The Experts below are selected from a list of 288 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform

Jean-marc Cavaillon - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

Megan Brickley - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • Radiographically recognizable? An investigation into the appearance of osteomalacic pseudofractures.
    International journal of paleopathology, 2018
    Co-Authors: Emma Jennings, Jo Buckberry, Megan Brickley
    Abstract:

    Pseudofractures, lucent bands that occur due to a build-up of osteoid, are a key feature of osteomalacia. In Paleopathology, pseudofractures are often marked by small, linear cracks in the cortex of the bone surrounded by irregular, bony spicule formation. Radiography can be used to help diagnose pseudofractures, both clinically and in Paleopathology. A detailed understanding of the radiographic appearance of pseudofractures and their development is, therefore, necessary to aid a diagnosis of vitamin D deficiency. The present study examined the clinical literature to determine current ideas on the appearance of pseudofractures with the aim of applying this knowledge to Paleopathology. A radiographic study of the characteristics of pseudofractures was performed on five individuals with clear skeletal features of osteomalacia from archaeological sites in Canada and the United Kingdom dating to the medieval period (5th to 15th centuries) and the 18th to 19th century. Results show that the radiographic appearance of pseudofractures could potentially reveal information about the cause of the deficiency and the chronicity of pseudofractures. This type of information has the potential to further our understanding of the lived experiences of archaeological individuals with osteomalacia.

  • Identification of urate crystals in gouty individuals
    Journal of Archaeological Science, 2011
    Co-Authors: Susan Limbrey, Megan Brickley, Carina Marques, David Swinson
    Abstract:

    Abstract In Paleopathology cases of gout have traditionally been identified using the character of erosive bony lesions, but in clinical medicine identification of monosodium urate crystals in joint fluid plays a central role in diagnosis. Work undertaken on three skeletal individuals who had been buried, demonstrates that crystals can be identified using polarising microscopy. The crystals were identified as monosodium urate. Results from this study appear to demonstrate that identification of monosodium urate crystals could be used to assist in the diagnosis of gout in Paleopathology. Further work is required to establish the full range of spatial and temporal contexts from which such crystals might be found.

Donald J. Ortner - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • What skeletons tell us. The story of human Paleopathology
    Virchows Archiv, 2011
    Co-Authors: Donald J. Ortner
    Abstract:

    Human skeletal Paleopathology provides important insight regarding the antiquity of some diseases and their distribution in past human groups. The history of human skeletal Paleopathology extends back more than 150 years. Rudolf Virchow published reports on the subject, and research on Paleopathology has provided critical data on important topics such as the origin of syphilis. With the development of powerful new research tools, human Paleopathology will continue to be a source of data on the development of disease and its effect on human biological and cultural development.

  • human skeletal Paleopathology
    International Journal of Paleopathology, 2011
    Co-Authors: Donald J. Ortner
    Abstract:

    Human skeletal remains from archaeological contexts are the main source of data about the complex interaction between disease and humankind throughout the emergence of Homo sapiens. Past and current research on these remains has revealed the presence of many diseases that affect the skeleton today. There are, however, limitations in using data from such skeletal samples to reconstruct the health of past human groups. Recently developed diagnostic procedures and methods for extracting relevant data from skeletal tissue provide new options for exploring important questions and trying to clarify the role of disease in the evolutionary process that resulted in human societies today. These past histories hold important lessons for predicting future relationships between our species and its disease load.

  • Issues in Paleopathology and possible strategies for dealing with them.
    Anthropologischer Anzeiger; Bericht uber die biologisch-anthropologische Literatur, 2009
    Co-Authors: Donald J. Ortner
    Abstract:

    Human Paleopathology has the potential of enriching what we can reconstruct about the lives of our recent and ancient ancestors. The development of remarkably sensitive analytical methods in chemistry and physics provides information that is still in the early stages of being used in research about human Paleopathology. Research on mummy and skeletal tissues, both gross and histological, has vastly improved from the early studies in Paleopathology. There are, however, nagging issues that have been identified as scientists attempt to conduct new research and interpret the research being done. These include the need for a greater emphasis on rigor in diagnosis of skeletal and soft tissue abnormalities; the establishment of additional research centers that recover and curate large, carefully documented archaeological samples of human remains; better integration between the medical fields of orthopaedic pathology and skeletal radiology with Paleopathology; and improved design in the research conducted.

Andreas G. Nerlich - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • Molecular Paleopathology and paleo-oncology-State of the art, potentials, limitations and perspectives.
    International journal of paleopathology, 2017
    Co-Authors: Andreas G. Nerlich
    Abstract:

    This paper reviews the current knowledge on molecular Paleopathology with respect to oncological information. This covers both the information on the protein level (proteome) as well as the gene level (genome) and includes data on carcinogenic factors - such as molecular evidence for oncogenic viral infections. Currently, relatively little data is available for neoplastic disease in Paleopathology. Likewise, few studies describe the biochemical or immunohistochemical analysis of tumors - a tool to potentially classify the tumor type and the underlying primary tumor in metastases. On the gene level, two studies described distinct molecular mutations in either a tumor-driving oncogene or a tumor suppressor gene, both being excellent examples for paleo-oncological studies. The paucity of historic tumor material - particularly when only osseous remains are available - represents the most hindering factor for molecular paleo-oncology. This can only be overcome in future by both the thorough investigation of mummified archaeological biomaterial and the improvement of analytical assays in order to trace even minute amounts of tumor material in osseous lesions.

  • The identification of malaria in Paleopathology-An in-depth assessment of the strategies to detect malaria in ancient remains
    Acta tropica, 2015
    Co-Authors: Raffaella Bianucci, Adauto Araújo, Carsten M. Pusch, Andreas G. Nerlich
    Abstract:

    The comprehensive analyses of human remains from various places and time periods, either by immunological or molecular approaches, provide circumstantial evidence that malaria tropica haunted humankind at least since dynastic ancient Egypt. Here we summarize the "actual state-of-the-art" of these bio-molecular investigations and offer a solid basis for the discussion of the Paleopathology of malaria in human history.

Katherine A Dettwyler - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • can Paleopathology provide evidence for compassion
    American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 1991
    Co-Authors: Katherine A Dettwyler
    Abstract:

    Paleopathological analyses of skeletal remains have provided significant information about diet and health in prehistoric populations. A number of individuals have been recovered whose remains show evidence of impairments that would have precluded “normal” functioning, resulting in a disability. The most famous example is Shanidar I; more recent discoveries include the Romito 2 dwarf from Italy and a boy with spina bifida from the Windover site in Florida. These finds have been interpreted by some writers as evidence for compassion and “moral decency” among the other members of the community, who would have had to support these nonproductive individuals. However, these interpretations are based on a number of implicit assumptions: about the number of nonproductive members normally present in any population, about the abilities of disabled individuals by other members of the group, and about the “moral rightness” of facilitating the survival of a disabled individual under all circumstances. These assumptions are not justified by the evidence from the archeological record or by reference to ethnographic analogy. A tendency to focus on physical traits as the sole measure of productive ability, images of Rousseau's “noble savage” transported to the past, and unexamined beliefs about the disabled in modern societies have influenced these archeological interpretations. We are not justified in drawing conclusions either about the quality of life for disabled individuals in the past or about the motives or attitudes of the rest of the community from skeletal evidence of physical impairment.