Bones, human

Antibiotics were used in folk medicine at least as early as 2500 years ago when the Chinese reported the medicinally beneficial effects of moldy bean curd. Evidence for some type of tetracycline antibiotic usage by the Sudanese-Nubian civilization (350 AD) was reported in 1980 (6). Fluorescent areas in human bones from this eta were observed that were identical in location and characteristics to modern bone from patients treated with tetracyclines. Identification of tetracycline in the ancient bones was further substantiated by fluorescence spectmm measurements and microbiological inhibition studies (7). 

At 2 30 p.m. the welders were reported missing. Their job card led to No. 3 repulper. It was stopped and drained. Inside were the remains of a rope ladder, welding equipment, and human bones [22]. 

Scarborough, N.L. (1992). Current procedures for banking allograft human bone. Orthopedics 15, 1161-1167. 

Human Bone—Extraction of the Organic Fraction and Amino Acid Analysis... 

Tabic 1.1. Amino acids per thousand residues for standard type 1 collagen and 15 human bone collagen samples from St. Thomas Church cemetery. Samples are identified by burial numlter (Bx) followed by age midpoint for subadults and age range for adults in parentheses. For example, B17(0) refers to burial 17 who was aged as a newborn. 

Table 1.3. 5 C%is and 5 N%o mean values and standard deviations (s.d.) for human bone collagen by age group.

Bones of 19 individuals were analyzed for strontium, rubidium and zinc. The number of samples was limited by the availability of bone after the stable isotope analyses were completed. Strontium was analyzed in order to test for trophic level, and to compare to other results obtained in the region on prehistoric peoples (Katzenberg 1984). Rubidium is not expected in human bone, so its presence acts as a measure of contamination. The use of zinc as a paleodi-etary indicator has been questioned recently (Ezzo 1994) and we were interested to see if there was any relationship between zinc content in food and bone. 

Table 1.4. Trace elemeni daia for human bone mineral samples (ppm).

Human bone strontium levels (Fig. 1.5) are within the range that is expeeted for that region (Katzenberg 1984). The sample size is small and uneven with only three females and one subadult so it is not possible to comment on sex or age differences except to say that the highest Sr content was found in the sample from a child aged around 9 2 years. 

The diet of the 19 century residents of Upper Canada was determined from historical sources and was reproduced in order to carry out chemical analysis. Stable carbon isotope analysis of food and human bone demonstrates that the spacing between the food eaten and the bone collagen is around 5.6%o. The value may vary slightly from this estimate since the latter is based on a reconstructed diet and a large number of bone samples, which exhibit a small amount of variation. Nevertheless, this empirically derived result agrees well with estimates from field (Vogel 1978), and laboratory studies (reviewed in Ambrose 1993). 

Ambrose, S.H. and Norr, L. 1993 Experimental evidence for the relationship of the carbon isotope ratios ofwhole diet and dietary protein to those ofbone collagen and carbonate. In Lambert, J.B. and Grupe, G., eds.. Prehistoric Human Bone Archaeology at the Molecular Level. Berlin, Springer-Verlag 1-37. 

In Lambert, J.B. and Grape, G., eds.. Prehistoric Human Bone Archaeology at the Molecular Level. Berlin, Springer-Verlag 217-228. 

Table 2.4. Carbon and nitrogen isotope values of human bone collagen at various...

Figure 2.3. Carbon and nitrogen isotope values of human bone collagen at Maya sites in Belize. The value for the modem sample has been corrected for collagen-hair spacing and the Industrial Effect. Boxes represent isotopic means one standard deviation.

Figure 2.4. Carbon and nitrogen isotope values in human bone collagen from Preclassic Belize (Cuello and Lamanai) and from the Preclassic Peten (Altar de Sacrificios and Seibal).

White, C.D., Longstaffe, F. and Song, R.-J. 1996 Preclassic Maya diet at Cahal Pech, Belize the isotopic evidence from human bone collagen. Paper presented at the 6L Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, New Orleans. 

White, C.D. and Schwarcz, H.P. 1989 Ancient Maya diet as inferred from isotopic and elemental analysis of human bone. JoumaZ o/ Archaeological Science 16 451M74. 

Figure 3.3. Average carbon isotopic ratios for human bone collagen samples, corrected for climatic trends. Only countries with more than 10 samples are included. For a description of the climate correction procedure see text.

Schoeninger, M.J. 1989 Prehistoric human diet. In Price, T.D., ed.. Chemistry of Prehistoric Human Bone. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press 38-67. 

Hodges, R.M., MacDonald, N.S., Nusbaum, R., Steams, R., Ezmirlian, F., Spain, P. and MeArthur, C. 1950 The strontium content of human bone. Journal of Biological Chemistry 185 519-524. 

Katzenberg, M.A. 1984 Chemical analysis of prehistoric human bone from five temporally distinct populations in southern Ontario. National Museum of Man, Mercury Series, No. 129, Ottawa, Archaeological Survey of Canada. 

Price, T.D. 1989 Multi-element studies of diagenesis in prehistoric bone. In Price, T.D., ed.. The Chemistry of Prehistoric Human Bone. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press 126-154. Price, T.D., Biltz, J., Burton, J.H. and Ezzo, J. 1992 Diagenesis in prehistoric bone problems and iohMiom. Journal of Archaeological Science 19 513-529. 

Schoeninger, M.X and Peebles, C.S. 1981 Effect of mollusc eating on human bone strontium levels. Journal of Archaeological Science 8 391-397. 

Turekian, K.K. and Kulp, XL. 1956 Strontium content of human Bones. Science 124 405 107. Wasserman, R. and Comar, C.L. 1956 Carbohydrates and gastrointestinal absorption ofradiostron-tium and radiocalcium in the rat Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biological Medicine 101 314-317. 

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