Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model

Abstract This study assessed the regional diversity of the human cranial form by using geometric homologous models based on scanned data from 148 ethnic groups worldwide. This method adopted a template-fitting technique for a nonrigid transformation via the iterative closest point algorithm to gener...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Hirofumi Matsumura, Toyohisa Tanijiri, Makiko Kouchi, Tsunehiko Hanihara, Martin Friess, Vyacheslav Moiseyev, Chris Stringer, Kengo Miyahara
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2022-08-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-15883-3
_version_ 1811283839728746496
author Hirofumi Matsumura
Toyohisa Tanijiri
Makiko Kouchi
Tsunehiko Hanihara
Martin Friess
Vyacheslav Moiseyev
Chris Stringer
Kengo Miyahara
author_facet Hirofumi Matsumura
Toyohisa Tanijiri
Makiko Kouchi
Tsunehiko Hanihara
Martin Friess
Vyacheslav Moiseyev
Chris Stringer
Kengo Miyahara
author_sort Hirofumi Matsumura
collection DOAJ
description Abstract This study assessed the regional diversity of the human cranial form by using geometric homologous models based on scanned data from 148 ethnic groups worldwide. This method adopted a template-fitting technique for a nonrigid transformation via the iterative closest point algorithm to generate the homologous meshes. Through the application of principal component analysis to 342 sampled homologous models, the largest variation was detected in overall size, and small South Asian crania were clearly verified. The next greatest diversity was found in the length/breadth proportion of the neurocranium, which showed the contrast between the elongated crania of Africans and the globular crania of Northeast Asians. Notably, this component was slightly correlated with the facial profile. Well-known facial features, such as the forward projection of the cheek among Northeast Asians and compaction of the European maxilla, were reconfirmed. These facial variations were highly correlated with the calvarial outline, particularly the degree of frontal and occipital inclines. An allometric pattern was detected in facial proportions in relation to overall cranial size; in larger crania, the facial profiles tend to be longer and narrower, as demonstrated among many American natives and Northeast Asians. Although our study did not include data on environmental variables that are likely to affect cranial morphology, such as climate or dietary conditions, the large datasets of homologous cranial models will be usefully available for seeking various attributions to phenotypic skeletal characteristics.
first_indexed 2024-04-13T02:18:23Z
format Article
id doaj.art-a2a40de6d78a43719676836e2cae05cd
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 2045-2322
language English
last_indexed 2024-04-13T02:18:23Z
publishDate 2022-08-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj.art-a2a40de6d78a43719676836e2cae05cd2022-12-22T03:07:04ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222022-08-0112111710.1038/s41598-022-15883-3Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous modelHirofumi Matsumura0Toyohisa Tanijiri1Makiko Kouchi2Tsunehiko Hanihara3Martin Friess4Vyacheslav Moiseyev5Chris Stringer6Kengo Miyahara7School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical UniversityMedic EngineeringNational Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and TechnologyDepartment of Anatomy, Kitasato UniversityDépartement Homme et Environnement, Musée de l’HommePeter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera), Russian Academy of SciencesDepartment of Earth Sciences, The Natural History MuseumKyoto City Archeological Research InstituteAbstract This study assessed the regional diversity of the human cranial form by using geometric homologous models based on scanned data from 148 ethnic groups worldwide. This method adopted a template-fitting technique for a nonrigid transformation via the iterative closest point algorithm to generate the homologous meshes. Through the application of principal component analysis to 342 sampled homologous models, the largest variation was detected in overall size, and small South Asian crania were clearly verified. The next greatest diversity was found in the length/breadth proportion of the neurocranium, which showed the contrast between the elongated crania of Africans and the globular crania of Northeast Asians. Notably, this component was slightly correlated with the facial profile. Well-known facial features, such as the forward projection of the cheek among Northeast Asians and compaction of the European maxilla, were reconfirmed. These facial variations were highly correlated with the calvarial outline, particularly the degree of frontal and occipital inclines. An allometric pattern was detected in facial proportions in relation to overall cranial size; in larger crania, the facial profiles tend to be longer and narrower, as demonstrated among many American natives and Northeast Asians. Although our study did not include data on environmental variables that are likely to affect cranial morphology, such as climate or dietary conditions, the large datasets of homologous cranial models will be usefully available for seeking various attributions to phenotypic skeletal characteristics.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-15883-3
spellingShingle Hirofumi Matsumura
Toyohisa Tanijiri
Makiko Kouchi
Tsunehiko Hanihara
Martin Friess
Vyacheslav Moiseyev
Chris Stringer
Kengo Miyahara
Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model
Scientific Reports
title Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model
title_full Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model
title_fullStr Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model
title_full_unstemmed Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model
title_short Global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3D surface homologous model
title_sort global patterns of the cranial form of modern human populations described by analysis of a 3d surface homologous model
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-15883-3
work_keys_str_mv AT hirofumimatsumura globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT toyohisatanijiri globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT makikokouchi globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT tsunehikohanihara globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT martinfriess globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT vyacheslavmoiseyev globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT chrisstringer globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel
AT kengomiyahara globalpatternsofthecranialformofmodernhumanpopulationsdescribedbyanalysisofa3dsurfacehomologousmodel