computerized virtual reconstruction and geometric morphometric methods offers a number of advantages over traditional plastic reconstruction, among which are speed, reproducibility, easiness of manipulation when superimposing with pictures in virtual environment, and assumptions control.

Sex assessment from the acetabular rim by means of image analysis.

Determining sex from skeletal remains is one of the most important steps in archaeological and forensic anthropology. The present study considers the diagnostic value of the acetabulum based on its planar image and related metric data. For this purpose, 83 adult os coxae of known age were examined. Digital photos of the acetabular area were taken, with each bone in a standardized orientation. Technical drawing software was used to trace the acetabular rim and to measure the related dimensions (area, perimeter, longitudinal and transverse maximum width). The measurements were subjected to SPSS discriminant and classification function analysis. There were significant differences (p

Age of onset of pubertal characteristics in boys aged 6-14 years of the Province of L'Aquila (Abruzzo, Italy).

BACKGROUND: Previous results on growth patterns of children from central-southern Italy (Abruzzo region) showed an increasing tendency to obesity and suggested that the secular trend was still in progress in this region. However, data on pubertal development was lacking. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to provide population data on pubertal development in a sample of 535 boys aged 6-14 years as a contribution to the ongoing debate on earlier onset of pubertal traits and on the slowing down of the secular trend. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was used. Data for genital and pubic hair development (GD and PHD) were analysed by probit analysis. RESULTS: The boys start developing sexual characteristics at age 9: 13.3% had entered stage 2 of GD and 8.9% showed PHD. At 13 years of age, 5% and 7.4% were still in stage 1 of GD and PHD, respectively, whereas almost one-third had attained stage 5 for both sexual characteristics. The median age for attainment of stage 2 was 11.2 years for GD, 11.5 years for PHD and 11 years for one or both of them. CONCLUSIONS: These results are in line with those for several European and industrialized countries and do not show a significantly earlier onset of sexual maturation.

Height and secular trend in conscripts born in the Central Apennines (Italy), 1865-1972.

OBJECTIVE: The main aim of the research was to evaluate the effects of prolonged isolation on the secular trend of height in an internal zone of the central Apennines (Abruzzo, Province of L'Aquila). METHODS: Personal data for 1006 military conscripts in five sample years from 1865 to 1972 were used. The mean, standard deviation, median, skewness and kurtosis were calculated. Normal distribution of the data was assessed by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (Monte Carlo method). Differences between the means were tested by ANOVA and the Tukey test. RESULTS: Mean height increased from 161.3 +/- 5.97 cm in 1865 to 172.6 +/- 6.28 cm in 1972. The increases were slight, but constant, in the first 80 years: between 0.44 and 0.86 cm/decade, but greater thereafter: 2.37 cm/decade between 1945 and 1972. Regarding the frequency distribution, skewness showed negative values only in 1865 (-0.37 +/- 0.21). The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test did not show significance for any period. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirm that the mean heights in south-central Italy, including Abruzzo, were lower than those of the more economically advanced regions of northern Italy in each period. The difference has decreased greatly in the last few generations, but the secular trend is continuing in these communities. This seems to be due to prolonged isolation which has retarded economic development and favoured endogamy and genetic drift. However, it has also prevented the negative effects of wars, since there was no reduction of the secular trend in those periods.

Body composition and blood pressures in school children 6-14 years of age.

The relationship between parameters of estimated body composition (FFM = fat free mass, FM = fat mass, %F = percentage fat) and blood pressure was examined in a sample of 1418 school-children (712 males, 706 females), 6-14 years of age from L'Aquila and its province (Abruzzo), Italy. Systolic and diastolic blood pressures increased from 6-14 years in both sexes (males: systolic pressure 93.08 ± 14.95 to 122.29 ± 13.27 mm Hg; diastolic pressure: 59.60 ± 11.60 to 74.83 ± 8.35 mm Hg; females: systolic pressure: 97.12 ± 13.16 to 120.56 ± 8.02 mm Hg; diastolic pressure: 61.93 ± 10.23 to 76.67 ± 4.85 mm Hg). FFM and FM estimated by anthropometry and bioelectrical impedance, exhibited similar growth trends (Anthropometry: in males, FFM: 20.55-47.20 kg and FM: 4.14-12.01 kg; in females, FFM: 19.95-41.90 kg and FM: 5.03-15.84 kg; Impedance: in males, FFM: 18.40-47.30 kg and FM: 6.26-11.91 kg; in females, FFM: 17.47-36.97 kg and FM: 7.61-20.77 kg). Correlations between body composition parameters and blood pressures were generally significant. In particular, there was a strong relationship between systolic blood pressure and both FM and %F, the correlations being higher when the body composition parameters were estimated by anthropometry. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 9:535-544, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Biodemography and genetics of the Berba of Benin.

