Response of the Axial Skeleton to Bipedal Loading Behaviors in an Experimental Animal Model.
Anat Rec (Hoboken)
; 303(1): 150-166, 2020 01.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-30365241
Many derived aspects of modern human axial skeletal morphology reflect our reliance on obligate bipedal locomotion. Insight into the adaptive significance of features, particularly in the spine, has been gained through experimental studies that induce bipedal standing or walking in quadrupedal mammals. Using an experimental animal model (Rattus norvegicus), the present study builds on earlier work by incorporating additional metrics of the cranium, employing quantitative methods established in the paleoanthropological literature, and exploring how variation in mechanical loading regimes impacts axial anatomy. Rats were assigned to one of five experimental groups, including "fully loaded bipedal walking," "partially loaded bipedal walking," "standing bipedally," "quadrupedal walking," and "no exercise control," and engaged in the behavior over 12-weeks. From µCT data obtained at the beginning and end of the experiment, we measured foramen magnum position and orientation, lumbar vertebral body wedging, cranial surface area of the lumbar and first sacral vertebral bodies, and sacral mediolateral width. Results demonstrate that bipedal rodents generally have more anteriorly positioned foramina magna, more dorsally wedged lumbar vertebrae, greater articular surface areas of lumbar and first sacral vertebral bodies, and sacra that exhibit greater mediolateral widths, compared to quadrupedal rodents. We further document variation among bipedal loading behavior groups (e.g., bipedal standing vs. walking). Our experimental animal model reveals how loading behaviors and adaptations may be specifically linked, and implicates a potential role for developmental plasticity in the evolutionary acquisition of bipedal adaptations in the hominin lineage. Anat Rec, 2018. © 2018 American Association for Anatomy.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Columna Vertebral
/
Conducta Animal
/
Caminata
/
Modelos Animales
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Evolución Biológica
/
Locomoción
Límite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Anat Rec (Hoboken)
Asunto de la revista:
ANATOMIA
Año:
2020
Tipo del documento:
Article
Pais de publicación:
Estados Unidos