Estimation of ancestry for an undocumented mandibular sample using dental morphology

Abstract

Dental morphology is a useful resource in archaeology, anthropology and paleontology, due to its genetic determination. Teeth are a material of high durability and stability. This work aims to study the dental morphology and test the Portuguese and European biological affinities of an undocumented mandibular sample, through comparison with global and Iberian samples. The dental traits in 163 mandibles (kept at the Museum of Natural History of the University of Oporto, Portugal) were scored using a standardized methodology (ASUDAS: Arizona State University Dental Anthropology System) and compared to other world-wide and Iberian samples through Principal Components (PCA) and Mean Measure of Divergence analyses. The undertaken quantitative and statistical tests demonstrated the unknown sample to be closer to the Coimbra Portuguese sample in all three comparisons. This suggests this undocumented mandibular sample is possibly of Portuguese 19/20 century origin.

Ancestry Estimation: Advances and Limitations in Forensic Applications

“…Human teeth are highly preserved and commonly recovered, and thus, dental non-metric traits have also been assessed for purposes of identification and ancestry estimation. [70][71][72] Moreover, crown morphology is not altered, and so, dentition can be more resistant to environmental changes proving to be a valuable asset in ancestry estimation. 71 Furthermore, dental variation can be of hereditary nature, thus allowing for tracing the origins of the individual back to a specific geographically located group.…”

“…Nevertheless, morphological traits in dentition rely on experience and accurate identification is dependent on the sample under study and the population´s degree of homogeneity. 70…”