RÉSUMÉ
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.
Sujet(s)
Hominidae , Hylobatidae , Humains , Animaux , Phylogenèse , Haplorhini , Fossiles , Primates , Membre supérieur , Évolution biologiqueRÉSUMÉ
Body mass is a critical variable in many hominin evolutionary studies, with implications for reconstructing relative brain size, diet, locomotion, subsistence strategy, and social organization. We review methods that have been proposed for estimating body mass from true and trace fossils, consider their applicability in different contexts, and the appropriateness of different modern reference samples. Recently developed techniques based on a wider range of modern populations hold promise for providing more accurate estimates in earlier hominins, although uncertainties remain, particularly in non-Homo taxa. When these methods are applied to almost 300 Late Miocene through Late Pleistocene specimens, the resulting body mass estimates fall within a 25-60 kg range for early non-Homo taxa, increase in early Homo to about 50-90 kg, then remain constant until the Terminal Pleistocene, when they decline.
Sujet(s)
Hominidae , Animaux , Fossiles , Locomotion , Évolution biologiqueRÉSUMÉ
Ontogeny provides critical information about the evolutionary history of early hominin adult morphology. We describe fossils from the southern African sites of Kromdraai and Drimolen that provide insights into early craniofacial development in the Pleistocene robust australopith Paranthropus robustus. We show that while most distinctive robust craniofacial features appear relatively late in ontogeny, a few do not. We also find unexpected evidence of independence in the growth of the premaxillary and maxillary regions. Differential growth results in a proportionately larger and more postero-inferiorly rotated cerebral fossa in P. robustus infants than in the developmentally older Australopithecus africanus juvenile from Taung. The accumulated evidence from these fossils suggests that the iconic SK 54 juvenile calvaria is more likely early Homo than Paranthropus. It is also consistent with the hypothesis that P. robustus is more closely related to Homo than to A. africanus.
Sujet(s)
Hominidae , Animaux , Humains , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Fossiles , Crâne/anatomie et histologie , Évolution biologiqueRÉSUMÉ
Reliable estimates of when hominin taxa originated and went extinct are central to addressing many paleoanthropological questions, including those relating to macroevolutionary patterns. The timing of hominin temporal ranges can be used to test chronological predictions generated from phylogenetic hypotheses. For example, hypotheses of phyletic ancestor-descendant relationships, based on morphological data, predict no temporal range overlap between the two taxa. However, a fossil taxon's observed temporal range is almost certainly underestimated due to the incompleteness of both the fossil record itself and its sampling, and this decreases the likelihood of observing temporal overlap. Here, we focus on a well-known and widely accepted early hominin lineage, Australopithecus anamensis-afarensis, and place 95% confidence intervals (CIs) on its origination and extinction dates. We do so to assess whether its temporal range is consistent with it being a phyletic descendant of Ardipithecus ramidus and/or a direct ancestor to the earliest claimed representative of Homo (i.e., Ledi-Geraru). We find that the last appearance of Ar. ramidus falls within the origination CI of Au. anamensis-afarensis, whereas the claimed first appearance of Homo postdates the extinction CI. These results are consistent with Homo evolving from Au. anamensis-afarensis, but temporal overlap between Ar. ramidus and Au. anamensis-afarensis cannot be rejected at this time. Though additional samples are needed, future research should extend our initial analyses to incorporate the uncertainties surrounding the range endpoints of Ar. ramidus and earliest Homo. Overall, our findings demonstrate the need for quantifying the uncertainty surrounding the appearances and disappearances of hominin taxa in order to better understand the timing of evolutionary events in our clade's history.
