TY  - JOUR
A1  - Oxilia, Gregorio
A1  - Peresani, Marco
A1  - Romandini, Matteo
A1  - Matteucci, Chiara
A1  - Debono Spiteri, Cynthianne
A1  - Henry, Amanda G.
A1  - Schulz, Dieter
A1  - Archer, Will
A1  - Crezzini, Jacopo
A1  - Boschin, Francesco
A1  - Boscato, Paolo
A1  - Jaouen, Klervia
A1  - Dogandžić, Tamara
A1  - Broglio, Alberto
A1  - Moggi-Cecchi, Jacopo
A1  - Fiorenza, Luca
A1  - Hublin, Jean-Jacques
A1  - Kullmer, Ottmar
A1  - Benazzi, Stefano
T1  - Earliest evidence of dental caries manipulation in the Late Upper Palaeolithic
T2  - Scientific reports
N2  - Prehistoric dental treatments were extremely rare, and the few documented cases are known from the Neolithic, when the adoption of early farming culture caused an increase of carious lesions. Here we report the earliest evidence of dental caries intervention on a Late Upper Palaeolithic modern human specimen (Villabruna) from a burial in Northern Italy. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy we show the presence of striations deriving from the manipulation of a large occlusal carious cavity of the lower right third molar. The striations have a "V"-shaped transverse section and several parallel micro-scratches at their base, as typically displayed by cutmarks on teeth. Based on in vitro experimental replication and a complete functional reconstruction of the Villabruna dental arches, we confirm that the identified striations and the associated extensive enamel chipping on the mesial wall of the cavity were produced ante-mortem by pointed flint tools during scratching and levering activities. The Villabruna specimen is therefore the oldest known evidence of dental caries intervention, suggesting at least some knowledge of disease treatment well before the Neolithic. This study suggests that primitive forms of carious treatment in human evolution entail an adaptation of the well-known toothpicking for levering and scratching rather than drilling practices.
Y1  - 2015
UR  - http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/41436
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-414369
SN  - 2045-2322
N1  - This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
VL  - 5
IS  - 12150
PB  - Nature Publishing Group
CY  - London
ER  -