Genetic structure of the Berba of Benin was studied on the basis of biodemographic data and ABO, RH, MNS, KEL, JK, FY, ACP1, ADA, AK1, CA2, ESD, GLO1, G6PD, PGD, PGM1 (subtypes and thermostability), PGM2, PGP, SODA, HB alpha, HB beta, HB delta, BF, C3, and HP gene frequencies. Comparisons were carried out with other populations of Benin and of sub-Saharan Africa. Correspondence analysis revealed genetic differentiation among the three main groups of populations who inhabit sub-Saharan Africa: Bushmen-Hottentots, Pygmies, and Negroes. The genetic differentiation of the Negroes in relation to their linguistic affiliation and geographic localization was evident. The first group included the populations belonging to the Bantoid subfamily of the Nigritic linguistic stock living in southern Africa; in the second subcluster the populations of central-eastern Africa were localized, and the third subcluster included the populations living in the West.

Phosphoglycolate phosphatase polymorphism (PGP) in the Bologna population: a rapid method and an analysis of world gene frequencies.

PGP electrophoretic polymorphism was studied in a sample of 548 blood donors from the province of Bologna, Italy. Haemolysates were typed by thin starch-gel electrophoresis, a modification of Barker and Hopkinson's method [1978]. The distribution of PGP phenotypes and gene frequencies in Italy varies considerably. The pattern observed in the Bologna sample agrees with the data from northern Italian regions and comparisons show that PGP*2 and PGP*3 gene frequencies tend to decrease along a north-south cline. Sardinia shows a peculiar distribution of gene frequencies where the PGP*2 allele is very low and the PGP*3 allele is absent. The world PGP gene frequencies appear to be distributed along a north-south cline.

Genetic history of the population of Puglia (southern Italy).

Nine-hundred and twenty-two individuals belonging to the five provinces of Puglia were typed for nine erythrocyte genetic markers (ACP1, ADA, AK1, ESD, GLO1, PGD, PGM1, PGM2, and SODA). Genetic heterogeneity within Puglia was investigated on the basis of allele frequencies of the above mentioned markers plus ABO*A, ABO*B, ABO*O, and RH*D, by the (chi 2 test and Rst statistic. The analyses revealed no differences at the provincial level. Furthermore, correspondence and genetic distance analyses were applied to look for a statistical difference within Puglia from different standpoints, as well as between Puglia, the rest of Italy and other European and Near and Middle Eastern populations whose genetic history is most likely related. Southern and central Italian, Greek and Aegean populations appeared very homogeneous and quite differentiated from the rest of Europe, both continental (including northern Italy) and south-eastern, stressing the major impact of the heavy Greek colonization on the genetic pools of the circum-Mediterranean people.

Digital and palmar dermatoglyphics and the population structure of the Upper Bologna Apennine.

Analysis of digital and palmar dermatoglyphics in an Italian mountain population was carried out. Dermatoglyphic variability was particularly investigated in samples from four different valleys. Microgeographical differences in qualitative and quantitative traits among valleys were found. The relationship between degree of endogamy and dermatoglyphic differences is discussed. The biological repercussion of isolation in the history of this Apennine population is also pointed out by means of comparisons with a nearby plains population characterized by low inbreeding.

[Bioelectric impedance (BIA) and thickness of the subcutaneous fatty tissue in a sample of normal weight and obese children]. / Analisi della impedenza bioelettrica (BIA) e dello spessore del pannicolo adiposo sottocutaneo in un campione di bambini normopeso e obesi.

The paper reports the results of a study on changes in the subcutaneous fat layer and the relations between the latter and BIA in a sample population of 105 normal weight and obese children of both sexes (57 males and 48 females), aged between 5 and 14. The correlation coefficients calculated show that BI is inversely correlated to all the subcutaneous fat layers examined; the closes correlations were found in cutaneous folds on the thigh and calf in males and on the forearm and calf in females. The correct use of impedance measurement in children must take into account the difference between the sexes and those linked to the degree of excess weight, as well as changes in the thickness of the subcutaneous fat layer related to age.

Analysis of the distribution of some serum protein polymorphisms in isolated populations in the Middle Sangro Valley (Chieti-Abruzzo, Italy).