Sujet(s)
Évolution biologique , Extinction biologique , Hominidae , Phylogenèse , Animaux , Fossiles , Hominidae/classificationRÉSUMÉ
It has been suggested that a shift in diet is one of the key adaptations that distinguishes the genus Homo from earlier hominins, but recent stable isotopic analyses of fossils attributed to Homo in the Turkana Basin show an increase in the consumption of C4 resources circa 1.65 million years ago, significantly after the earliest evidence for Homo in the eastern African fossil record. These data are consistent with ingesting more C4 plants, more animal tissues of C4 herbivores, or both, but it is also possible that this change reflects factors unrelated to changes in the palaeobiology of the genus Homo. Here we use new and published carbon and oxygen isotopic data (n = 999) taken from large-bodied fossil mammals, and pedogenic carbonates in fossil soils, from East Turkana in northern Kenya to investigate the context of this change in the isotope signal within Homo. By targeting taxa and temporal intervals unrepresented or undersampled in previous analyses, we were able to conduct the first comprehensive analysis of the ecological context of hominin diet at East Turkana during a period crucial for detecting any dietary and related behavioural differences between early Homo (H. habilis and/or H. rudolfensis) and Homo erectus. Our analyses suggest that the genus Homo underwent a dietary shift (as indicated by δ13Cena and δ18Oena values) that is (1) unrelated to changes in the East Turkana vegetation community and (2) unlike patterns found in other East Turkana large mammals, including Paranthropus and Theropithecus. These data suggest that within the Turkana Basin a dietary shift occurred well after we see the first evidence of early Homo in the region.
Sujet(s)
Hominidae , Animaux , Régime alimentaire , Fossiles , Kenya , MammifèresRÉSUMÉ
A large brain is a defining feature of modern humans, yet there is no consensus regarding the patterns, rates and processes involved in hominin brain size evolution. We use a reliable proxy for brain size in fossils, endocranial volume (ECV), to better understand how brain size evolved at both clade- and lineage-level scales. For the hominin clade overall, the dominant signal is consistent with a gradual increase in brain size. This gradual trend appears to have been generated primarily by processes operating within hypothesized lineages-64% or 88% depending on whether one uses a more or less speciose taxonomy, respectively. These processes were supplemented by the appearance in the fossil record of larger-brained Homo species and the subsequent disappearance of smaller-brained Australopithecus and Paranthropus taxa. When the estimated rate of within-lineage ECV increase is compared to an exponential model that operationalizes generation-scale evolutionary processes, it suggests that the observed data were the result of episodes of directional selection interspersed with periods of stasis and/or drift; all of this occurs on too fine a timescale to be resolved by the current human fossil record, thus producing apparent gradual trends within lineages. Our findings provide a quantitative basis for developing and testing scale-explicit hypotheses about the factors that led brain size to increase during hominin evolution.
Sujet(s)
Évolution biologique , Encéphale/anatomie et histologie , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Animaux , Taille d'organeRÉSUMÉ
The large brain and small postcanine teeth of modern humans are among our most distinctive features, and trends in their evolution are well studied within the hominin clade. Classic accounts hypothesize that larger brains and smaller teeth coevolved because behavioral changes associated with increased brain size allowed a subsequent dental reduction. However, recent studies have found mismatches between trends in brain enlargement and posterior tooth size reduction in some hominin species. We use a multiple-variance Brownian motion approach in association with evolutionary simulations to measure the tempo and mode of the evolution of endocranial and dental size and shape within the hominin clade. We show that hominin postcanine teeth have evolved at a relatively consistent neutral rate, whereas brain size evolved at comparatively more heterogeneous rates that cannot be explained by a neutral model, with rapid pulses in the branches leading to later Homo species. Brain reorganization shows evidence of elevated rates only much later in hominin evolution, suggesting that fast-evolving traits such as the acquisition of a globular shape may be the result of direct or indirect selection for functional or structural traits typical of modern humans.
Sujet(s)
Évolution biologique , Encéphale/anatomie et histologie , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Dent/anatomie et histologie , Animaux , Simulation numérique , Fossiles , Hominidae/classification , Humains , Modèles biologiques , Analyse multifactorielle , Taille d'organe , Paléodontologie , Paléontologie , PhylogenèseRÉSUMÉ
Genes encoding nuclear receptors (NRs) are attractive as candidates for investigating the evolution of gene regulation because they (1) have a direct effect on gene expression and (2) modulate many cellular processes that underlie development. We employed a three-phase investigation linking NR molecular evolution among primates with direct experimental assessment of NR function. Phase 1 was an analysis of NR domain evolution and the results were used to guide the design of phase 2, a codon-model-based survey for alterations of natural selection within the hominids. By using a series of reliability and robustness analyses we selected a single gene, NR2C1, as the best candidate for experimental assessment. We carried out assays to determine whether changes between the ancestral and extant NR2C1s could have impacted stem cell pluripotency (phase 3). We evaluated human, chimpanzee, and ancestral NR2C1 for transcriptional modulation of Oct4 and Nanog (key regulators of pluripotency and cell lineage commitment), promoter activity for Pepck (a proxy for differentiation in numerous cell types), and average size of embryological stem cell colonies (a proxy for the self-renewal capacity of pluripotent cells). Results supported the signal for alteration of natural selection identified in phase 2. We suggest that adaptive evolution of gene regulation has impacted several aspects of pluripotentiality within primates. Our study illustrates that the combination of targeted evolutionary surveys and experimental analysis is an effective strategy for investigating the evolution of gene regulation with respect to developmental phenotypes.
