| Abstract: | The incidence of dental agenesis and polygenesis was demonstrated in 978 Old World monkeys, 390 great apes, 194 lesser apes and 5,000 humans of Caucasoid and Negroid stock. The frequency of agenesis was highest in the human sample, particularly in the Negroids, that of polygenesis was highest in the great apes. Within both groups, the polymorphism was commonest in the molar (predominantly third molar) region. Despite numerous difficulties in the interpretation of such data, on the basis of the differences between man, apes and monkeys, it is suggested that the high incidence of agenesis seen in man is a phylogenetic accompaniment of the shortening of the maxillomandibular skeleton, which is such a marked feature of human evolution. |
