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Comparative anatomy is a subject about forms, their functions, and their evolution.
function
structures similar different
similar phylogeny evolution
/convergence
/parallelism
different independent evolution nothing to compare
/convergence
As Mayr put it, biology is a mixture of two quite distinct realms: functional biology is reducable to
the level of physical sciences; while historical biology is not reducable; it has to be considered in terms of
phylogeny, and the unique evolutionary history of the group being studied.
Generally, disciplines in biology belong to only one realm. Biochemistry, physiology, and molecular
biology are examples of the functional biology; examples of historical biology are topics such as
systematics, genetics, and evolution.
Comparative anatomy is one of the few disiplines whose explanations are partly functional and
partly historical. A state found in an organism is determined not only by the physical aspects of the
design, but is determined also by the history of the lineages. Physical part is a universal phenomenon, but
the history of the organism is unique.
phylogeny: inheritance
evolution: modification and inheritance
convergence: found in distantly related groups; evolved independently.
parallelism: found in closely related groups; evolved independently.
independent evolution/convergence: unrelated groups
1. evolution
Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778): species unchanged; used characters to group organisms
Jean Baptiste de Lamarck (1744-1829): progressive change of characters (and species) dictated by
use or disuse
Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913): survival of the fittest
Charles Darwin (1809-1882): survival of the fittest, tree of life
2. morphology/comparative methods
Georges Cuvier (1769-1832): form and function/comparative methods/species immutable
Richard Owen (1804-1892): archetypes/homology
Remodeling: evolution is not about inventing new things, it is mainly about switching/alteration
pharyngeal slits: filter-feeding; gills: gas exchange
fins: balance; limb: propulsion; fore-limbs: grasping, making gestures
Phylogeny is based on cladistic methods. Phylogeny is not a fact, but a hypothesis that is constantly being
challenged.
homology can be ancestral (primitive) or evolved (derived)
only shared derived homology (synapomorphy) diagnoses a monophyletic group
1. THE QUESTION: not so easy as it sounds. Use tools to help define the questions, such as dissection,
taxonomy,
2. THE FUNCTION: detect and describe performance using various recording techniques
3. BIOLOGICAL ROLE: pronghorn's high speed not for escaping predator, but to move between
scattered resources.
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Chordate Phylogeny
determine primitive and derived characteristics
discover monophyletic groups
understand character evolution
Phylum Chordata
Urochordata
Cephalochordata
Craniata (Vertebrata)
Synapomorphies
Chordata: notochord, pharyngeal slits, endostyle, dorsal hollow nerve cord, postanal tail
Urochordata,
Cephalochordata
Craniata (Vertebrata): vertebral column(vertebral column is a new structure), head
Biological Design
Size:
relationships among length, area, and volume
surface area: chewing, intestinal absorption, breathing, capillaries
volume and mass: increase in mass compared to surface area
Shape:
alter length, area, and volume as animal change in size
allometry
Biomechanics
units and derived quantities
metric units
velocity, acceleration, force, power, work, pressure
Life History
4. organogenesis
a. histogenesis: epithelium, connective tissue
b. organs
c. neural crest and ectodermal placodes
The integument
keratinized structures
reptile scale
skin lack many glands
bird feather
uropygial gland
Teeth:
Cranial skeletons
chondrocranium: floor and lateral side of brain; mostly fused to other elements, occipital series remains
origin of jaws:
serial theory, from an original 7 arches, 1st becomes mandibular, 2nd becomes hyoid
composite theory: 10 or more arches, complex loss and fusion forms the jaws
types of jaw attachment: how mandible (lower jaw) is attached to the skull
paleostylic: agnathans, no attachment
euautostylic: placoderms and acanthodians; to skull
hyostylic: most groups; through hyoid arch and derivatives
caniostylic: mammals, to dermal bones
dermatocranium:
facial
orbital
temporal
vault
palatal
mandibular
Gnathostomes:
placoderms: predators, skull heavily ossified
Chondrichthyans: predators, mandible and upper jaw movement
Actinopterygians: head specialized for feeding
suspensorium: causing the jaw to protrude
Sarcopterygians
Tetrapods: internal nares, flattened skull
suction feeding, buccal pumping
Amniotes:
skull fenestra: for jaw movement and closing
skull kinesis
tongue in chameleon
mammals: turbinates, tongue, secondary palate, middle ear bones
functions of skulls
prey capture
in water: suction feeding and suspension feeding
in air: swallowing
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Post-cranial skeletons
Axial skeleton: notochord and vertebral column combined to define the long axis of body; for
muscle attachment, prevent telescoping of the body, and support.
vertebrae:
general morphology: neural arch, interneural arch, centra, hemal arch
regionalization: atlas, axis, cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, postsacral, caudal
Centrum: shape
an important structure for phylogenetic reconstruction
sternum: endochondral
Phylogeny
regionalization, lateral processes
Appendicular system
LImbs
stylopodium, zeugopodium, autopodium
Muscles
classification of muscles
skeletal
cardiac
smooth
Muscle contraction:
tension-length curve for single muscle fiber
distance of shortening:
Bone-msucle lever system: near point of rotation, for speed; away from point of rotation, for strength
Muscle homologies
attachment similarity
functional similarity
nervous innervation
embryology (?)
embryonic origins
cranial musculature
jaw and pharyngeal: hypobranchial muscles fro trunk somites; and branchiomeric musculature from head
somitomeres.
