The aim of this work is sexual dimorphism quantification of greater sciatic notch profile using 2D geometric morphometrics methods. The curvature was digitized by two different methods - manually with contact digitizer MicroScribe G2 and automatically with software Morphome3cs. Results from each method were comparised and advatages and disadvantages of boths methods were discussed. Target sample of 114 adult specimens of known sex was analyzed. This collection comes from Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque and contains 57 male and 57 female hip bones. For the method verification the test smaple contains 112 adult specimens of known sex was used. This collection comes from Universidad Nacional Autonóma de México (UNAM). This collection contains 56 male and 56 female hip bones. The procrustes analysis, principal components analysis, thin plate spine and discriminant function analysis were used for analysis. We could make a detail description of morphologic differences in greater sciatic notch shape of men and women because of shape visualisation and difference of both group was confirmed by discriminant function analysis. Sex assesment achieves accuracy 92,11% - 98,25% in dependence on used methods and number of semilandmarks.

This study is based on evaluative longitudinal data of facial development in a group of children from 6 to 12 years. The research used three-dimensional models of the faces of 18 girls and 15 boys that were scanned at yearly intervals. These models were used to follow development of the face and its particular areas including analysis of variability (PCA). Developmental changes were observed for each gender separately as well as for the development of sexual dimorphism. Results were visualized by using superimposed color maps of average faces of a particular age group and maps depicting the statistically significant differences in individual areas. The presented data exhibited growth in the face of both genders, while slightly bigger changes in the form of the face were observed in the boys' samples. For girls and boys the most intensive growth was found in the direction of the width and height of the entire face and the nose, especially in the direction of length. These changes took place throughout the whole studied period of growth, yet more intensive growth was evident for girls beginning at age 10 years and for boys from 11 years onward. Shape changes also occurred with age for both genders: the face gradually narrowed, the cheeks flattened and a more retruded position of the forehead...

The freshwater fish species Schistura robertsi and Paracanthocobitis zonalternans belong to the family Nemacheilidae, which is distributed across whole Eurasia and with one species in northeast Africa. P. zonalternans occurs in lowland habitats through western Southeast Asia from Central Myanmar until northern Malaysia. The distribution area is of biogeographic interest, because it crosses several known biogeographic barriers, namely the border between Indian and Indochinese freshwater fauna along the Salween River, the Isthmus of Kra, the Krabi - Surat Thani line and the Kangar - Pattani line. In the present study, around 250 specimens of P. zonalternans from 62 localities across the whole distribution area were investigated using genetic (nuclear and mitochondrial sequences), morphologic and geologic data. The genetic data reveal the existence of seven major clades within the analysed material, each of them with a distinct geographic distribution area and only few cases of overlap, but with occurrence of some cases of secondary contact. Divergence time estimations suggested that P. zonalternans is about 18 my old, and a biogeographic analysis located the region of origin in the Tenasserim region (nowadays southern Myanmar). The global sea level fluctuations seem to have had a strong impact on the...

The diploma thesis deals with the differences in the development of the palate in girls and boys within five age groups in the age range of 7 to 19 years, using methods of geometric morphometry. Furthermore, the work deals with the monitoring of sexual dimorphism in the development of the palate. Understanding palate growth, knowledge of differences in its development and changes related to sexual dimorphism are very useful, as the results of this study will serve as a comparative standard for palate defects in the Czech population, but also for appropriate planning of orthodontic procedures. The material consists of 228 gypsum castings of palate without any pathologies, 112 of which belonged to boys and 116 girls of the Czech population. Thus, transverse data are used in our study. The subjects were divided into five age groups 7, 10, 12, 15 and 19 with respect to gender. Age changes of the entire palate surface were modeled using geometric morphometry methods (Coherent point drift - Dense correspondence analysis, Per vertex T- test and Principal component analysis). To visualize the results, superprojection color maps, maps of significance and superprojection. The results show the greatest variability in the form of palate in girls of groups 10 and 12 years and in boys of groups 10 years, and...

The human face is characterized by a combination of morphological characters, which are unique for each individual. These characters are subject to change during ontogeny influenced by age, pathological conditions, injuries. The aim of this diploma thesis was an observation of age changes in the face of individuals in the age range from one to eighteen. Resource material were black and white photographs of girls and boys. Analysis of age changes in facial area was performed using methods of geometric morphometrics, specifically thin plate spine (TPS). The shape analysis confirmed, that between age and face shape exists significant relationship. It was found, that is mainly due to significant changes in height and width ratios. Face extends and narrows, forehead height is reduced and lower jaw grows to lenght. Facial changes are also influenced by the sex of individuals, while for girls the overall growth in the face stopps about age of fifteen, for boys continues to the age of eighteen years. Keywords Geometric morphometrics, thin plate spline, ontogenetic development of the face, age changes.

