Scientists have created an archive that covers thousands of human brains that date back several millennia. These brains have remained preserved in the archaeological record.
Archaeological Archive of Human Brains
The scientists examined scientific literature and canvassed for archaeologists all over the world for a research endeavor. The investigations led to the creation of a global archive collating records that comprises over 4,400 human brains that are preserved.
The human brains come from 213 distinct sources from all continents except Antarctica. The oldest human brains covered in the project are from 12,000 years ago, while the youngest ones are from the 20th century.
The brains that have been collated in the archaeological archive have been documented in records that date as far as the 17th century.
The database serves as the most complete and largest study of the available archaeological literature pertaining to this issue. It massively exceeds the preserved brain count that has been compiled in earlier attempts.
Preserved Human Brains
It is relatively rare for human soft tissue to remain preserved in the archaeological record. Moreover, the survival of full brains is also notably odd, except when deliberate intervention (such as freezing or embalming) was implemented to prevent decay.
Usually, the brain is one of the first organs to decay when a person dies. Hence, having naturally preserved human brains is an extremely rare and unique find, especially when other soft tissues are not present.
Nevertheless, such perceptions have been challenged by the latest research, which stresses that preserved human brains are more abundant than thought.
The brains included in the archive have been discovered in various global environments, such as frozen mountains, arid deserts, and low-lying wetlands. They have also been described as discolored and shrunken to different extents. They were from different individuals, such as Arctic explorers, Egyptian royalty, British monks, and war victims.
Several preservation-leading mechanisms have also been identified by the researchers. These mechanisms include saponification, freezing, dehydration, and tanning.
Over 1,300 of the human brains in the archive were apparently preserved without any other soft tissue presence. This raised questions regarding why the organ persisted even when other organs were unable to do so. Interestingly, some of these brains also serve as the oldest ones on record.
Such observations suggest that nervous tissues persist at a level that archaeological literature has previously overlooked. The researchers think that a mysterious mechanism could be the reason for their preservation.
Alexandra Morton Hayward, the study leader and a forensic anthropologist and doctoral candidate from the Department of Earth Sciences in the University of Oxford, explains that what could be intriguing about the study is that, while the brain is known to quickly liquefy, there are circumstances where it can be preserved for remarkably long periods. The forensic anthropologist argued that soft tissue preservation should be studied in greater depth.
Soft tissues that are preserved are extremely important finds for archaeologists, as these tissues can offer a greater range and depth of biological data compared to what hard tissues can offer. However, under 1% of preserved brains have undergone studies for prehistoric biomolecules.
Hence, this new work serves as an untapped archive that could unravel more mysteries pertaining to the evolution of humans. It could also aid in the understanding of ancient diseases and health. The study could even offer insight regarding neurodegenerative diseases that persist today.
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