Journal
JOURNAL OF TRACE ELEMENTS IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY
Volume 38, Issue -, Pages 131-137Publisher
ELSEVIER GMBH, URBAN & FISCHER VERLAG
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtemb.2016.05.008
Keywords
Epidemiology; Bioarchaeology; Nutrition; Physical anthropology; Trace elements; Cribra orbitalia
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Cribra orbitalia (CO), or porotic hyperostosis (PH) of the orbital roof, is one of the most common pathological conditions found in archaeological subadult skeletal remains. Reaching frequencies higher than 50% in many prehistoric samples, CO has been generally attributed to a variety of factors including malnutrition (e.g., megaloblastic anemia) and parasitism. In this study, we tested the relationship between CO, trace element concentrations, and stable isotope values (delta C-13, delta N-15, delta O-18) in subadult skeletons from a 17th to 18th century cemetery in the historic town of Jekabpils, Latvia. A total of 28 subadults were examined, seven of which (25%) showed evidence of CO. Bioarchaeological evidence indicated high mortality for children in this cemetery: half of the burials were subadults under the age of 14, while a third were under the age of four. Life expectancy at birth was estimated to have been only 21.6 years. Trace element concentrations measured by Inductively Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) showed no relationship between presence or absence of CO and levels of manganese, zinc, strontium, barium, copper, cadmium, or lead in the bones (p>0.05). However, a significant correlation (p<0.05) was found between the presence of CO and decreased levels of iron. The correlations between CO and decreased levels of copper and lead approached significance (p=0.056 for both elements). Individuals with CO furthermore displayed significantly lower delta N-15 isotope values, suggesting greater consumption of lower trophic level food resources than those unaffected by CO; delta C-13 and delta O-18 values, in contrast, showed no significant differences. These results suggest that the prevalence of CO may be related to dietary deficiencies. In this case, low iron levels may also signify a diet low in other key vitamins (e.g., B-g and B-12), which are known to cause megaloblastic anemia. (C) 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.
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