Albanian Neolithic Remains Evidence Oldest Known Case of Osteopetrosis

Explaining Albania ^ | October 24, 2020 | Alice Taylor

[SunkenCiv]

German researchers have discovered the oldest known case of osteopetrosis or "stone bone" disease in the remains of a man from the Neolithic lacustrine settlement of Maliq in southeast Albania.

Osteopetrosis is a rare disorder which manifests through the hardening and solidifying of bones, making them more susceptible to fracture.

The study was conducted by palaeopathologist Julia Gresky of the German Archaeological Institute and colleagues.

The researchers describe the area as having an important role in the Neolithisation of the Balkan region as it was home to some of the first agricultural economies in the area. The bones they found were found to be from between 4620-4456 BCE making them over 6600 years old. This find is important for the archaeological community as it is 5000 years older than previously recorded cases.

Anthropological analysis has shown that the individual was most likely male, aged between 20 and 30 years and around 155 cm tall. His. remains were excavated in 1963.

Various investigations into the bones found that he suffered from autosomal dominant osteopetrosis meaning some of them had solidified.

The condition is present in various congenital skeletal disorders but also as a result of chemical poisoning from toxins such as lead, fluoride and beryllium. It can also indicate leukaemia.

[SunkenCiv]

Dairy production in India began as far back as in the 3rd millennium BCE and may have been a factor behind sustaining the Indus Valley Civilisation, according to findings from a team of Canadian and Indian researchers.

The study, published in the journal Nature, was led by Kalyan Sekhar Chakraborty, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Toronto Mississauga, and dates dairy production to 2500 BCE. "This is the first time it's been proved scientifically that dairy production was in place in the Indus Valley civilization in 2500 BCE, and the earliest known evidence of dairy production," Chakraborty said in an interview.

The results were based on molecular chemical analysis of residue in shards of pottery found at the archaeological site of Kotada Bhadli, a rural settlement located in Gujarat. Of the 59 samples studied, 22 showed the presence of dairy lipids. Through a process called stable isotope analysis, the researchers were also able to identify the type of ruminant used for dairy, and concluded that these were cattle, like cows and buffalo, rather than goats and sheep.

The availability of dairy production may have helped sustain such ancient societies, as Chakraborty explained, "This would have allowed the accumulation of a surplus of animal protein, without affecting the number of animals in your herd." He said the level of production meant that this was "definitely beyond household consumption."

Indus valley had dairy production way back in 3rd millennium BCE | Anirudh Bhattacharyya | Hindustan Times | Oct 25, 2020, 12:00 IST

[SunkenCiv]

[Red Badger]

No bones about it!................

[billorites]