This doctoral thesis is submitted in the form of scientific publications together with theoretical introduction. The present state of knowledge of facial approximation methods is presented in the introduction. Areas of application, principles of the method and classification of the methods according to medium used are briefly described. Accuracy and limits of the method are further described as they form a base of the research of this thesis. Simultaneous existence of multiple prediction guidelines, of which the accuracy is not known or published, is typical characteristic of the facial approximation method. The aim of this thesis was to assess the accuracy of the particular prediction rules for estimation of position and size of facial parts (eyes, nose, lips), and based on the results to recommend the most accurate and suitable guidelines for middle European population. An assessment of the strength of the association between craniofacial shape and the shape of soft tissues in the profile using geometric morphometric methods, and determination of the extent to which it might be possible to predict the latter from the former were the purpose of the second part of the research. Material for this study consisted of 87 lateral head cephalograms of a recent adult Central European population (52 males...

Multimodality MR imaging of pathological changes in schizophrenia Aim: To prove structural changes of the neocortex and white matter of the brain indicating connectivity disorder in early phases of schizophrenia. Material and methods: A prospective monocentric study comparing a cohort of patients after the first episode of schizophrenia (on average 15.6 days after the initial hospitalization) with a control group of healthy persons. Probands were examined using a complex MRI protocol. Twenty-six patients and twenty-four healthy persons were examined in total. Three dimensional T1 and T2 data and DWI data were analyzed using TBSS FA, FBA a surface- based morphometry. Results: Large areas of dispersively decreased FA were found in patients compared to control group using TBSS. Several fixels of decreased FD metric were found using FBA in the anterior commissure of patients and one sporadic fixel of decreased FDC metric was found in frontal white matter of the brain. No statistically significant areas of cortical surface area and cortical thickness differences were found using SBM. Conclusions: Large areas of decreased microstructural integrity of the white matter of the brain were found. However, it was not possible to specify the nature of its corruption using FBA. Our findings indicate the crucial role of...

- 1 - Abstract The intent of this thesis is to evaluate the differences in facial morphology of children between 3 and 15 years of age based on 3D facial models and cross-sectional data. Due to improper use of cross-sectional data for studying growth, the next part of the thesis is focused on the comparison of cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches in research. The longitudinal observation of facial developmental changes can be considered as actual growth. The cross-sectional database contains 839 3D facial models (397 boys, 442 girls). Three previously published longitudinal databases were used for comparison. Their age intervals were as follows: 3 to 6 years (12 boys, 14 girls), 6 to 12 years (15 boys, 18 girls), 12 to 15 years (23 boys, 22 girls). Geometric morphometric methods were used to analyse facial models (Coherent Point Drift - Dense Correspondance Analysis, Per Vertex T-Test and Principal Component Analysis). The results were visualized using superimposition colour maps, shell distance significance maps and their interlacing. When annual consecutive age intervals were used for cross-sectional data, we could not observe the fluency of differences in facial morphology between age categories, which we can observe during actual growth. When wider age intervals were used for cross-sectional...

The thesis was focused on the microevolutionary mechanisms that contribute to morphological diversity in selected members of the sedge family (Cyperaceae). Natural hybridization, evidenced from both morphological characters and molecular markers, was revealed to be a potentially important source of diversification in the tropical spikerushes of Eleocharis subgenus Limnochloa. High levels of phenotypic plasticity of clonal growth but rare genetic (ecotypic) differentiation among contrasting morphotypes were found in the polymorphic species Carex nigra, which implied that taxonomic splitting of the species was unreasonable.

- 1 - Abstract The intent of this thesis is to evaluate the differences in facial morphology of children between 3 and 15 years of age based on 3D facial models and cross-sectional data. Due to improper use of cross-sectional data for studying growth, the next part of the thesis is focused on the comparison of cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches in research. The longitudinal observation of facial developmental changes can be considered as actual growth. The cross-sectional database contains 839 3D facial models (397 boys, 442 girls). Three previously published longitudinal databases were used for comparison. Their age intervals were as follows: 3 to 6 years (12 boys, 14 girls), 6 to 12 years (15 boys, 18 girls), 12 to 15 years (23 boys, 22 girls). Geometric morphometric methods were used to analyse facial models (Coherent Point Drift - Dense Correspondance Analysis, Per Vertex T-Test and Principal Component Analysis). The results were visualized using superimposition colour maps, shell distance significance maps and their interlacing. When annual consecutive age intervals were used for cross-sectional data, we could not observe the fluency of differences in facial morphology between age categories, which we can observe during actual growth. When wider age intervals were used for cross-sectional...