Towle Ian, Krueger Kristin L, Hirata Kazuha, Kubo Mugino O, Hara Anderson T, Irish Joel D, Loch Carolina, Borths Matthew R, Fiorenza Luca
Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Department of Anthropology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Am J Biol Anthropol. 2025 Oct;188(2):e70132. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.70132.
In clinical settings, non-carious cervical lesions (NCCLs) are often linked to abrasion, erosion, abfraction, or a combination of these factors. In archaeological and paleontological remains, the most common NCCL is the "toothpick groove," yet little is known about the occurrence of these and other NCCLs in wild non-human primates.
Here, we examine 531 individuals from 27 wild extant and extinct anthropoid primate taxa for NCCLs. Macroscopic examinations were followed by microwear and tissue-loss analyses using multiple imaging techniques, including stereoscopic microscopy, confocal laser, handheld digital microscopy, and 3D tissue loss analysis.
NCCLs were identified in 21 individuals, indicating a prevalence of 4% within the sample. The distribution of NCCLs was uneven, with multiple cases concentrated in certain taxa and populations, but they are identified in all major groupings (e.g., Platyrrhini, Cercopithecidae, Hominoidea). Two distinct lesion types were identified: (1) localized U-shaped lesions with internal parallel striations, indicative of regular contact with abrasive materials (i.e., attrition or abrasion); and (2) smooth, shallow lesions characterized by tissue loss along the recessed gum line, indicative of a multifactorial process that may involve acid erosion.
Several attrition/abrasion NCCLs resembled or have characteristic features of "toothpick grooves" known from hominin samples, suggesting the need for further comparative analyses between human and non-human primates. The absence of abfraction lesions supports the view that abfraction may be related to contemporary human behaviors. These findings emphasize the value of non-human primate data for interpreting NCCLs in both contemporary and ancient human populations.
在临床环境中，非龋性颈部病变（NCCLs）通常与磨损、侵蚀、楔状缺损或这些因素的组合有关。在考古和古生物学遗迹中，最常见的NCCL是“牙签沟”，但对于野生非人灵长类动物中这些及其他NCCLs的发生情况知之甚少。
在此，我们检查了来自27种现存和已灭绝的野生类人猿灵长类分类单元的531个个体是否存在NCCLs。在宏观检查之后，使用多种成像技术进行微磨损和组织损失分析，包括立体显微镜、共聚焦激光、手持式数字显微镜和三维组织损失分析。
在21个个体中发现了NCCLs，表明样本中的患病率为4%。NCCLs的分布不均衡，多个病例集中在某些分类单元和种群中，但在所有主要类群（如阔鼻猴类、猕猴科、人猿总科）中均有发现。识别出两种不同的病变类型：（1）具有内部平行条纹的局部U形病变，表明与磨蚀性材料有规律接触（即磨耗或磨损）；（2）沿着凹陷的牙龈线出现组织损失的光滑浅病变，表明可能涉及酸蚀的多因素过程。
一些磨耗/磨损性NCCLs类似于或具有人类样本中已知的“牙签沟”的特征，这表明需要在人类和非人灵长类动物之间进行进一步的比较分析。没有发现楔状缺损病变支持了楔状缺损可能与当代人类行为有关的观点。这些发现强调了非人灵长类动物数据对于解释当代和古代人类群体中NCCLs的价值。