Postcranial musculature
differentiation of epaxial and hypaxial muscles
Cranial musculature
branchiomeric musculature: mandibular, hyoid, and branchial arches
hypobranchial
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diffusion not enough for large animals which have more oxygen demands.
The rate of diffusion depends on surface area, distance, and the resistance to diffusion by the tissue.
Also important is the partial oxygen pressure. In warm and stagnant water, the oxygen may come out of
the body.
Respiratory organs:
ventilation mechanisms
cilia: not for ventilation, but for clearing tract and surface.
muscular mechanisms
Lamprey: ammocoete: velum ventilation; adults: in and out through gill openings
hagfish: velum movement, and then from nostril to pharynx
elasmobranchs: holobranch and hemibranch, spiracle
bony fish
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Phylogeny
ventral aorta, aortic arches, external carotids, dorsal aorta, internal carotids, aorta, caudal arteries (paired
parietal arteries, subclavian, iliac, genital, renal
portal system: hepatic and renal
basic pattern: shark example
aortic arches
heart
venous system: systemic system: three pairs in embryos: vitelline veins, cardinals, lateral abdominals
Heart:
sinus venosus, sinoatrial valve, atrium; atrioventricular valve; ventricle, conus arteriosus, semilunar valve
hagfish with heart (branchial heart) and other accessory hearts (caudal, portal, cardinal)
amphibians with spiral valves in conus
special circumstances
accessory air-breathing organs: to air bladder, gut
diving: bradycardia (decreased heart rate), anaerobic metabolism increases; microcirculation changes
embryo circulations:
umbilical vein: oxy blood away from placenta to liver, half to liver, other half to ductus venosus to
hepatic vein. blood in the hepatic vain joins two cava to right atrium, not to pulmonary artery, most
through ductus arteriosus to dorsal aorga; in heart, foramen ovale allows most blood to left atrium
at birth: placental circulation ceases, neonate lung expand,
rise in blood oxygen stimulate the contraction of muscle in ductus arteriosus and closing it and becomes
ligamentum arteriosum.
more blood in lungs, and more blood returns to left atrium, closing of the septum of foramen ovale.
ductus venosus forms from the original umbilical vein.
components
buccal cavity
palate
teeth
tongue
alimentary canal
esophagus
stomach
intestines
cloaca
glands
oral glands
liver
pancreas
functions
absorption
food processing
fermentation
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uriniferous tubules
nephron (nephric tubule):
glomerulus
renal capsule (Bowman's capsule)
proximal, intermediate, and distal tubules
collecting tubule:
Pronephros: transitional
mesonephros: embryos, in adult amphibians called opisthonephros
metanephros: adult kidney in amniotes, duct is the ureter.
kidney phylogeny
lampreys and hagfish: anterior aglomerular pronephros (to coelom); posterior glomerular tubules to
pronephric duct (archinephric duct)
most fish: pronephros functional for some time, most fish's pronephros degenerate, adn replaced with a
mesonephros and into opisthonephros
Tetrapods: opisthonephros:
amniotes: embryo kidney is the mesonephros,
only mammals and some birds have loops to produce urine with concentrations greater than blood
bird loops are independently evolved
Kidney function
removing nitrogeninous waste: uricotelism, ammonotelism, ureotelism
osmoregulation: water and salt: osmoconformer and osmoregulators
water elimination: hyperosmotic animals in freshwater: filtration kidney
water conservation: hot-dry and sea: eliminate filtration need (aglomerular kidney)
REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM
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thyroid
thyroxine (tetraiodothyronine, T4)
triiodothyronine, T3
lateral to trachea, with many follicles
principal cells: forms the walls of follicles, produce colloid in which the hormone is stored.
ultimobranchial bodies: from fifth pharyngeal pouches, separate and paired cell masses in the throat
region (in fish, amphibians, birds, reptiles). cyclostomes do not have them. In mammals, they are
dispersed among principal cells in the walls of thyoid follicles (parafollicular cells).
source is neural crest.
Parathyoid gland: ventral edges of the pharyngeal pouches. absent in fish and neotenic amphibians, so it
is probably preceeded by gill cells.
chief cells are probably the source of parathormone; oxyphil cells of unknown function
function: as above.
pancreatic islets: composites of exocrine of acini; and pancreatic islets (islets of Langerhans). both
differentiate within the pancreatic diverticulum, an outgrowth of gut
cells in neurohypophysis do not produce hormones (axons of hypothalamus secrete contents into it).
hypothalamus secrete neurohormones (releasing hormones or release-inhibiting hormones) through
plexus to stimulate or inhibit cells of the adenohypothesis.
in neurohypophysis
vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone, ADH): synthesized by neurosecretory cells of the hypothalamus.
