Abstract
This study tests, for the first time, the applicability of a new method of sex estimation utilizing enamel peptides on a sample of deciduous and permanent teeth at different stages of mineralization, from nonadults of unknown sex, including perinates. A total of 43 teeth from 29 nonadult individuals aged from 40 gestational weeks to 19 years old were analyzed. The sample included pairs of fully mineralized and just developing teeth from the same individual. The individuals were from four archaeological sites in England: Piddington (1st-2nd centuries AD), Coach Lane, Victoria Gate, and Fewston (all 18th-19th centuries). A method that identifies sex chromosome-linked isoforms of the peptide amelogenin from human tooth enamel was applied. The method utilizes a minimally destructive acid etching procedure and subsequent nano liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. It was possible to determine the sex of 28 of the nonadult individuals sampled (males = 20, females = 8, undetermined = 1). Only one sample failed (CL9), due to insufficient mineralization of the sampled tooth enamel. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD021683. Sufficient peptide material to determine sex can be recovered even from the crowns of developing perinatal teeth that are not fully mineralized. The minimally destructive and inexpensive (compared to ancient DNA) nature of this procedure has significant implications for bioarchaeological studies of infancy and childhood.
Highlights
The estimation of sex from the skeleton is fundamental to the study of past human populations and for establishing human identity in forensic contexts
Traditional macroscopic sex estimation methods in bioarchaeology are reliant on the presence and analysis of sexually dimorphic skeletal elements, including the innominate bones and skull (Buikstra & Ubelaker, 1994)
This study examines the applicability of an innovative method for sex estimation using sexually dimorphic enamel peptides (Stewart et al, 2017) to deciduous and permanent teeth in different stages of development
Summary
The estimation of sex from the skeleton is fundamental to the study of past human populations and for establishing human identity in forensic contexts. Traditional macroscopic sex estimation methods in bioarchaeology are reliant on the presence and analysis of sexually dimorphic skeletal elements, including the innominate bones and skull (Buikstra & Ubelaker, 1994). Prior to the development of secondary sexual characteristics, there is limited sexual dimorphism in skeletal features, rendering macroscopic methods unreliable before puberty (Hoppa & Fitzgerald, 1999; Scheuer & Black, 2000; Lewis, 2007). The inability to reliably determine the sex of nonadults has placed constraints on studies of infancy and childhood in the past and has contributed to their marginalization in archaeology (Lewis, 2007)
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