Department of Anthropology, University of Wroclaw, ul. Kuźnicza 35, Wroclaw, Poland.
Am J Phys Anthropol. 2011 Apr;144(4):552-63. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.21437. Epub 2010 Dec 23.
The autapomorphic status of the Neanderthal suprainiac fossa was recently confirmed. This was a result of a detailed analysis of the internal bone composition in the area of the suprainiac depression on Neanderthal and Homo sapiens specimens. However, while anatomical differences between Neanderthal suprainiac fossa and the depression in the inion region of the occipital bone of fossil and recent Homo sapiens have been discussed in detail, the etiology of these structures has not been resolved. In this article, the hypothesis that the Homo sapiens non-supranuchal fossa and the Neanderthal suprainiac fossa both formed to maintain the optimal shape of the occipital plane (to minimize strain on the posterior cranial vault) is tested. First, the variation in the expression of the fossa above inion in the crania of recent Homo sapiens from European, African, and Australian samples was examined, and the degree of structural similarity between these depressions and the Neanderthal suprainiac fossa was assessed. Next, the relationship between the shape of the occipital squama in the midsagittal plane and two particular features (the degree of the occipital torus development and the occurrence of a depression in the inion region that is not the supranuchal fossa) were analyzed. Based on the results, it is suggested that the Homo sapiens non-supranuchal fossa and Neanderthal suprainiac fossa are convergent traits.
近期，尼安德特人顶间骨凹窝的独特地位得到了确认。这一结论源自对尼安德特人和智人标本顶间凹区域内的骨内部结构的详细分析。然而，虽然尼安德特人顶间骨凹窝与枕骨后下部的枕外隆凸凹陷之间的解剖学差异已被详细讨论，但这些结构的病因尚未解决。在本文中，我们提出了一个假设，即智人的非顶枕骨凹窝和尼安德特人的顶间骨凹窝都是为了保持枕骨平面的最佳形状（最小化颅后窝的应变）而形成的。首先，我们检查了来自欧洲、非洲和澳大利亚样本的现代智人头骨上枕外隆凸上方的凹窝的表达变化，并评估了这些凹陷与尼安德特人顶间骨凹窝之间的结构相似性。接下来，我们分析了矢状面上枕骨鳞部的形状与两个特定特征（枕外隆凸发育程度和枕外隆凸区域内非顶枕骨凹窝的凹陷的发生）之间的关系。基于这些结果，我们认为智人的非顶枕骨凹窝和尼安德特人的顶间骨凹窝是趋同特征。