Sujet(s)
Différenciation cellulaire/génétique , Évolution moléculaire , Hominidae/génétique , Membre-1 du groupe C de la sous-famille-2 des récepteurs nucléaires/génétique , Cellules souches pluripotentes/cytologie , Animaux , Lignée cellulaire , Séquence conservée , Humains , Souris , Protéine homéotique Nanog/génétique , Protéine homéotique Nanog/métabolisme , Membre-1 du groupe C de la sous-famille-2 des récepteurs nucléaires/composition chimique , Facteur de transcription Oct-3/génétique , Facteur de transcription Oct-3/métabolisme , Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (ATP)/génétique , Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (ATP)/métabolisme , Cellules souches pluripotentes/métabolisme , Domaines protéiquesRÉSUMÉ
Recent biomechanical analyses examining the feeding adaptations of early hominins have yielded results consistent with the hypothesis that hard foods exerted a selection pressure that influenced the evolution of australopith morphology. However, this hypothesis appears inconsistent with recent reconstructions of early hominin diet based on dental microwear and stable isotopes. Thus, it is likely that either the diets of some australopiths included a high proportion of foods these taxa were poorly adapted to consume (i.e., foods that they would not have processed efficiently), or that aspects of what we thought we knew about the functional morphology of teeth must be wrong. Evaluation of these possibilities requires a recognition that analyses based on microwear, isotopes, finite element modeling, and enamel chips and cracks each test different types of hypotheses and allow different types of inferences. Microwear and isotopic analyses are best suited to reconstructing broad dietary patterns, but are limited in their ability to falsify specific hypotheses about morphological adaptation. Conversely, finite element analysis is a tool for evaluating the mechanical basis of form-function relationships, but says little about the frequency with which specific behaviors were performed or the particular types of food that were consumed. Enamel chip and crack analyses are means of both reconstructing diet and examining biomechanics. We suggest that current evidence is consistent with the hypothesis that certain derived australopith traits are adaptations for consuming hard foods, but that australopiths had generalized diets that could include high proportions of foods that were both compliant and tough.
Sujet(s)
Adaptation biologique , Anthropologie/méthodes , Évolution biologique , Régime alimentaire , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Animaux , Isotopes du carbone/analyse , Émail dentaire/anatomie et histologie , Consommation alimentaire , Analyse des éléments finis , Hominidae/physiologieRÉSUMÉ
Hominin fossil evidence in the Turkana Basin in Kenya from ca. 4.1 to 1.4 Ma samples two archaic early hominin genera and records some of the early evolutionary history of Paranthropus and Homo. Stable carbon isotopes in fossil tooth enamel are used to estimate the fraction of diet derived from C3 or C4 resources in these hominin taxa. The earliest hominin species in the Turkana Basin, Australopithecus anamensis, derived nearly all of its diet from C3 resources. Subsequently, by ca. 3.3 Ma, the later Kenyanthropus platyops had a very wide dietary range--from virtually a purely C3 resource-based diet to one dominated by C4 resources. By ca. 2 Ma, hominins in the Turkana Basin had split into two distinct groups: specimens attributable to the genus Homo provide evidence for a diet with a ca. 65/35 ratio of C3- to C4-based resources, whereas P. boisei had a higher fraction of C4-based diet (ca. 25/75 ratio). Homo sp. increased the fraction of C4-based resources in the diet through ca. 1.5 Ma, whereas P. boisei maintained its high dependency on C4-derived resources.
