{"database":"biostudies-literature","file_versions":[],"scores":null,"additional":{"omics_type":["Unknown"],"volume":["21(1)"],"submitter":["von Cramon-Taubadel N"],"pubmed_abstract":["Humans are unique among primates in possessing a chin, yet it is currently unclear whether the form of the symphyseal region of the mandible where the chin is located is the product of direct selection or a by-product of evolutionary pressures on other craniomandibular features. Here, we conduct an evolutionary analysis of hominoid craniomandibular traits to test three hypotheses: symphyseal mandibular traits evolved (1) neutrally due to genetic drift, (2) under direct selection, and (3) as a by-product (or \"spandrel\") of selection on other craniomandibular traits. Evolutionary rates of morphological change, via Lande's generalized genetic distance, were estimated along each branch of a fully-resolved hominoid phylogeny to reveal patterns of neutral, stabilizing and directional selection. "],"journal":["PloS one"],"pagination":["e0340278"],"full_dataset_link":["https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC12854472"],"repository":["biostudies-literature"],"pubmed_title":["Is the human chin a spandrel? Insights from an evolutionary analysis of ape craniomandibular form."],"pmcid":["PMC12854472"],"pubmed_authors":["Scott JE","Schroeder L","Robinson CA","von Cramon-Taubadel N"],"additional_accession":[]},"is_claimable":false,"name":"Is the human chin a spandrel? Insights from an evolutionary analysis of ape craniomandibular form.","description":"Humans are unique among primates in possessing a chin, yet it is currently unclear whether the form of the symphyseal region of the mandible where the chin is located is the product of direct selection or a by-product of evolutionary pressures on other craniomandibular features. Here, we conduct an evolutionary analysis of hominoid craniomandibular traits to test three hypotheses: symphyseal mandibular traits evolved (1) neutrally due to genetic drift, (2) under direct selection, and (3) as a by-product (or \"spandrel\") of selection on other craniomandibular traits. Evolutionary rates of morphological change, via Lande's generalized genetic distance, were estimated along each branch of a fully-resolved hominoid phylogeny to reveal patterns of neutral, stabilizing and directional selection. ","dates":{"release":"2026-01-01T00:00:00Z","publication":"2026","modification":"2026-06-11T05:33:25.116Z","creation":"2026-06-11T03:08:01.257Z"},"accession":"S-EPMC12854472","cross_references":{"pubmed":["41610129"],"doi":["10.1371/journal.pone.0340278"]}}