Overview
- Researchers, in a study published Wednesday in PLOS One, say a Neanderthal molar from Chagyrskaya Cave in Siberia was drilled into the pulp to treat decay.
- Microscopy and micro-CT found parallel scratches and V-shaped grooves that match traces from a rotating stone point rather than natural wear.
- Replication tests using jasper points on modern teeth produced near-identical holes in about 35 to 50 minutes of careful finger-turning.
- Rounded edges and internal polish show the individual survived the procedure and kept using the tooth, and the find resets the dentistry record by roughly 40,000 to 50,000 years as the first case beyond Homo sapiens.
- Researchers plan residue tests and urge reviews of other collections, while outside experts welcome the evidence but caution against broad claims from a single specimen.