Rare dwarf remains found in China

At the moment, there are dozens in the worldthousand people with the so-called Laron syndrome or dwarfism. People with this hereditary disease have growth below 147 centimeters, which is due to the immunity of their body tissues to the effects of growth hormone. This is a rather rare disease, so it is not surprising that in the entire history of archaeologists managed to find less than 40 remains of people with this ailment. It is noteworthy that almost all of them had a type of dwarfism called chondrodystrophy, in which the length of the body is normal, but the limbs are shortened. However, recently Chinese archaeologists have found the burial of a dwarf, in which the whole body was small.

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The find was told in a scientific publicationInternational Journal of Paleopathology. Bones were discovered near the Chinese Yellow River, where the bodies of other people who died between 3300-2900 years were also buried. It is noteworthy that for some reason people of ordinary height were buried with their hands on their chests, and the dwarf's arms were crossed behind his back. Researchers do not yet know the exact reason for the differences between the method of burial, however, according to ancient documents, dwarfs were not neglected thousands of years ago. Quite the contrary - many of them were respected.

The remains of an ancient dwarf found in China

A man with a rare kind of dwarfism

When studying the remains, scientists noticed that the bonesthe dwarfs were indeed too short and fragile compared to other people's bones. The analysis of the teeth showed that the little man was an adult, but the cause of his death could not be identified. After examining the proportions of his body, the researchers concluded that he suffered from the so-called proportionate dwarfism, in which the body is as small as the limbs. This kind of disease is extremely rare, which makes the discovery of scientists unique and important for science.

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The development of dwarfism could contribute to twofactor a. With the so-called childhood hypopituitarism in a person in infancy, problems could arise with the work of a part of the brain called the pituitary gland, which is responsible for growth and metabolism. He could also have problems with the thyroid gland, in which limb growth stops and difficulties arise with the development of cognitive abilities and functions of other organs.

One of the smallest people in the world is He Pinping with a height of 74 centimeters

Researchers believe that disruptionsThe pituitary gland and thyroid gland may have arisen due to a lack of nutrients, especially iodine. The fact is that in the diet of Chinese people there are really few sources of this substance and many of them suffer from a lack of thyroid hormones, in medicine called hypothyroidism.

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According to study leader Sean Holkrow,the dwarf was hardly treated in a special way. This, at least, is evidenced by Confucian texts written in the fourth century AD. According to these documents, in ancient China people with physical disabilities were not neglected and were not subjected to bullying. Thus, the strange arrangement of the hands of a buried dwarf is still a mystery to scientists.