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Human Paleontology and Prehistory pp 239–251Cite as

3D Reconstruction of Spinal Posture of the Kebara 2 Neanderthal

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Part of the book series: Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology ((VERT))

Abstract

Spinal posture has vast biomechanical , locomotor and pathological implications in hominins . Assessing the curvatures of the spine of fossil hominins can provide important information towards the understanding of their paleobiology. Unfortunately, complete hominin spines are very rarely preserved in the fossil record. The Neanderthal partial skeleton, Kebara 2 from Israel, constitutes a remarkable exception, representing an almost complete spine and pelvis. The aim of this study is, therefore, to create a new 3D virtual reconstruction of the spine of Kebara 2. To build the model, we used the CT scans of the sacrum, lumbar and thoracic vertebrae of Kebara 2, captured its 3D morphology, and, using visualization software (Amira 5.2©), aligned the 3D reconstruction of the original bones into the spinal curvature. First we aligned the sacrum and then we added one vertebra at a time, until the complete spine (T1-S5) was intact. The amount of spinal curvature (lordosis and kyphosis), the sacral orientation, and the coronal plane deviation was determined based on the current literature or measured and calculated specifically for this study based on published methods. This reconstruction provides, for the first time, a complete 3D virtual reconstruction of the spine of an extinct hominin. The spinal posture and spinopelvic alignment of Kebara 2 show a unique configuration compared with that of modern humans, suggesting locomotor and weight-bearing differences between the two. The spinal posture of Kebara 2 also shows slight asymmetry in the coronal plane. Stature estimation of Kebara 2 based on spinal length confirms that the height of Kebara 2 was around 170 cm. This reconstruction can now serve as the basis for a more complete reconstruction of the Kebara 2 specimen, which will include other parts of this remarkable fossil, such as the pelvis, the rib cage and the cervical spine.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Thoracic kyphosis calculation: Anterior vertebral body height for Kebara 2 is 226.01 mm while posterior vertebral body height for Kebara 2 is 243.38 mm, and the ratio between the two of 0.9286 (Table 18.2). The regression model of Goh et al. (1999) yields a thoracic kyphosis of 44° (=297.114 – 272.31 * 0.9286). The average thoracic kyphosis in modern humans is 46–53° (Table 18.1), so the 44° of kyphosis in Kebara 2 is within the normal range of kyphosis for humans, but slightly below the modern human average.

  2. 2.

    Scoliosis is a general term comprising a heterogeneous set of conditions, consisting of changes in the shape and position of the spine, thorax and trunk, and can be defined as a 3D torsional deformity of the spine and trunk. Scoliosis causes a lateral curvature in the frontal and an axial rotation in the horizontal plane (Negrini et al. 2012). Scoliosis can also cause an abnormality in the sagittal plane, but this does not occur in all cases. Scoliotic deformity of the spine is associated with osseous changes in vertebral morphology. Modi et al. (2008) showed lateral vertebral body wedging of five consecutive segments in scoliotic patients. He also showed that the wedging of the apex vertebra is 4.08° ± 2.4° when thoracic scoliosis <30° while the wedging of the apex vertebra is 2.7° ± 5.8° when thoracic scoliosis >30°. Stokes and Aronsson (2001) found that even small scoliotic deformities include vertebral wedging and that the vertebrae generally show larger deformity than the discs in thoracic scoliosis. They also report an average vertebral lateral wedging of 3.7° ± 2.6° with scoliotic deformity of 20.2° ± 7.3°. Coillard and Rivard (1996) found that in scoliotic vertebrae the spinous process is slightly curved towards the side of convexity. They also report asymmetry in the orientation of the transverse processes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Health Professions, Physical Therapy Department, Ono Academic College, 55000, Kiryat Ono, Israel

    Ella Been

  2. Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Department of Anatomy and Anthropology, Tel Aviv University, 69978, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Ella Been

  3. IKERBASQUE. Basque Foundation for Science & Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología, Department o de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, UPV-EHU, P.O. Box 644, 48080, Bilbao, Spain

    Asier Gómez-Olivencia

  4. Département de Préhistoire, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l’Homme, 75016, Paris, France

    Asier Gómez-Olivencia

  5. Centro UCM-ISCIII de Investigación sobre Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, 28029, Madrid, Spain

    Asier Gómez-Olivencia

  6. Departments of Anthropology and Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195-3100, USA

    Patricia A. Kramer

  7. Faculty of Medicine in the Galilee, Bar-Ilan University, 1311502, Zefat, Israel

    Alon Barash

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  1. Ella Been
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  2. Asier Gómez-Olivencia
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Correspondence to Ella Been .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomy & Anthropolog, Tel-Aviv University Department of Anatomy & Anthropolog, Tel-Aviv, Israel

    Assaf Marom

  2. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Institute of Archaeology, Jerusalem, Israel

    Erella Hovers

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Been, E., Gómez-Olivencia, A., Kramer, P.A., Barash, A. (2017). 3D Reconstruction of Spinal Posture of the Kebara 2 Neanderthal. In: Marom, A., Hovers, E. (eds) Human Paleontology and Prehistory. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-46646-0_18

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