The aim of this systematic review is to analyze the literature to determine whether the methods of artificial intelligence are effective in determining age in panoramic radiographs. Searches without language and year limits were conducted in PubMed/Medline, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus databases. Hand searches were also performed, and unpublished manuscripts were searched in specialized journals. Thirty-six articles were included in the analysis. Significant differences in terms of root mean square error and mean absolute error were found between manual methods and artificial intelligence techniques, favoring the use of artificial intelligence (p < 0.00001). Few articles compared deep learning methods with machine learning models or manual models. Although there are advantages of machine learning in data processing and deep learning in data collection and analysis, non-comparable data was a limitation of this study. More information is needed on the comparison of these techniques, with particular emphasis on time as a variable.

The dataset comprises a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis exploring the utility of biological clocks as age estimation markers in the context of animal ecology. The systematic review adhered to PRISMA guidelines and employed optimized Boolean search strings to retrieve relevant studies from Scopus and Dimensions databases. A total of 78 methylation studies and 108 telomere studies were included after rigorous screening. Effect sizes were computed, and statistical transformations were applied when necessary, ensuring compatibility for meta-analysis. Data from these studies were meticulously collected, encompassing statistical measures, study attributes, and additional biological information. The dataset comprises several folders, carefully organized to facilitate access and understanding. It contains raw and processed data used in the systematic review and meta-analysis, including Boolean search strings, database search results, citation network analysis data, PRISMA statements, extracted study data, and input data for meta-analysis. Each folder\'s contents are described in detail, ensuring clarity and reusability. This dataset aggregates primary research studies spanning diverse ecosystems and taxa, providing a valuable resource for researchers, biodiversity managers and policymakers. This dataset offers a wealth of information and analysis potential for researchers studying age estimation markers in animal ecology, serving as a robust foundation for future investigations and reviews in this evolving field.

Various biological attributes associated with individual fitness in animals change predictably over the lifespan of an organism. Therefore, the study of animal ecology and the work of conservationists frequently relies upon the ability to assign animals to functionally relevant age classes to model population fitness. Several approaches have been applied to determining individual age and, while these methods have proved useful, they are not without limitations and often lack standardisation or are only applicable to specific species. For these reasons, scientists have explored the potential use of biological clocks towards creating a universal age-determination method. Two biological clocks, tooth layer annulation and otolith layering have found universal appeal. Both methods are highly invasive and most appropriate for post-mortem age-at-death estimation. More recently, attributes of cellular ageing previously explored in humans have been adapted to studying ageing in animals for the use of less-invasive molecular methods for determining age. Here, we review two such methods, assessment of methylation and telomere length, describing (i) what they are, (ii) how they change with age, and providing (iii) a summary and meta-analysis of studies that have explored their utility in animal age determination. We found that both attributes have been studied across multiple vertebrate classes, however, telomere studies were used before methylation studies and telomere length has been modelled in nearly twice as many studies. Telomere length studies included in the review often related changes to stress responses and illustrated that telomere length is sensitive to environmental and social stressors and, in the absence of repair mechanisms such as telomerase or alternative lengthening modes, lacks the ability to recover. Methylation studies, however, while also detecting sensitivity to stressors and toxins, illustrated the ability to recover from such stresses after a period of accelerated ageing, likely due to constitutive expression or reactivation of repair enzymes such as DNA methyl transferases. We also found that both studied attributes have parentally heritable features, but the mode of inheritance differs among taxa and may relate to heterogamy. Our meta-analysis included more than 40 species in common for methylation and telomere length, although both analyses included at least 60 age-estimation models. We found that methylation outperforms telomere length in terms of predictive power evidenced from effect sizes (more than double that observed for telomeres) and smaller prediction intervals. Both methods produced age correlation models using similar sample sizes and were able to classify individuals into young, middle, or old age classes with high accuracy. Our review and meta-analysis illustrate that both methods are well suited to studying age in animals and do not suffer significantly from variation due to differences in the lifespan of the species, genome size, karyotype, or tissue type but rather that quantitative method, patterns of inheritance, and environmental factors should be the main considerations. Thus, provided that complex factors affecting the measured trait can be accounted for, both methylation and telomere length are promising targets to develop as biomarkers for age determination in animals.

Age determination of puppies represents a significant issue of animal welfare and forensic medicine, particularly for what concerns trade and imports of dogs. Despite the movement of puppy dogs before the age of 15 weeks is forbidden by Regulation (EU) No 576/2013, the occurrence of illegal transport of younger puppies is not uncommon. The illegal trade of puppies increases instances of falsified documentation, the counterfeit of vaccine certificates and discrepancies between the declared age and the real age of the puppies. Consequently, determining the exact age of animals and evaluating their welfare become legally crucial. Dental examination currently represents the most common approach to estimate the age of a puppy in clinical practice and in forensic investigations. In this work we addressed the legal, health and welfare issues associated with dogs\' trade and import and we reviewed the existing literature referring to the assessment of age in dogs by dental examination. The imprecision and inaccuracy of this method make it poorly convincing in legal proceedings. The reasons for such vagueness are to be ascribed both to the lack of standardization and to many variability factors (size, breed, sex, diet, etc.) which influence dental eruption and development.

Fingerprints have a key role in criminal investigations and are the most commonly used form of evidence worldwide. Significant gaps remain however, in the understanding of fingerprint chemistry, including enhancement reaction mechanisms and the effect of environmental variables and time on composition. Determining the age of a fingerprint is also a relatively unexplored area. A successful method, with reliable and quantitative estimates, would have numerous advantages. Previous unreliable methods have predominantly focused on enhancement success based on physical and chemical changes. This review explores variations in composition due to donor characteristics and environmental variables, and identifies gaps for further research. We also present a qualitative and quantitative summary of the effect of time on composition. Kinetics are presented where known, with summary schematics for reaction mechanisms. Previous studies exploring methods for determining the age of a fingerprint are also discussed, including their advantages and disadvantages. Lastly we propose a potentially more accurate and reliable methodology for determining fingerprint age based on quantitative kinetic changes to the composition of a fingerprint over time.

OBJECTIVE: To systematically review the literature on dating subdural hematomas (SDHs) on CT and MRI scans.
METHODS: We performed a systematic review in MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane to search for articles that described the appearance of SDHs on CT or MRI in relation to time between trauma and scanning. Two researchers independently screened the articles, assessed methodological quality and performed data extraction. Medians with interquartile ranges were calculated. Differences were tested with a Mann-Whitney U or Kruskal-Wallis H test.
RESULTS: We included 22 studies describing 973 SDHs on CT and 4 studies describing 83 SDHs on MRI. Data from 17 studies (413 SDHs) could be pooled. There were significant differences between time intervals for the different densities on CT (p<0.001). Time interval differed significantly between children and adults for iso- and hypodensity (p=0.000) and hyperdensity (p=0.046). Time interval did not differ significantly between abused and non-abused children. On MRI, time intervals for different signal intensities on T1 and T2 did not differ significantly (p=0.108 and p=0.194, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Most time intervals of the different appearances of SDHs on CT and MRI are broad and overlapping. Therefore CT or MRI findings cannot be used to accurately date SDHs.