Charles Darwin y los fósiles “humanos”

“Se proyectará mucha luz sobre el origen del hombre y su historia”. Darwin eludió el problema de pronunciarse sobre nosotros mismos, temía ser víctima del antropocentrismo feroz. Esa cita de Darwin, la única referida al Homo sapiens en su obra "El Origen de las Especies", sirve a la autora para estudiar el conocimiento del autor sobre los fósiles humanos y como lo enmarco dentro de la evolución, que fue situarlo en el lugar que le correspondía: entre el resto de los seres vivos, sometido a sus mismas normas y leyes de existencia y cambi

Evidence of rickets and/or scurvy in a complete Chalcolithic child skeleton from the El Portalon site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain)

A case of what are most likely metabolic diseases is identified in a child buried during Chalcolithic times in the El Portalón site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain). The skeleton has been directly dated by C14 to between 5030 to 5020 Cal BP. Macroscopic analysis and a CT scan reveal a set of lesions both in the skull and the long bones, which indicate that this individual probably suffered from rickets and scurvy at different stages of his/her life. The lesions are bilateral and are characterized by abnormal porosity, new bone formation and deformation of long bones. The presence of non-specific stress indicators, such as enamel hypoplasias and Harris lines, allow us to establish two times of stress associated with these pathologies: one crisis during infancy (1-3 yrs) and subsequently a second crisis at the beginning of childhood (3-5 yrs). The etiology of both metabolic diseases could be associated with abnormal feeding during these stages of life and/or the living conditions of these populations, e.g., the preparation of food and/ or the existence of infections caused by the transmission of pathogens and unhealthy hygiene. Evidence of metabolic diseases during the recent European Prehistory is rather unknown and very few cases have been reported. Thus, the child from El Portalón can add relevant information about the life and health conditions of these prehistoric population

Evolución humana en Europa: registro y debates

Tres son los principales debates en los estudios de evolución humana en Europa: primer poblamiento de nuestro continente, patrón evolutivo durante el Pleistoceno medio, origen del Hombre moderno y su relación con los neandertales. Hasta la fecha, no existe consenso en admitir la presencia humana en Europa antes del episodio isotópico 13, pero el reciente hallazgo de fósiles humanos e industria lítica en ni veles del Pleistoceno inferior del yacimiento Gran Dolina (S ierra de Atapuerca), permite zanjar definitivamente la cuestión. En el Pleistoceno medio tiene lugar, en nuestro conti nente, un proceso de evolución local que desemboca en los neandertales. Este proceso está especialmente bien documentado en el yac imiento de la Sima de los Huesos de la Sierra de Atapuerca, que ha proporcionado la mayor parte del registro fósil mundial de homínidos para la tolalidad del Pleistoceno medio. En el Pleistoceno superior, las poblaciones neandertales fueron reemplazadas en Europa por la humanidad moderna, sin que haya continuidad evolutiva. Por último, se analizan en este trabajo las posibles relaciones filogenéticas entre las diferentes poblaciones humanas del Pleistoceno medio y superior

The earliest evidence of true lambdoid craniosynostosis: the case of “Benjamina”, a Homo heidelbergensis child

Background The authors report the morphological and neuroimaging findings of an immature human fossil (Cranium 14) diagnosed with left lambdoid synostosis. Discussion The skull was recovered at the Sima de los Huesos site in Atapuerca (Burgos, Spain). Since the human fossil remains from this site have been dated to a minimum age of 530,000 years, this skull represents the earliest evidence of craniosynostosis occurring in a hominid. A brief historical review of craniosynostosis and cranial deformation is provided

Diverse Large HIV-1 Non-subtype B Clusters Are Spreading Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Spain

In Western Europe, the HIV-1 epidemic among men who have sex with men (MSM) is dominated by subtype B. However, recently, other genetic forms have been reported to circulate in this population, as evidenced by their grouping in clusters predominantly comprising European individuals. Here we describe four large HIV-1 non-subtype B clusters spreading among MSM in Spain. Samples were collected in 9 regions. A pol fragment was amplified from plasma RNA or blood-extracted DNA. Phylogenetic analyses were performed via maximum likelihood, including database sequences of the same genetic forms as the identified clusters. Times and locations of the most recent common ancestors (MRCA) of clusters were estimated with a Bayesian method. Five large non-subtype B clusters associated with MSM were identified. The largest one, of F1 subtype, was reported previously. The other four were of CRF02_AG (CRF02_1; n = 115) and subtypes A1 (A1_1; n = 66), F1 (F1_3; n = 36), and C (C_7; n = 17). Most individuals belonging to them had been diagnosed of HIV-1 infection in the last 10 years. Each cluster comprised viruses from 3 to 8 Spanish regions and also comprised or was related to viruses from other countries: CRF02_1 comprised a Japanese subcluster and viruses from 8 other countries from Western Europe, Asia, and South America; A1_1 comprised viruses from Portugal, United Kingom, and United States, and was related to the A1 strain circulating in Greece, Albania and Cyprus; F1_3 was related to viruses from Romania; and C_7 comprised viruses from Portugal and was related to a virus from Mozambique. A subcluster within CRF02_1 was associated with heterosexual transmission. Near full-length genomes of each cluster were of uniform genetic form. Times of MRCAs of CRF02_1, A1_1, F1_3, and C_7 were estimated around 1986, 1989, 2013, and 1983, respectively. MRCA locations for CRF02_1 and A1_1 were uncertain (however initial expansions in Spain in Madrid and Vigo, respectively, were estimated) and were most probable in Bilbao, Spain, for F1_3 and Portugal for C_7. These results show that the HIV-1 epidemic among MSM in Spain is becoming increasingly diverse through the expansion of diverse non-subtype B clusters, comprising or related to viruses circulating in other countries

Aula de innovación educativa

El artículo forma parte de una sección de la revista dedicada a la didáctica de las ciencias sociales.- Resumen tomado parcialmente de la revistaTaller de paleontología que se imparte como actividad complementaria a la exposición itinerante por España de Atapuerca y la evolución humana. Se trata de un pequeño teatro en el que los personajes son los fósiles y dentro de ellos los fósiles vertebrados. La capacidad de atracción que tienen los fósiles de dinosaurios para los niños es enorme. El hilo argumental utilizado para describir a los personajes permite seguir la historia del conocimiento.CataluñaES

Taphonomic-forensic analysis of the hominin skulls from the Sima de los Huesos

The Sima de los Huesos (SH) hominin assemblage is composed of thousands of fossil fragments, including pieces of crania and mandibles. The main objective of this work is to address the main taphonomic features of the cranial and mandibular remains from the SH sample, including antemortem, perimortem, and postmortem skeletal disturbances. We present an updated assessment of healed cranial trauma, first described in 1997 and now including new skulls. In addition, this study reviews the perimortem fractures in relation to their location and features of the affected individuals. Finally, this paper deals with the modifications affecting the cranial sample from the SH at the postmortem stage, including physical and biological postdepositional modifications. The SH collection provides a unique opportunity for conducting a complete forensic-taphonomic study on a Middle Pleistocene population