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NEW YORK, U.S.: Throughout history, human exposure to various metals and its effects have been investigated numerous times. In a new study, scientists from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, have found evidence of lead exposure in the teeth of 250,000-year-old Neanderthal remains. The research is part of an attempt to understand the relationship between human evolution and climate change.
The study is the first to report on lead exposure in Neanderthals and the first to use teeth to reconstruct climate and the timing of key developmental events, including weaning and nursing duration, which are critical determinants of population growth. The findings point to a different narrative than previously thought.
“Traditionally, people thought lead exposure occurred in populations only after industrialization, but these results show it happened prehistorically, before lead had been widely released into the environment,” said Dr. Christine Austin, one of the study’s lead authors and assistant professor at the Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health.
The international research team of biological anthropologists, archaeologists, earth scientists, and environmental exposure experts measured barium, lead and oxygen in the teeth of two Neanderthal children for evidence of nursing, weaning, chemical exposure and climate variations. For comparison, the teeth of a modern human were also used. Elemental analysis of the Neanderthal teeth revealed two occasions of short-term exposure to lead during cooler seasons, possibly from ingestion of contaminated food or water, or inhalation of fire fumes containing lead.
The research team were able to reconstruct past exposures along incremental markings using lasers to sample the growth rings of the teeth. They noted however that they could not make broad generalizations about Neanderthals owing to the small sample size, but suggested that their research methods offer a new approach to answering questions about long extinct species.
“Our team plans to analyze more teeth from our ancestors and investigate how lead exposures may have affected their health and how that may relate to how our bodies respond to lead today,” said Austin.
The study, titled “Wintertime stress, nursing, and lead exposure in Neanderthal children,” was published online in the October 2018 issue of Science Advances. The study was conducted in collaboration with researchers from Griffith University, Southern Cross University and the Australian National University, Australia, as well as the Forsyth Institute and New York University, U.S., and the Institut de Paléontologie Humaine, France.
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