Abstract
The present paper describes a novel analytical approach to provide a comprehensive description of the complex interactions that exist between the growing permanent mandibular teeth (excluding the third molars), and to quantify variability in sequences of key events during crown and root formation, independent of chronological age. Importantly, our method integrates the fundamental concept of modularity and rejects the old statistical fallacy of analyzing data on the assumption that it contains no information beyond that revealed on a tooth-by- tooth analysis. Indeed, interactions between growing teeth may also contain some information, which enables developmental or evolutionary information to be uncovered. Our training sample is based upon cross-sectional standardized panoramic radiographs of the teeth of a total of 2089 children (1206 girls and 883 boys) of different geographic origins (mainly Western Europe, Southern Iran, and Ivory Coast). We observe that, in extant humans sampled so far, the relative development of the permanent incisors is more plastic and varies more than for other teeth. Therefore, we consider that the quantification of possible variations between onsets, durations and rates of development of different teeth in any given child, within a large sample, is a prerequisite to the analysis of fossil hominids. In particular, we seriously question the assumption that the anterior teeth can serve as a reliable substitute for the other permanent teeth, and in particular for interpretations on somatic maturity and brain size. Our hypothesis of modularity in dental development and our method derived from this concept can serve as a basis for identifying and studying patterns of dental growth and, importantly, for comparisons between extant populations, and/or fossil species. These studies do not need to be hedged with age assessments of unknown accuracy and reliability levels (particularly in fossils), or the assumption of independence between growing teeth.
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Braga, J., Heuze, Y. (2007). Quantifying variation in human dental development sequences: An EVO-DEVO perspective. In: Bailey, S.E., Hublin, JJ. (eds) Dental Perspectives on Human Evolution: State of the Art Research in Dental Paleoanthropology. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5845-5_17
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5845-5_17
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