Brief communication: Sexual dimorphism of the juvenile basicranium

Veroni, Adam; Nikitovic, Dejana; Schillaci, Michael A.

doi:10.1002/ajpa.21156

Cited by 28 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Sex estimation is usually one of the first stages of identifying an adult skeleton (after identifying whether the remains are human and of forensic relevance) [1,5]. For juveniles, whose skeletons are immature, although there are reports that sex identification is possible using human skeletal remains (e.g., mandible and cranium) from an early age, a high level of sex dimorphism is not observed until puberty, which constitutes a significant problem in forensic anthropology [5][6][7][8].…”

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confidence: 99%

Mandibular ramus length as an indicator of chronological age and sex

et al. 2014

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Age and sex estimation is crucial in forensic investigations, whether in legal situations that involve living people or to identify mortal remains. The aim of this study was to establish reference values in a Brazilian population to estimate age and sex by measuring the length of the mandibular ramus on lateral cephalometric radiographs, and to determine the probability that an individual being is 18 years or older, based on the results that were obtained. Two hundred and eighteen scanned lateral cephalograms of individuals between 6 and 20 years of age (101 males and 117 females) were measured with reference to mandibular ramus length (the distance between Condylion superior (Cs) and Gonion (Go)) using ImageJ 1.41 software (NIH, Bethesda, MA, USA). The results showed that sexual dimorphism was not observed until 16 years and, based on the ramus length measurements in this sample, it is possible to predict sex with an accuracy of only 54 %. There was a positive correlation between age and ramus length (r = 0.90; p < 0.001). From the linear regression analysis, one formula was derived; therefore, it was possible to calculate the individual's age, given his or her ramus length. The results showed that if an individual's ramus length is 7.0 cm or more, then there is an 81.25 % chance that the individual is 18 years old or older. In conclusion, the mandibular ramus length was not effective in discriminating sex. Mandibular length is strongly related to chronological age and can be used to predict whether an individual is 18 years or older with high degree of expected accuracy.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mandibular ramus length as an indicator of chronological age and sex

et al. 2014

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“…Following from the high level of success for sexing adult skeletons using morphological traits of the pelvis (Washburn, ; Phenice, ; Bruzek, ), several studies of known age and sex populations have investigated the potential of characteristics of the ilium for sexing juvenile skeletons (e.g., Boucher, ; Fazekas and Kósa, ; Weaver, ; Mittler and Sheridan, ; Schutkowski, ; Holcomb and Konigsberg, ; La Velle, 1995; Rissech and Malgosa, ; Cardoso and Saunders, ). In juveniles, sex determination using morphological traits of the ilium has consistently been more successful than techniques applied to other skeletal elements (Molleson et al, ; Loth and Henneberg, ; Coqueugniot et al, ; Franklin et al, ; Veroni et al, ).…”

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Shape, size, and maturity trajectories of the human ilium

Wilson

Ives²,

Cardoso

et al. 2014

American J Phys Anthropol

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Morphological traits of the ilium have consistently been more successful for juvenile sex determination than have techniques applied to other skeletal elements, however relatively little is known about the ontogeny and maturation of size and shape dimorphism in the ilium. We use a geometric morphometric approach to quantitatively separate the ontogeny of size and shape of the ilium, and analyze interpopulation differences in the onset, rate and patterning of sexual dimorphism. We captured the shape of three traits for a total of 191 ilia from Lisbon (Portugal) and London (UK) samples of known age and sex (0-17 years). Our results indicate that a) there is a clear dissociation between the ontogeny of size and shape in males and females, b) the ontogeny of size and shape are each defined by non-linear trajectories that differ between the sexes, c) there are interpopulation differences in ontogenetic shape trajectories, which point to population-specific patterning in the attainment of sexual dimorphism, and d) the rate of shape maturation and size maturation is typically higher for females than males. Male and female shape differences in the ilium are brought about by trajectory divergence. Differences in size and shape maturation between the sexes suggest that maturity may confound our ability to discriminate between the sexes by introducing variation not accounted for in age-based groupings. The accuracy of sex determination methods using the ilium may be improved by the use of different traits for particular age groups, to capture the ontogenetic development of shape in both sexes.

