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The evolution of the spine and thorax in the Neandertal lineage: an update

L’évolution de la colonne vertébrale et du thorax dans la lignée néandertalienne : une mise à jour
Asier Gómez-Olivencia et Juan Luis Arsuaga

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1Over the last 20 years, the revision of the Neandertal fossil record, the publication of new fossil remains, and the use of virtual anthropology techniques have allowed us to gain new insights into the evolution and anatomical variation of the spine and thorax within the genus Homo, and in particular within the Neandertal lineage (NL). Here we present an update of the current knowledge of the anatomy of these two regions in the NL, based on the similarities and differences between the Middle Pleistocene Sima de los Huesos (SH) hominins (Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain) and the Late Pleistocene Neandertals. The NL hominins show some primitive features, such as the orientation of the spinous processes of the mid-lower subaxial spine (C5-C7). However, the length and the horizontality of these spinous processes increased in the Late Pleistocene Neandertals, probably related to differences in the cranial morphology (and mass distribution) partially related to an increase in the cranial capacity. Neandertal thoracic morphology is also likely to be mostly primitive, with a wider lower part, probably related to wide pelves (when compared to Modern Humans) and a greater degree of invagination of the spine into the thorax. The still fragmentary SH evidence suggests slightly larger thoraxes in these Middle Pleistocene humans. As for some of the Late Pleistocene Neandertal-derived features, some of them may be present in the SH population (e.g., lower degree of lumbar lordosis), but others may not (e.g., orientation of the transverse processes of the mid-lumbar vertebrae). Indeed, the presence of some, but not all, of the suite of Neandertal-derived features in SH is consistent with the pattern found in other anatomical regions of this population. Our study suggests a complex pattern of evolution of the spine and thorax, which must take into account the evolution of adjacent anatomical regions.

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Asier Gómez-Olivencia et Juan Luis Arsuaga, « The evolution of the spine and thorax in the Neandertal lineage: an update »Bulletins et mémoires de la Société d’Anthropologie de Paris [En ligne], 37(S) | 2025, mis en ligne le 16 janvier 2025, consulté le 13 février 2025. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/bmsap/14932 ; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/133oj

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Auteurs

Asier Gómez-Olivencia

Dept. Geología, Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología, Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, UPV/EHU, Leioa, Spain ; Aranzadi Zientzia Elkartea, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain ; Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Investigación sobre Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain ; asier.gomezo[at]ehu.eus

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Juan Luis Arsuaga

Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Investigación sobre Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Geodinamica, Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias Geologicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

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