RT Journal Article
T1 The Fetal Origin of the Human Chin
A1 Coquerelle, Michael
A1 Rojo, Rosa
A1 Drake, Abby Grace
A1 Mitteroecker, Philipp
A1 Prados Frutos, Juan Carlos
A1 Murillo González, Jorge Alfonso
AB The chin prominence is a hallmark of the modern human face and bears on its labial surface an inverted-T bony relief. Evolutionarily, whether the human chin is an adaptation for mastication or speech is debated but there is little compelling data supporting either claim. Furthermore, some suggest that the inverted-T relief is more important for phylogenetic inference than the chin prominence. However, there is no evidence for the developmental independence of the inverted-T relief and chin prominence. This debate requires empirical data on fetal development of the human chin. Using 3D imaging of the musculo-cervico-craniofacial skeleton of human fetuses and geometric morphometric methods, we discovered a developmental sequence leading to a chin prominence during early fetal development that is very similar to that which we previously observed in postnatal modern humans and in chimpanzee fetuses. Furthermore, we provide the evidence that the inverted-T relief is developmentally integrated with the chin prominence. The evolution of the human chin is constrained by cervico-craniofacial developmental that maintain an unobstructed fetal airway. Finally, the inverted T-relief should be neither treated independently from the chin prominence in phylogenetic analysis, nor is it a relevant taxonomic trait that defines the symphysis of modern humans.
PB SPRINGER
SN 0071-3260
SN 1934-2845
YR 2017
FD 2017-03-01
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/102536
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/102536
LA eng
NO Coquerelle, M., Prados-Frutos, J.C., Rojo, R. et al. The Fetal Origin of the Human Chin. Evol Biol 44, 295–311 (2017).
NO Fondation Fyssen (Paris)
NO Austrian Science Fund
DS Docta Complutense
RD 4 abr 2025