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“…Relevant investigations in these groups have been conducted for a variety of reasons. Those reasons include (1) delineating its ontogeny in normal and abnormal recent Homo sapiens (Kollmann, 1905; Schwerz, 1908; Grossman and Zuckerman, 1955; Ford, 1956; Kruyff and Jeffs, 1966; Coin and Malkasian, 1971; Röthig, 1971; Schmeltzer et al, 1971; Zadvornov, 1972; Riolo et al, 1974; Marin‐Padilla and Marin‐Padilla, 1977; Bliesener and Schmidt, 1980; Dean, 1982; Hecht et al, 1985, 1989; Lang and Issing, 1989; Lang, 1991; Kjær and Kjær, 1993; Lee et al, 1996; Humphrey, 1998; Coqueugniot, 1999; Berge and Bergman, 2001; Brühl et al, 2001; Reynolds et al, 2001; Acer et al, 2006; Richards, 2007; Sherer et al, 2008; Furtado et al, 2010); (2) delineating the range of geographic, sexual, or temporally related size and shape variation in adult humans (Klaatsch, 1908; Hooton, 1920; Oetteking, 1923, 1928; Morant, 1927; Röthig, 1971; Lang et al, 1983; Catalina‐Herrera, 1987; Rude and Mertzlufft, 1987; Zaidi and Dayal, 1988; Sendemir et al, 1994; Coqueugniot, 1999; Galdames et al, 2009; Gruber et al, 2009; Manoel et al, 2009; Tubbs et al, 2010; Veroni et al, 2010); (3) delineating the ontogeny and range of size and shape variation in modern nonhuman primates (Lönnberg, 1917; Allen, 1925; Heintz, 1966; Michejda and Lamey, 1971; Fenart and Deblock, 1973; Cramer, 1977; Dean, 1982; Masters et al, 1991; Dean and Wood, 2003); (4) providing a basis for interspecific comparisons (Wanner, 1971; Fenart and Deblock, 1973; Dean, 1982; Masters et al, 1991; Schaefer, 1999; Ahern, 2006); and (5) investigating the relationship of FM orientation to habitual skull positioning and locomotion (Duckworth, 1904;...…”

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Foramen Magnum Ontogeny inHomo sapiens: A Functional Matrix Perspective

Richards

Jabbour

2010

The Anatomical Record

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Historically, the foramen magnum (FM) has been an integral component of studies on skull ontogeny and evolutionary transformations of cranial form. Although this foramen has been considered a single entity, we hypothesize that it comprises two functional matrices, a ventral matrix and a dorsal matrix. In general, the ventral matrix is related to locomotor functions, whereas the dorsal matrix is related to neurological functions and fluid flow dynamics. To test our hypothesis, we used a large ontogenetic sample of modern human crania (seventh fetal month to adult) to (1) delineate bony size and shape ontogeny for both the foramen and its dorsal and ventral units; (2) delineate the role of synchondroses in the observed growth patterns and rates; and (3) explore the relationship between FM and cranial size, shape, and growth. Detailed growth patterns and rates are established for the bony FM and its ventral and dorsal skeletal units. These data are supplemented by literature and observational data on embryonic and fetal FM ontogeny, soft tissue relationships, anomalous/pathological extremes of size, and craniocervical anatomy and locomotor functions. The hypothesis that the FM is composed of a ventral and a dorsal functional matrix is supported by observed ontogenetic differences between ventral and dorsal skeletal units, as well as by the soft tissue anatomy of these matrices. Further documentation of these matrices has the potential to significantly enhance our understanding of the ontogenetic and evolutionary transformations of skull base morphology. Anat Rec, 294:199-216, 2011. V V C 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.Key words: foramen magnum; ontogeny; human variation; functional matricesThe basicranium forms in a zone of interaction between structures with neural, skeletomotor, respiratory, auditory, masticatory, digestive, and visual functions. Because of the complex structural-functional relationships, the morphology of the basicranium reflects compromises resulting from the competing demands of multiple soft tissue units that are responding to essential functions.During basicranial development, the structures traversing the endocranial-ectocranial boundary become encircled by cartilage and, eventually, by bone. The resulting bony foramina of the basicranium respond in Additional Supporting Information may be found in the online version of this article.

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Brief communication: Sexual dimorphism of the juvenile basicranium

Cited by 28 publications

References 32 publications

Mandibular ramus length as an indicator of chronological age and sex

Mandibular ramus length as an indicator of chronological age and sex

Shape, size, and maturity trajectories of the human ilium

Foramen Magnum Ontogeny inHomo sapiens: A Functional Matrix Perspective

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