We studied Gc, Hp, C3 and Bf serum protein polymorphisms in the population of the Middle Sangro Valley, an area in the Abruzzo Apennine mountains on the border with the Molise region, which has maintained a highly isolated character. The gene frequency estimates obtained for the total sample of the Middle Sangro Valley were: [table: see text] The analysis of these data reveals internal heterogeneity in the population of the Middle Sangro Valley probably due to geographical and socio-cultural differences which may have give rise to local micro-evolutionary phenomena.

Polymorphism of properdin factor B (Bf) in some Italian populations.

In order to contribute to the definition of a map of the distribution of Bf polymorphism in Italy, we typed numerous population samples (for a total of 2033 individuals) from several regions of Italy: provinces of Bologna, Potenza and Matera, middle Sangro valley (Chieti) and northern, central and southern Sardinia. A new method was used which consisted of cellulose acetate electrophoresis followed by immunofixation and staining with Coomassie blue. The results obtained highlight marked differences in the distribution of Bf phenotypes and allele frequencies in Italy. To be noted in particular are the relatively high incidence of the Bf*S allele and the low incidence of Bf*F in Potenza and the significantly different pattern of the Sardinian samples compared to those from mainland Italy. This may be due to the low incidence in Sardinia of the Bf*S allele and above all to the exceptionally high frequency of the Bf*F1 variant.

Skinfolds and body composition of sports participants.

Body composition of 1815 North-Italian young sports participants in relation to sex, age, sport and level of performance was investigated. About thickness and anatomical distribution of subcutaneous fat females showed skinfolds thicker than males. Significant differences were observed in skinfold thicknesses means of different sport-groups. Subscapular and forearm skinfolds were the best discriminant variables for males and females respectively. Body density was estimated according to Katch and McArdle (1973) and Durnin and Womersley (1974) equations. Males showed higher body density and lower fat percentage values than females. The lowest value of body density and the highest fat percentage were in male martial art competitors and in females practising skating and athletics. The highest values of body density and the lowest of fat percentage were in males practising athletics and rowing and in female martial art competitors. Highest and lowest values of fat-free mass were in games players and in soccer players and gymnasts respectively. "High aptitude" subjects showed higher fat-free mass values than "middle aptitude" group, besides a tendency towards higher body density values and lower fat percentage than "middle aptitude" group. With aging body density decreased whereas fat percentage and fat-free mass increased.

Research on the distribution of properdin factor B in Sardinia.

This study examines the distribution of properdin factor B by means of electrophoresis on cellulose acetate in a sample of 780 individuals from seven historical/geographical areas of Sardinia: Nurra, Goceano, Nuorese, Arborea, Sarcidano, Ogliastra, Campidano di Cagliari. The gene frequencies obtained for the total sample are BF*S = 0.595, BF*F = 0.227, BF*S1 = 0.012, BF*F1 = 0.166. Division of the total sample into subsamples has highlighted some noticeable differences both among the historical/geographical areas considered and with mainland Italy. In Sardinia relatively low frequencies of the allele BF*S are accompanied by exceptionally high incidences of the variant allele BF*F1, which reaches a maximum in the Goceano area (0.2143).

Gc and C3 polymorphisms in Central Sardinia.

The distribution of phenotypes and gene frequencies of the group-specific component (Gc) and C3 complement were studied in Central Sardinian sample. The gene frequencies were:Gc1 = 0.733; C3F = 0.237.

Gc and C3 polymorphisms in South Sardinia.

The distribution of phenotypes and gene frequencies of the group-specific component (Gc) and C3 complement were studied in South Sardinia. The gene frequencies were: Gc1 = 0.7346; C3F = 0.1963.

AcP and EsD polymorphisms in South Sardinia.

A sample of the South Sardinia population was studied with respect to acid phosphatase (AcP) and esterase D (EsD) enzymes. The gene frequencies were: AcPA = 0.326, AcPB = 0.607, AcPC = 0.067 and EsD1 = 0.883. The results were compared with those of other Italian populations.

GPT polymorphism in the population of Bologna and linkage analysis with beta-thalassaemia.

GPT polymorphism was studied in 500 voluntary blood donors from the Bologna population. The following phenotype frequencies were obtained: GPT 1 = 29.60%, GPT 1-2 = 49.80% and GPT 2 = 20.60%. The frequencies of the alleles were: GPT1 - 0.545 and GPT2 = 0.455. Analysis of 24 informative families has excluded linkage between GPT and beta-thalassaemia.