Papers by Isabelle De Groote
Archives of Oral Biology, Nov 1, 2023
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, Feb 1, 2018
Introduction: Fossilised footprints have been discovered all over the world and can provide infor... more Introduction: Fossilised footprints have been discovered all over the world and can provide information regarding the foot size and subsequent body size estimates of the track makers or an insight into the kinematics of the foot/lower limb. After exposure, these fossils rapidly erode. It is predicted that footprint morphology is compromised after creation, prior to fossilisation and that erosion after exposure will affect the morphology of a footprint after exposure. To date, no studies have assessed if degradation prior to fossilisation and/or after fossilisation, and subsequent exposure, affects the morphology of the print, thereby affecting any measurements taken. This study aims to quantify these pre-and post-erosional processes. Materials and methods: A set of experimentally generated footprints were created to test the effects of degradation of footprint morphology prior to fossilisation. In addition, Holocene footprints were recorded at Formby Point, Sefton, UK. In just over a week tidal action had completely eroded the Holocene beds. Photogrammetry was applied to the experimental human footprints and a selection of Holocene human and animal footprints. Three-dimensional Geometric Morphometric methods were utilised to estimate differences in shape and size. Results: Results from the experimental footprints indicate that weather action affects the size and shape of a footprint prior to fossilisation. When the weather was dry, footprint shape and size showed little difference for two weeks, but rainfall caused significant changes. The Holocene footprints show that after fossilisation and exposure to coastal erosion, footprint rigidity is highly compromised. The human footprint borders progressively recede, increasing length and width each day. Footprint depth, often used to inform upon speed and kinematics, varied considerably in one week. Some regions becoming shallower, others increasing in depth. Similar results were found for the animal footprints, but with less significant changes in shape and size determined. Conclusion: Observed significant differences in measurements result in problems for predicting stature, mass, sex, and kinematic analyses. This warrants caution when making interpretations from fossilised footprints. Rapid recording of fossilised prints from first exposure and assessing pre-fossilisation processed are necessities when recording footprint surfaces.
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), Nov 19, 2017
Tooth root grooves and other ante-mortem dental tissue loss not associated with caries found on o... more Tooth root grooves and other ante-mortem dental tissue loss not associated with caries found on or near the cementoenamel junction (CEJ) are commonly termed non-carious cervical lesions. Three main processes are implicated in forming these lesions: abrasion, dental erosion, and abfraction. As yet, these lesions have not been described in non-Homo hominins. In this study South African fossil hominin collections were examined for evidence of any type of non-carious cervical lesion. Only one individual shows ante-mortem root grooves consistent with non-carious cervical lesions. Two teeth, a mandibular right permanent lateral incisor (STW 270) and canine (STW 213), belonging to the same Australopithecus africanus individual, show clear ante-mortem grooves on the labial root surface. These lesions start below the CEJ, extend over a third of the way toward the apex, and taper to a point towards the lingual side. The characteristics of these grooves suggest the predominant aetiology was erosive wear. In addition, they are extremely similar to clinical examples of dental erosion. These are the oldest hominin examples of noncarious cervical lesions and first described in a genus other than Homo; further, the lesions suggest that this individual regularly processed and consumed acidic food items.
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2016
Integrative Organismal Biology
Synopsis The postcranial skeleton of Australopithecus afarensis (AL 288–1) exhibits clear adaptat... more Synopsis The postcranial skeleton of Australopithecus afarensis (AL 288–1) exhibits clear adaptations for bipedality, although there is some debate as to the efficiency and frequency of such upright movement. Some researchers argue that AL 288–1 walked with an erect limb like modern humans do, whilst others advocate for a “bent-hip bent-knee” (BHBK) gait, although in recent years the general consensus favors erect bipedalism. To date, no quantitative method has addressed the articulation of the AL 288–1 hip joint, nor its range of motion (ROM) with consideration for joint spacing, used as a proxy for the thickness of the articular cartilage present within the joint spacing which can affect how a joint moves. Here, we employed ROM mapping methods to estimate the joint spacing of AL 288–1’s hip joint in comparison to a modern human and chimpanzee. Nine simulations assessed different joint spacing and tested the range of joint congruency (i.e., ranging from a closely packed socket to l...
Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 2022
The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of the recor... more The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of the record. Please see the repository URL above for details on accessing the published version and note that access may require a subscription.
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2016
This article reports on the first three systematic excavation seasons at the Neolithic ossuary of... more This article reports on the first three systematic excavation seasons at the Neolithic ossuary of Grotte de La Faucille, Belgium. The site was dated on human bone to 4266 ± 40 14C BP (3011-2702 cal BC; 2 sigma), corresponding to the transition from the late to the final Neolithic. The area excavated to date is clearly reworked and the individuals are distributed across the site. Further excavation will focus on the inferior levels at the entrance and inside the cave. This report presents the preliminary analysis of the anthropological and archaeological evidence recorded to date. Five archaeological artefacts were discovered made on bone, tooth and flint. The site has produced skeletal and dental remains of at least 12 humans (MNI 6 juveniles and 6 adults) as well as a number of bone and lithic artefacts. The skeletal remains are fragmentary and some elements, such as the cranium, are highly underrepresented given the number of individuals. The potential to find the remainder of at ...
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2016
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2019
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2017
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2021
American Journal of Primatology, 2020
The position (FMP) and orientation (FMO) of the foramen magnum have been used as proxies for loco... more The position (FMP) and orientation (FMO) of the foramen magnum have been used as proxies for locomotion and posture in extant and extinct primates. Several indices have been designed to quantify FMP and FMO but their application has led to conflicting results. Here we test six widely used indices and two approaches (univariate and multivariate) for their capability to discriminate between postural and locomotor types in extant primates and fossil hominins. We then look at the locomotion of australopithecines and Homo on the base of these new findings. The following measurements are used: the opisthocranionprosthion (OP-PR) and the opisthocranion-glabella (OP-GL) indices, the basion-biporion (BA-BP) and basionbicarotid (BA-BC) chords, the foramen magnum angle (FMA), and the basion-sphenoccipital ratio (BA-SF). After exploring the indices variability using Principal Component Analysis, pairwise comparisons are performed to test for the association between each index and the locomotor and postural habits. Cranial size and phylogeny are taken into account. Our analysis indicates that none of the indices or approaches provides complete discrimination across locomotor and postural categories, although some differences are highlighted. FMA and BA-BP distinguish respectively obligate and facultative bipeds from all other groups. For what concerns posture, orthogrades and pronogrades differ with respects to OP-PR, OP-GL and FMA. Although the multivariate approach seems to have some discrimination power, the results are most likely driven by facial and neurocranial variability embedded in some of the indices. These results demonstrate that indices relying on the anteroposterior positioning of the foramen may not be appropriate proxies for locomotion among primates. The assumptions about locomotor and postural habits in fossil hominins based on foramen magnum indices should be revised in the light of these new findings.
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Papers by Isabelle De Groote