Sujet(s)
Régime alimentaire/histoire , Hominidae , Animaux , Isotopes du carbone , Émail dentaire/composition chimique , Fossiles , Histoire ancienne , Humains , KenyaRÉSUMÉ
Recent studies suggest that the hypodigms representing the two earliest Australopithecus (Au. anamensis and Au. afarensis) form an ancestor-descendant lineage. Understanding the details of this possible transition is important comparative evidence for assessing the likelihood of other examples of ancestor-descendant lineages within the hominin clade. To this end we have analyzed crown and cusp base areas of high resolution replicas of the mandibular molars of Au. anamensis (Allia Bay and Kanapoi sites) and those of Au. afarensis (Hadar, Laetoli, and Maka). We found no statistically significant differences in crown areas between these hypodigms although the mean of M(1) crowns was smaller in Au. anamensis, being the smallest of any Australopithecus species sampled to date. Intraspecies comparison of the areas of mesial cusps for each molar type using Wilcoxon signed rank test showed no differences for Au. anamensis. Significant differences were found between the protoconid and metaconid of Au. afarensis M(2)s and M(3)s. Furthermore, the area formed by the posterior cusps as a whole relative to the anterior cusps showed significant differences in Au. afarensis M(1)s and in Au. anamensis M(2)s but no differences were noted for M(3)s of either taxon. Developmental information derived from microstructural details in enamel shows that M(1) crown formation in Au. anamensis is similar to Pan and shorter than in H. sapiens. Taken together, these data suggests that the overall trend in the Au. anamensis-Au. afarensis transition may have involved a moderate increase in M(1) crown areas with relative expansion of distal cusps.
Sujet(s)
Fossiles , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Molaire/anatomie et histologie , Couronne dentaire/anatomie et histologie , Animaux , Anthropologie anatomique , Biais de l'observateur , Statistique non paramétriqueRÉSUMÉ
Recent studies of dental microwear and craniofacial mechanics have yielded contradictory interpretations regarding the feeding ecology and adaptations of Australopithecus africanus. As part of this debate, the methods used in the mechanical studies have been criticized. In particular, it has been claimed that finite element analysis has been poorly applied to this research question. This paper responds to some of these mechanical criticisms, highlights limitations of dental microwear analysis, and identifies avenues of future research.
Sujet(s)
Comportement alimentaire/physiologie , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Hominidae/physiologie , Usure dentaire/physiopathologie , Dent/anatomie et histologie , Dent/physiologie , Animaux , Phénomènes biomécaniques , Aliments , FossilesRÉSUMÉ
Previous research has demonstrated that species and subspecies of extant chimpanzees and bonobos can be distinguished on the basis of the shape of enamel-dentine junction of lower molar crowns. Thus, there is potential for fossil taxa, particularly fossil hominins, to be distinguished at similar taxonomic levels using lower molar crown morphology. New imaging techniques allow for the collection of large amounts of shape data, but it is not clear whether taxonomic distinctiveness increases with the inclusion of more and more finely detailed aspects of crown shape. We examine whether increasing the amount of shape data collected will lead to an increase in the accuracy with which enamel-dentine junction (EDJ) shape classifies Pan lower first and second molars at the species and subspecies level. Micro-computed tomography was employed to non-destructively image the EDJ and geometric morphometric analytical methods were used to compare EDJ shape among samples of Pan paniscus, Pan troglodytestroglodytes, and Pan troglodytes verus. The results of discriminant analyses using three landmark sets (number of landmarks=8, 112, and 534 landmarks and semi-landmarks, respectively) indicate a high degree of classification accuracy for each landmark set, with small increases in accuracy as the numbers of landmarks are increased. The morphological differences in EDJ shape among the taxa are subtle, but consistent, and relate to the relative height and position of the dentine horns. Thus, EDJ shape can contribute to taxonomic analyses and the more information that can be included the better.
