Osteogenic tumour in Australopithecus sediba: Earliest hominin evidence for neoplastic disease

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dc.citation.doi10.17159/sajs.2016/20150470en_ZA
dc.citation.epage7en_ZA
dc.citation.issue7/8en_ZA
dc.citation.spage1en_ZA
dc.contributor.authorRandolph-Quinney, P.S.
dc.contributor.authorWilliams, S.A.
dc.contributor.authorSteyn, M.
dc.contributor.authorMeyer, M.R.
dc.contributor.authorSmilg, J.S.
dc.contributor.authorChurchill, S.E.
dc.contributor.authorOdes, E.J.
dc.contributor.authorAugustine, T.
dc.contributor.authorTafforeau, P.
dc.contributor.authorBerger, L.R.
dc.date.accessioned2017-02-09T13:30:22Z
dc.date.available2017-02-09T13:30:22Z
dc.date.issued2016-07
dc.description.abstractWe describe the earliest evidence for neoplastic disease in the hominin lineage. This is reported from the type specimen of the extinct hominin Australopithecus sediba from Malapa, South Africa, dated to 1.98 million years ago. The affected individual was male and developmentally equivalent to a human child of 12 to 13 years of age. A penetrating lytic lesion affected the sixth thoracic vertebra. The lesion was macroscopically evaluated and internally imaged through phase-contrast X-ray synchrotron microtomography. A comprehensive differential diagnosis was undertaken based on gross- and micro-morphology of the lesion, leading to a probable diagnosis of osteoid osteoma. These neoplasms are solitary, benign, osteoid and bone-forming tumours, formed from well-vascularised connective tissue within which there is active production of osteoid and woven bone. Tumours of any kind are rare in archaeological populations, and are all but unknown in the hominin record, highlighting the importance of this discovery. The presence of this disease at Malapa predates the earliest evidence of malignant neoplasia in the hominin fossil record by perhaps 200 000 years.en_ZA
dc.description.librarianNCS2016en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationRandolph-Quinney, P.S. et al. 2016.Osteogenic tumour in Australopithecus sediba: Earliest hominin evidence for neoplastic disease. South African Journal of Science 112 (7/8): Article number 2015-0470.en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn0038-2353 (Print)
dc.identifier.issn1996-7489 (Online)
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10539/21986
dc.journal.titleSouth African Journal of Science.en_ZA
dc.journal.volume112en_ZA
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherAcademy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf).en_ZA
dc.rights© 2016. The Author(s). Published under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence.en_ZA
dc.subjectMalapaen_ZA
dc.subjectpalaeopathologyen_ZA
dc.subjectneoplasiaen_ZA
dc.subjecttaphonomyen_ZA
dc.subjectosteomaen_ZA
dc.subjectmalignanten_ZA
dc.titleOsteogenic tumour in Australopithecus sediba: Earliest hominin evidence for neoplastic diseaseen_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA
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