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Cited by 276Pleistocene-Era Hominins and ArchaeologyForensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology StudiesPrimate Behavior and Ecology

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 51 of the 55 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Neanderthal brain size at birth provides insights into the evolution of human life history

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Ponce de León, Marcia S., Golovanova, Lubov, Doronichev, Vladimir, Romanova, Galina, Akazawa, Takeru, Kondo, Osamu, Ishida, Hajime, Zollikofer, Christoph P. E.·2008·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
DOI 10.1073/pnas.0803917105PMC PMC2533682
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Abstract

From birth to adulthood, the human brain expands by a factor of 3.3, compared with 2.5 in chimpanzees [DeSilva J and Lesnik J (2006) Chimpanzee neonatal brain size: Implications for brain growth in Homo erectus. J Hum Evol 51: 207-212]. How the required extra amount of human brain growth is achieved and what its implications are for human life history and cognitive development are still a matter of debate. Likewise, because comparative fossil evidence is scarce, when and how the modern human pattern of brain growth arose during evolution is largely unknown. Virtual reconstructions of a Neanderthal neonate from Mezmaiskaya Cave (Russia) and of two Neanderthal infant skeletons from Dederiyeh Cave (Syria) now provide new comparative insights: Neanderthal brain size at birth was similar to that in recent Homo sapiens and most likely subject to similar obstetric constraints. Neanderthal brain growth rates during early infancy were higher, however. This pattern of growth resulted in larger adult brain sizes but not in earlier completion of brain growth. Because large brains growing at high rates require large, late-maturing, mothers [Leigh SR and Blomquist GE (2007) in Campbell CJ et al. Primates in perspective; pp 396-407], it is likely that Neanderthal life history was similarly slow, or even slower-paced, than in recent H. sapiens.

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  1. SL Robson, Encephalization and life history: Lessons from primate brain growth trajectories. Am J Phys Anthropol S46, 201 (2008).
  2. AM Tillier, Neanderthal ontogeny: A new source for critical analysis. Anthropologie 33, 63–68 (1995).
  3. C Sasaki, K Suzuki, H Takagi, Y Kozawa, Y Dodo, Age determination with cross striation of fossil man. Acta Anatom Nippon 70, 171 (1995).
  4. P Sellier, AM Tillier, J Bruzek, References for age estimation in fetal, neonatal and infant specimens from European archaeological populations [À la recherche d'une référence pour l'estimation de l'âge des foetus, nouveau-nés et nourrissons des populations archéologiques européennes]. Anthrop Préhist 108, 75–87 (1997).

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Metadata

Authors
Ponce de León, M. S., Golovanova, L., Doronichev, V., Romanova, G., Akazawa, T., Kondo, O., Ishida, H., & Zollikofer, C. P. E.
Affiliations
  • *Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, CH-8057 Zürich, Switzerland;
  • Laboratory of Prehistory, St. Petersburg 199034, Russia;
  • Kochi University of Technology (JP)
  • The University of Tokyo (JP)
  • University of the Ryukyus (JP)
  • University of Zurich (CH)
Corresponding author
Zollikofer, Christoph P. E.
ORCID
Venue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Publisher
National Academy of Sciences
Published
2008-09-16
Volume
105
Issue
37
Pages
13764-13768
ISSN
  • 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
  • 1091-6490
DOI
10.1073/pnas.0803917105
PMC
PMC2533682
OpenAlex
W2007841729
Cited by
276
References
55
Citations by year
2026: 15 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 26 · 2018: 21 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 16 · 2013: 26 · 2012: 20
FWCI
108.05
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (acceptedVersion)
  • Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (submittedVersion)
  • Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Anthropology › Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology (arts and humanities) › Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Primate Behavior and Ecology
Keywords
Neanderthals, brain growth, human life history, cognitive development, virtual reconstruction, brain maturation
MeSH terms
Adult, Animals, Brain, Child, Child, Preschool, Biological Evolution, Female, Fossils, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Organ Size, Russia, Skeleton, Skull, Syria, Hominidae, Parturition

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