Laura Fitton
Senior Lecturer in Anatomy

Research

Overview

Laura's research goal is to understand the functional significance of variations in craniofacial morphology of primates and other mammals from a developmental and evolutionary perspective. She aims to elucidate complex relationships between masticatory form and function and shed light on functional adaptations and evolutionary pathways within the primates. To achieve this she employs a variety of traditional methods such as morphometrics and dissection and novel analytical techniques from the field of engineering such as finite element analysis (FEA) and multibody dynamic analysis (MDA).

Research topics

• Primate masticatory biomechanics
• Application and development of computer modelling techniques
• Ontogenetic changes in the primate masticatory apparatus
• Adaptations and constraints within the primate masticatory apparatus
• Virtual 3D reconstruction
• Reconstruction of Palaeodiets using biomechanical modelling

Teaching

Undergraduate

Medical Curriculum

• Anatomy resource sessions
• SSIP in Anatomy

Postgraduate

MSc in Human Anatomy & Evolution

• Course Director
• Module lead for Human Evolutionary Anatomy
• Module lead for Virtual Anatomies
• Contributor to Primate Ecology & Evolution