The training for specific dental histology protocols in making thin sections on archaeological human and red deer teeth specimens as well as on a modern collection of red deer took place at the Bromage Laboratory, i.e. the Hard Tissue Research Unit at the NYU College of Dentistry. At NYU, the Researcher obtained training for specific dental histology protocols in making thin sections, use of microscopy, and, in the summer of 2022, in the use of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) EDS. In the winter of 2021–2022, the Researcher also received training in the use of optical transmitted light microscopy available at SU in DANTE Lab by Prof. E. Cristiani. In 2022, training was also received at the geochemistry laboratory of Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany in collaboration with Prof. Wolfgang Müller on LA-ICP-MC-MS analyses of enamel from prepared human teeth thin sections. To date, tooth thin sections were prepared, recorded, and analyzed for 60 comparative red deer individuals and 35 archaeological red deer individuals, as well as for 120 archaeological human teeth.
Principal results include the establishment of (1) a new and integrated methodology for the study of tooth cementum annulation (TCA) in red deer and humans with the addition of SEM-EDS elemental analyses of the cementum; and (2) LA-ICP-MC-MS analyses of enamel in human teeth that complement dental histology observations. The obtained results point to (i) pronounced seasonal patterns in the elemental composition of the analyzed red deer specimens in both modern/comparative and archaeologcal specimens; (ii) largely sedentary early life in most of the analyzed humans in the Danube Gorges area during the Early Holocene; and (iii) the existence of individuals buried in this areas in both Mesolithic and Neolithic periods who originated from foreign communities that exhibit pronounced patterns of seasonal movement across different geologies during early life.
The Researcher made six presentations of project results at five different international conferences (SAAs, EAA, and ESHE, 26th Neolithic Seminar in Ljubljana, "First Kings of Europe" conference) and gave two invited talks in New York and Rome. CUSP research has also been mentioned through the Researcher’s participation in the Croatian state TV documentary Hunter-Gatherer shown in the autumn of 2022. The Researcher also gave a number of lectures to students both at NYU and SU in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
