Abstract
The oxygen (18O/16O) isotope analysis of hair is commonly applied to reconstruct an individual’s residence history. However, region-of-origin as determined from oxygen isotope values (δ18O) alone is often spatially indistinct. Adding additional geochemical recorders can refine region-of-origin estimates. In this capacity, strontium (87Sr/86Sr) isotope analysis has attracted increased interest. While 87Sr/86Sr reflects the influences of local geology, 87Sr/86Sr of hair includes both external environmental signals as well as the internal dietary indicators. To better understand the impact of these contributions to the spatial signal encoded within 87Sr/86Sr of hair, human hair was collected from three locations within Salt Lake City, Utah along with the donor’s sex. The 87Sr/86Sr and δ18O of hair and local tap water were measured. There were no significant relationships between sex and either δ18O or 87Sr/86Sr of hair, nor between collection location and the δ18O of hair. However, we found significant associations between collection location and 87Sr/86Sr of hair. These findings suggest that interactions with local water may be an important source of Sr to human hair and that the 87Sr/86Sr of hair may have the capacity to record differences in 87Sr/86Sr of tap waters on small spatial scales.
Highlights
The stable oxygen (18O/16O) isotope values (δ18O) of human tissues can be utilized to identify and reconstruct an individual’s region-of-residence or origin as δ18O of human tissue relates largely to the δ18O of an individual’s drinking water, which varies with geography[1]
To begin to distinguish the importance of endogenous and exogenous Sr to hair and create a better understanding of how these sources of Sr relate to the spatial signal encoded within 87Sr/86Sr of hair, we collected and analyzed the 87Sr/86Sr and δ18O of human hair from three locations within a single city (Salt Lake City, Utah, USA)
When grouped by collection location, we found the mean δ18O of hair samples from individuals at Schools X, Y, and Z were 9.7 ± 1.8‰ (1σ, n = 10), 10.0 ± 1.5‰ (1σ, n = 7), and 10.0 ± 0.9‰ (1σ, n = 14), respectively (Fig. 2)
Summary
The stable oxygen (18O/16O) isotope values (δ18O) of human tissues can be utilized to identify and reconstruct an individual’s region-of-residence or origin as δ18O of human tissue relates largely to the δ18O of an individual’s drinking water, which varies with geography[1]. Combining the independent δ18O and 87Sr/86Sr systems may allow for greater resolution in human provenance predictions Measurements of both δ18O and 87Sr/86Sr in tooth enamel have been successfully applied in several modern[23,24] and prehistorical applications[25] to identify the probable locations where an individual spent their early life. The combined measurement of δ18O and 87Sr/86Sr in hair is emerging as a very attractive approach to understand an individual’s very recent life history[27] This combination of isotopes has many potential applications, especially recognizing known variations in tap waters that exist within and among metropolitan regions[28,29,30]. Our aim was to explore the relationships of 87Sr/86Sr and δ18O of hair at the city-scale and to begin to develop a better understanding of the geospatial signal encoded in the 87Sr/86Sr of hair
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