Variability in premolar and molar root number in a modern population of Pan troglodytes verus.

While teeth are the most common fossil remains for hominoids, little is known of the tooth root morphology in Primates. With the exception of modern humans, the variability of the number of roots within a species is scarcely documented and not conclusively quantified. This lack of knowledge hinders the interpretation of observed evolutionary trends, such as the reduction of the number of roots of premolars within the hominins.

Subocclusal dental morphology of sahelanthropus tchadensis and the evolution of teeth in hominins.

The evolution of the teeth in hominins is characterized by, among other characters, major changes in root morphology. However, little is known of the evolution from a plesiomorphic, ape-like root morphology to the crown hominin morphology. Here we present a study of the root morphology of the Miocene Chadian hominin Sahelanthropus tchadensis and its comparison to other hominins.

Analysis of dental root apical morphology: a new method for dietary reconstructions in primates.

The reconstruction of paleo-diets is an important task in the study of fossil primates. Previously, paleo-diet reconstructions were performed using different methods based on extant primate models. In particular, dental microwear or isotopic analyses provided accurate reconstructions for some fossil primates.

Three-dimensional analysis of mandibular dental root morphology in hominoids.

Although often preserved in the fossil record, mandibular dental roots are rarely used for evolutionary studies. This study qualitatively and quantitatively characterizes the three-dimensional morphology of hominoid dental roots. The sample comprises extant apes as well as two fossil species, Khoratpithecus piriyai and Ouranopithecus macedoniensis.

First hominoid from the Late Miocene of the Irrawaddy Formation (Myanmar).

For over a century, a Neogene fossil mammal fauna has been known in the Irrawaddy Formation in central Myanmar. Unfortunately, the lack of accurately located fossiliferous sites and the absence of hominoid fossils have impeded paleontological studies. Here we describe the first hominoid found in Myanmar together with a Hipparion (s.