Sex-Specific Phenotypic Plasticity as a Complex Reaction of Human Organism to Different Environmental Conditions

Complex anthropological investigations of modern students were carried out in the three big cities of the Russian Federation (Samara, Arkhangelsk, Saransk), as well as in the villages of Mordovia. The program of morphofunctional investigation included body characteristics, body mass components (evaluated with the bioelectrical impedance analyzer “Medass-1”), physiological characteristics of cardiovascular and respiratory systems, right hand grip strength (dynamometry). To evaluate the level of sexual dimorphism, coefficient of sexual dimorphism (CSD) was used in this study. The total number of the studied subjects was 476 young women and 375 young men, from 17 to 23 years old. The results of ANOVA analyses show the presence of non-random variations for the majority of studied characteristics in the examined groups. On this basis, it is possible to consider that different environmental conditions exert significant influence on human organism, which is the core of the adaptation process. The largest distance separates the groups from the city of Saransk and Mordovian villages. It shows that the impact of social and environmental factors for rural and urban inhabitants is much larger as compared to ecological ones, e.g., latitude of the location. Comparison of the CSD values in all groups showed that the degree of adaptation potentials is considerably different in males and females for many characteristics. Thus, for body mass components, characteristics of respiratory system, height and BMI, males are more sensitive to environmental influences. For the cardiovascular system traits, the degree of fat tissue development and body mass, the strength of adaptation changes is practically equal in men and women, with slight advantages in men

Anthropological Characteristic of the Head and Face of the Native People from North Sulawesi

Introduction. The population of Indonesia is not well enough explored anthropologically. There are no reliable anthropometric data for some populations, living on Sulawesi Island. For the first time in scientific literature, a description of head and face traits of the indigenous populations of North Sulawesi, which remained completely anthropologically unexplored until now, is presented. Methods. The authors study the Minahasans (n = 96) and the Sangirese people (n = 76) using the classical anthropometrical programme, including metrical (n = 14) and nonmetrical (n = 29) features. Analysis. The sudy of the Minahasans and the Sangirese people shows that these ethnic groups are generally similar; significant differences were found in a small number of traits. The Sangirese people have darker pigmentation of the skin and the iris than the Minahasans. More frequently they are wavy or even curly heared. In general, the population of North Sulawesi can be described as belonging to the South Asian population. However, the review of some traits of the Sangirese people and the Minahasans (hyperbrachycephalia, epicanthus occurs rather rare, narrow nose) put them on the borderline of variability of the explored South, Southeast Asian and Oceanian population. Sulawesi peoples (comparatively dark-skinned, sometimes curly haired) can presumably have equatorial mixture. Results. The Minahasans are close to the Dayak people of Kalimantan. The Sangirese people can have insignificant melanesian mixture because of their kinship with the Philippines people, perhaps with the Negrito of the Philippines. This conclusion is preliminary and has to be substantiated

Gender and Regional Differences in Body Image Dissatisfaction in Modern University Students: A Pilot Study in Two Cities of Eastern Europe

Complex anthropological and psychological study of the university students was carried out in two regions (the cities of Moscow and Tiraspol) with the aim to reveal gender and regional differences of body image dissatisfaction and their connection with the body build. 502 individuals (187 males and 315 females) aged from 17 to 25 years were investigated. The program included anthropometric measurements (height and weight, with further calculation of Body Mass Index – BMI), evaluation of body mass components, as well as psychological testing with Stunkard’s silhouette scale and the Situational Inventory of Body-Image Dysphoria (SIBID). It was found that among the representatives of both sexes the level of dissatisfaction with their own body is relatively similar (69% of males and 67% of females). However the girls were mostly dissatisfied with their excessive, as they perceived, body mass (83% of the total number of dissatisfied individuals) while the boys were dissatisfied mostly because of their underweight (60% of the total number of dissatisfied individuals). Besides, the girls were more likely to exaggerate their weight while the boys perceived it as smaller than it really was. In girls certain social influences had more impact on body image dissatisfaction than in boys. Among the girls studied, the Muscovites were more critical to their own physical appearance, which resulted in lower self-assessment of their body image and, consequently, in less positive influence of this assessment on the quality of life compared to the girls from Tiraspol

Model-Based Analysis of Changes in the Morphological Characteristics of Moscow Students for the Last Two Decades

The aim of the paper is to develop a model of changes in morphological characteristics of young males and females body structure at the beginning of the 21st century. For this purpose the results of Moscow students’ annual screenings from 2000 to 2018 were analyzed (total number of 17–18-year-olds − 6,433 individuals). As a result, five factors describing the trends of changes were revealed and further analysis demonstrated variants of their values over time. An original model was developed, which reflected real morphological transformations in the body parameters of the young generation for the last 20 years. For both sex groups a trend towards macrosomia (gr. macros − big, soma- body) was revealed. For the boys some increase in linear traits was found with a decrease in muscularity. In girls, parabolic association between athletic characteristics and the year of investigation was found: the decrease in muscularity for the first decade, and its increase for the second one

Association between the digit ratio (2D:4D) and body fat distribution in Mordovian students

Background: The length ratio of the second to the fourth finger (2D:4D) is a possible biomarker of prenatal sex hormone levels, which play a significant role in determining sex-related body traits. Aims: To evaluate the value of the 2D:4D ratio in a Mordovian sample and to test the associations between the 2D:4D ratio and sexually dimorphic morphological traits, such as height and body weight, body mass index, waist and hip circumference, the waist-to-hip ratio, handgrip strength and the skinfold thickness. Subjects and methods: The sample studied included 106 individuals of Mordovian ethnicity: 58 males and 48 females, 16–23 years old. The associations between the 2D:4D ratio and morphological traits were evaluated by multivariate regression analysis and correlation analysis. Results: The 2D:4D ratio in males was significantly lower than in females. Most of the associations of the 2D:4D ratio with morphological traits were statistically insignificant. The 2D:4D ratio is only significantly correlated with skinfold thickness of the forearm and the abdomen in females. Conclusion: The association between the 2D:4D ratio and skinfold thickness is indicative of the role of prenatal sex hormones in shaping the body fat distribution in females, along with the significant impact of sex hormones at puberty

Secular Trend of Body Dimensions in Highly Qualified Wrestlers

The purpose of the paper was to study the physique of highly qualified martial art athletes engaged in different types of wrestling, and to perform a retrospective analysis of the morphological characteristics of wrestlers examined since the early 1920s. The materials of the anthropometric survey of 48 athletes engaged in different types of wrestling with qualification from the candidate for master of sports and above were used for this purpose and compared to the "control group" of young men (N = 97) who were not engaged in sports (similar to the group of athletes by age, ethnicity and percentage of individuals with different weight categories). A set of morphological traits was established that contributed to the successful achievements in sports. When comparing the physique of modern athletes with that of the wrestlers surveyed in the early and mid-20th century (the 1920s and 1960s), it has been shown that the secular trend towards increase in height typical for modern population, was expressed in athletes to a much lesser extent. Striking similarities were revealed for absolute and relative dimensions characterizing the skeletal body proportions of the wrestlers, which pointed to the secular stability of this sports morphotype. The obtained results can be used as additional morphological criteria for sports selection, professional orientation and prediction of competitive success