Dissertation Research: Growth of the Human Fetal Craniofacial Complex Characterized in Three Dimensions

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The description of human anatomical growth and development is a longstanding interest of physical anthropology. Not only is this of interest vis a vis modern humans, but also as a means of describing the altering patterns of growth which have occurred over evolutionary time. The complex changes in morphology which proceed in the development of an individual are by no means easy to describe or quantify. The objective of this proposal is to characterize the growth of the basicranium and face of modern humans during fetal and early post-partum periods. This will involve two stages. Data on the alterations in the positions of a series of cranial landmarks will be generated through the use of computed tomography. Once available, the data can then be analyzed using two mathematical models: Finite Element Scaling Analysis and Euclidean Distance Matrix Analysis. These models will allow the PIs to more fully describe the alterations in the shape of the human skull over the the fetal period. Additionally it will be possible to start to describe the range of variation in normal human growth during this period. Ultimately, such data will allow for discussion of the variation in growth patterns seen throughout the primates.