Sujet(s)
Molaire/anatomie et histologie , Odontométrie/méthodes , Pan paniscus/anatomie et histologie , Pan troglodytes/anatomie et histologie , Couronne dentaire/anatomie et histologie , Animaux , Émail dentaire/anatomie et histologie , Émail dentaire/imagerie diagnostique , Dentine/anatomie et histologie , Dentine/imagerie diagnostique , Analyse discriminante , Fossiles , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Hominidae/classification , Imagerie tridimensionnelle , Molaire/imagerie diagnostique , Odontométrie/normes , Pan paniscus/classification , Pan troglodytes/classification , Analyse en composantes principales , Normes de référence , Spécificité d'espèce , Couronne dentaire/imagerie diagnostique , Microtomographie aux rayons XRÉSUMÉ
Previous research has demonstrated that species and subspecies of extant chimpanzees and bonobos can be distinguished on the basis of the shape of their molar crowns. Thus, there is potential for fossil taxa, particularly fossil hominins, to be distinguished at similar taxonomic levels using molar crown morphology. Unfortunately, due to occlusal attrition, the original crown morphology is often absent in fossil teeth, and this has limited the amount of shape information used to discriminate hominin molars. The enamel-dentine junction (EDJ) of molar teeth preserves considerable shape information, particularly in regard to the original shape of the crown, and remains present through the early stages of attrition. In this study, we investigate whether the shape of the EDJ of lower first and second molars can distinguish species and subspecies of extant Pan. Micro-computed tomography was employed to non-destructively image the EDJ, and geometric morphometric analytical methods were used to compare EDJ shape among samples of Pan paniscus (N = 17), Pan troglodytes troglodytes (N = 13), and Pan troglodytes verus (N = 18). Discriminant analysis indicates that EDJ morphology distinguishes among extant Pan species and subspecies with a high degree of reliability. The morphological differences in EDJ shape among the taxa are subtle and relate to the relative height and position of the dentine horns, the height of the dentine crown, and the shape of the crown base, but their existence supports the inclusion of EDJ shape (particularly those aspects of shape in the vertical dimension) in the systematic analysis of fossil hominin lower molars.
Sujet(s)
Émail dentaire/anatomie et histologie , Dentine/anatomie et histologie , Molaire/anatomie et histologie , Pan paniscus/classification , Pan troglodytes/classification , Animaux , Classification/méthodes , Imagerie tridimensionnelle , Pan paniscus/anatomie et histologie , Pan troglodytes/anatomie et histologie , Analyse en composantes principales , Spécificité d'espèce , TomodensitométrieRÉSUMÉ
The African Plio-Pleistocene hominins known as australopiths evolved a distinctive craniofacial morphology that traditionally has been viewed as a dietary adaptation for feeding on either small, hard objects or on large volumes of food. A historically influential interpretation of this morphology hypothesizes that loads applied to the premolars during feeding had a profound influence on the evolution of australopith craniofacial form. Here, we test this hypothesis using finite element analysis in conjunction with comparative, imaging, and experimental methods. We find that the facial skeleton of the Australopithecus type species, A. africanus, is well suited to withstand premolar loads. However, we suggest that the mastication of either small objects or large volumes of food is unlikely to fully explain the evolution of facial form in this species. Rather, key aspects of australopith craniofacial morphology are more likely to be related to the ingestion and initial preparation of large, mechanically protected food objects like large nuts and seeds. These foods may have broadened the diet of these hominins, possibly by being critical resources that australopiths relied on during periods when their preferred dietary items were in short supply. Our analysis reconciles apparent discrepancies between dietary reconstructions based on biomechanics, tooth morphology, and dental microwear.
Sujet(s)
Phénomènes biomécaniques , Animaux , Évolution biologique , Régime alimentaire , Écologie , Comportement alimentaire , Analyse des éléments finis , Fossiles , Hominidae/anatomie et histologie , Macaca , Modèles théoriques , Muscles/anatomopathologie , Paléontologie/méthodes , LogicielRÉSUMÉ
Distinctive expressions and incidences of discrete dental traits at the outer enamel surface (OES) contribute to the diagnoses of many early hominin taxa. Examination of the enamel-dentine junction (EDJ), imaged non-destructively using micro-computed tomography, has elucidated the morphological development of dental traits and improved interpretations of their variability within and among taxa. The OES expressions of one of these dental traits, the protostylid, have been found to differ among African Plio-Pleistocene fossil hominin taxa. In this study protostylid expression is examined at the OES and at the EDJ of Paranthropus robustus (n=23) and Australopithecus africanus (n=28) mandibular molars, with the goals of incorporating EDJ morphology into the definition of the protostylid and assessing the relative contribution of the EDJ and enamel cap to its expression in these taxa. The results provide evidence (a) of statistically significant taxon-specific patterns of protostylid morphology at the EDJ that are not evident at the OES; (b) that in P. robustus, thick enamel reduces the morphological correspondence between the form of the protostylid seen at the EDJ and the OES, and (c) that if EDJ images can be obtained, then the protostylid retains its taxonomic value even in worn teeth.