Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.

<h4>Background</h4>In the Plio-Pleistocene, the hominin foot evolved from a grasping appendage to a stiff, propulsive lever. Central to this transition was the development of the longitudinal arch, a structure that helps store elastic energy and stiffen the foot during bipedal locomotion...

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Autores principales:	Jeremy M DeSilva, Zachary J Throckmorton
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2010
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/7c91fae492fa413bb1a993c225b207ee
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:7c91fae492fa413bb1a993c225b207ee2021-11-18T07:01:09ZLucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.1932-620310.1371/journal.pone.0014432https://doaj.org/article/7c91fae492fa413bb1a993c225b207ee2010-12-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmid/21203433/?tool=EBIhttps://doaj.org/toc/1932-6203<h4>Background</h4>In the Plio-Pleistocene, the hominin foot evolved from a grasping appendage to a stiff, propulsive lever. Central to this transition was the development of the longitudinal arch, a structure that helps store elastic energy and stiffen the foot during bipedal locomotion. Direct evidence for arch evolution, however, has been somewhat elusive given the failure of soft-tissue to fossilize. Paleoanthropologists have relied on footprints and bony correlates of arch development, though little consensus has emerged as to when the arch evolved.<h4>Methodology/principal findings</h4>Here, we present evidence from radiographs of modern humans (n = 261) that the set of the distal tibia in the sagittal plane, henceforth referred to as the tibial arch angle, is related to rearfoot arching. Non-human primates have a posteriorly directed tibial arch angle, while most humans have an anteriorly directed tibial arch angle. Those humans with a posteriorly directed tibial arch angle (8%) have significantly lower talocalcaneal and talar declination angles, both measures of an asymptomatic flatfoot. Application of these results to the hominin fossil record reveals that a well developed rearfoot arch had evolved in Australopithecus afarensis. However, as in humans today, Australopithecus populations exhibited individual variation in foot morphology and arch development, and "Lucy" (A.L. 288-1), a 3.18 Myr-old female Australopithecus, likely possessed asymptomatic flat feet. Additional distal tibiae from the Plio-Pleistocene show variation in tibial arch angles, including two early Homo tibiae that also have slightly posteriorly directed tibial arch angles.<h4>Conclusions/significance</h4>This study finds that the rearfoot arch was present in the genus Australopithecus. However, the female Australopithecus afarensis "Lucy" has an ankle morphology consistent with non-pathological flat-footedness. This study suggests that, as in humans today, there was variation in arch development in Plio-Pleistocene hominins.Jeremy M DeSilvaZachary J ThrockmortonPublic Library of Science (PLoS)articleMedicineRScienceQENPLoS ONE, Vol 5, Iss 12, p e14432 (2010)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Jeremy M DeSilva Zachary J Throckmorton Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
description	<h4>Background</h4>In the Plio-Pleistocene, the hominin foot evolved from a grasping appendage to a stiff, propulsive lever. Central to this transition was the development of the longitudinal arch, a structure that helps store elastic energy and stiffen the foot during bipedal locomotion. Direct evidence for arch evolution, however, has been somewhat elusive given the failure of soft-tissue to fossilize. Paleoanthropologists have relied on footprints and bony correlates of arch development, though little consensus has emerged as to when the arch evolved.<h4>Methodology/principal findings</h4>Here, we present evidence from radiographs of modern humans (n = 261) that the set of the distal tibia in the sagittal plane, henceforth referred to as the tibial arch angle, is related to rearfoot arching. Non-human primates have a posteriorly directed tibial arch angle, while most humans have an anteriorly directed tibial arch angle. Those humans with a posteriorly directed tibial arch angle (8%) have significantly lower talocalcaneal and talar declination angles, both measures of an asymptomatic flatfoot. Application of these results to the hominin fossil record reveals that a well developed rearfoot arch had evolved in Australopithecus afarensis. However, as in humans today, Australopithecus populations exhibited individual variation in foot morphology and arch development, and "Lucy" (A.L. 288-1), a 3.18 Myr-old female Australopithecus, likely possessed asymptomatic flat feet. Additional distal tibiae from the Plio-Pleistocene show variation in tibial arch angles, including two early Homo tibiae that also have slightly posteriorly directed tibial arch angles.<h4>Conclusions/significance</h4>This study finds that the rearfoot arch was present in the genus Australopithecus. However, the female Australopithecus afarensis "Lucy" has an ankle morphology consistent with non-pathological flat-footedness. This study suggests that, as in humans today, there was variation in arch development in Plio-Pleistocene hominins.
format	article
author	Jeremy M DeSilva Zachary J Throckmorton
author_facet	Jeremy M DeSilva Zachary J Throckmorton
author_sort	Jeremy M DeSilva
title	Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
title_short	Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
title_full	Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
title_fullStr	Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
title_full_unstemmed	Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
title_sort	lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.
publisher	Public Library of Science (PLoS)
publishDate	2010
url	https://doaj.org/article/7c91fae492fa413bb1a993c225b207ee
work_keys_str_mv	AT jeremymdesilva lucysflatfeettherelationshipbetweentheankleandrearfootarchinginearlyhominins AT zacharyjthrockmorton lucysflatfeettherelationshipbetweentheankleandrearfootarchinginearlyhominins
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Lucy's flat feet: the relationship between the ankle and rearfoot arching in early hominins.

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