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https://hdl.handle.net/11499/7328
Title: | Brief communication: First Homo erectus from Turkey and implications for migrations into temperate Eurasia | Authors: | Kappelman, J. Alçiçek, Mehmet Cihad. Kazanci, N. Schultz, M. Özkul, Mehmet. Şen, Ş. |
Keywords: | Hominin Human evolution Pathology Tuberculosis UV radiation Vitamin D article Asia cold climate Europe fossil frontal bone hominid homo erectus leptomeningitis tuberculosa leptomeninx Middle Pleistocene nonhuman population migration surface property temperate climate temperature acclimatization tuberculous meningitis Turkey (republic) ultraviolet radiation vitamin D deficiency animal classification evolution histology history physiology skull Animal Migration Animals Evolution Fossils History, Ancient Hominidae Skull Tuberculosis, Meningeal Turkey Ultraviolet Rays Vitamin D Deficiency |
Abstract: | Remains of fossil hominins from temperate regions of the Old World are rare across both time and space, but such specimens are necessary for understanding basic issues in human evolution including linkages between their adaptations and early migration patterns. We report here the remarkable circumstances surrounding the discovery of the first fossil hominin calvaria from Turkey. The specimen was found in the Denizli province of western Turkey and recovered from within a solid block of travertine stone as it was being sawed into tile-sized slabs for the commercial natural stone building market. The new specimen fills an important geographical and temporal gap and displays several anatomical features that are shared with other Middle Pleistocene hominins from both Africa and Asia attributed to Homo erectus. It also preserves an unusual pathology on the endocranial surface of the frontal bone that is consistent with a diagnosis of Leptomeningitis tuberculosa (TB), and this evidence represents the most ancient example of this disease known for a fossil human. TB is exacerbated in dark-skinned peoples living in northern latitudes by a vitamin D deficiency because of reduced levels of ultraviolet radiation (UVR). Evidence for TB in the new specimen supports the thesis that reduced UVR was one of the many climatic variables presenting an adaptive challenge to ancient hominins during their migration into the temperate regions of Europe and Asia. ©2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. | URI: | https://hdl.handle.net/11499/7328 https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.20739 |
ISSN: | 0002-9483 |
Appears in Collections: | Mühendislik Fakültesi Koleksiyonu PubMed İndeksli Yayınlar Koleksiyonu / PubMed Indexed Publications Collection Scopus İndeksli Yayınlar Koleksiyonu / Scopus Indexed Publications Collection WoS İndeksli Yayınlar Koleksiyonu / WoS Indexed Publications Collection |
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