Dental microwear in laboratory primates: Insights into the complexity of dental microwear formation
Title
Dental microwear in laboratory primates: Insights into the complexity of dental microwear formation
Creator
Teaford M F; Laird M F; Ross C F; Taylor A B; Ungar P S; Vinyard C J
Publisher
American Journal of Physical Anthropology
Date
2019
2019-03
Description
Dental microwear analysis has been employed in studies of a wide range of modern and fossil animals, yielding many insights into the biology/ecology of those taxa. Paleoanthropological studies have produced both expected and unexpected results (e.g., comparisons of South and East African robust australopithecines). Some critics have suggested that, because exogenous grit is harder than organic materials in food, grit should have an overwhelming impact on dental microwear patterns.
To shed light on this issue, feeding experiments were conducted on laboratory capuchin monkeys [Sapajus apella] with dental impressions taken before and after each feeding session. The food was an confectionary gelatin (“Jell-O”) prepared with less water to make it stiffer, and it was laced with specific amounts of aluminum silicate pumice to simulate the presence of grit. Resultant casts were analyzed by SEM and confocal microscopy. We asked two main questions: (1) would new microwear features be formed in the course of single feeding bouts, and (2) would there be any changes in dental microwear texture as a result of the presence of the grit in these feeding experiments?
Initial results showed that no new features and no changes in dental microwear texture were detected. These findings suggest that the impact of exogenous grit on dental microwear is the result of dynamic, complex interactions among many factors including the material properties of both the food and the grit, grit load and amount of time spent feeding.
Funding was provided by National Science Foundation (NSF-BCS-1440542) and the American Association of Physical Anthropologists Cobb Professional Development Program.
To shed light on this issue, feeding experiments were conducted on laboratory capuchin monkeys [Sapajus apella] with dental impressions taken before and after each feeding session. The food was an confectionary gelatin (“Jell-O”) prepared with less water to make it stiffer, and it was laced with specific amounts of aluminum silicate pumice to simulate the presence of grit. Resultant casts were analyzed by SEM and confocal microscopy. We asked two main questions: (1) would new microwear features be formed in the course of single feeding bouts, and (2) would there be any changes in dental microwear texture as a result of the presence of the grit in these feeding experiments?
Initial results showed that no new features and no changes in dental microwear texture were detected. These findings suggest that the impact of exogenous grit on dental microwear is the result of dynamic, complex interactions among many factors including the material properties of both the food and the grit, grit load and amount of time spent feeding.
Funding was provided by National Science Foundation (NSF-BCS-1440542) and the American Association of Physical Anthropologists Cobb Professional Development Program.
Subject
Anthropology; Evolutionary Biology
Identifier
n/a
Format
Journal Article
URL Address
n/a
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Rights
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Pages
245-245
Volume
168
NEOMED College
NEOMED College of Medicine
NEOMED Department
Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology
Citation
Teaford M F; Laird M F; Ross C F; Taylor A B; Ungar P S; Vinyard C J, “Dental microwear in laboratory primates: Insights into the complexity of dental microwear formation,” NEOMED Bibliography Database, accessed April 25, 2024, https://neomed.omeka.net/items/show/8164.