acts on smooth muscles in the walls of peripheral arterioles, causing a rise in blood pressure. when
dehydrated, ADH carried by blood cause the collecting ducts to become highly permeable to water, and
produce concentrated urine. (diabetes insipidus: dilute urine, patient constantly thirsty)
oxytocin: target on myometrium (smooth muscle of the uterus) and myoepithelial cells of the
mammary gland.
in adenohypophysis:
growth hormone (GH): target the liver, increased protein synthesis, mebilization of fatty acids,
decreased utilization of glucose.
protactin (PRL): promotes development of mammary gland and lactation during pregnancy.
stimulates lipid synthesis during premigratory fattening and support brooding behavior in birds. also crop
milk, affect tail regeneration in lizards and growth in amphibians. in teleosts for osmoregulation (for
migratory fish)
thyrotropin (TSH, thyroid-stimulating hormone): stimulate thyroid to synthesize and release of T3
and T4 into blood
gonadotropins (follicle-stimulating hormone, FSH; and luteinizing hormone, LH):
FSH induce development of ovarian follicles, also maintain spermatogenesis in males;
LH to finalize maturation of ovarian follicles. rise in LH promote ovulation and forming corpus
luteum; in males to stimulates interstitial cells of the testis to secrete testosterone.
corticotropin (adrenocorticotropic hormone, ACTH): stimulate cortex of adrenal gland to release
glucocorticoids.
melanophore-stimulating hormone (MSH): in pars intermedia; target on melanophores.
gonad
hormones support secondary sex characteristics. mainly estrogen and progestogens.
pineal gland (epiphysis): dorsal evagination of the midbrain. may involve in the release of ACTH from
adenohypophysis, vasopressin secretion, inhibition of thyroid activity, or immune system
kidney
renin (catalyzes the transformation of angiotensinogen in blood to angiotensin I, and to
angiotensin II, in lungs. Angiotensin II is a vasoconstrictor that increase blood volume by stimulating the
release of aldosterone from adrenal gland, aldosterone cause the distal tubules to reabsort more sodium,
and then increase reabsorption of water
erythropoietin (EOP): reduced oxygen level in blood stimulates the production of EOP.
stimulate red blood cell production.
Endocrine Coordination
1. mammalian reproduction
2. metamorphosis
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Neuroglia are supporting, nourishing, and insulating cells in the nervous system.
Neurons are the cells for transmitting signals.
PNS
somatic vs visceral
afferent vs efferent
sensory vs motor
general vs special
1. Spinal nerves
dorsal root: afferent
ventral root: efferent
origin: neurons in the spinal cord, and from neural crest
each spinal nerve generally innervates a single somite.
0. (terminal):
I. (olfactory)
II. (optic)
III. oculomotor
IV. trochlear
V. trigeminal
VI. abducens
VII. facial
VIII. octaval
IX. glossopharyngeal
X. vagus
XI. spinal accessory
XII. hypoglossal
(lateral line nerves: from medulla)
see tables 16.1 and 16.2 for functions and associated branchial arches in cranial nerves.
Functions of PNS
spinal reflexes
autonomic nervous system: motor neurons from brain and spinal cord; functions see Table 16.4
sympathetic:’thoracolumbar outflow’. preganglionic neuron short, postganglionic fiber long
(acetylcholine)
parasympathetic: cranial nervesVII, IX, and X; and spinal nerves from the sacral region. long
preganglionic neurons, ganglion on visceral organ (cholinergic)
Embryology of CNS
fusion of two neural folds into a hollow tube, with fluid-filled ventricles.
three regions are formed: prosencephalon, mesencephalon, and rhombocephalon
basic structures
outside the brain and spinal cord are meninges (mininx) with three layers, dura mater, arachnoid,
pia mater.
blood vessels in pia mater
cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
choroid plexus: small tufts of blood vessels project into ventricles at specific point, and is the
source of CSF.
Spinal Cord:
gray matter: nervous cell bodies within the core
white matter: mainly fibers surrounding the gray matter
spinal tracts:
ascending tracts: carry ssensory impulse from spinal cord to medulla
fasciculus gracilis, fasciculus cuneatus in the dorsal region (proprioceptors, sensations)
spinocerebellar tracts: carry proprioceptive information to cerebellum
lateroventral spinothalamic tract: to thalamus about sensation of pain and temperature
descending tracts: from brain to spinal Cord
corticospinal tract: from cerebral cortex to motor neurons to the limbs
tectospinal tract: associated with optic and auditory (turn head, to neck)
rubrospinal tract: from midbrain to spinal cord and involved in initiating coordinated
movements
Brain
Prosencephalon:
telencephalon: olfactory bulb, cerebral hemisphere
diencephalon: thalamus, pineal body, hypothalamus, pituitary
Mesencephalon: tectum (sensory) and tecmentum (motor)
Rhombencephalon:
metencephalon: cerebellum, pons,
mylencephalon: medulla oblongata
form and function
hindbrain
medulla oblongata: reflexes mainly
location of nuclei of cranial nerves V to X (in sharks) or VII to XII (mammals)
major routes for descending and ascending neural passways
center for visceral, auditory, and proprioceptive reflexes
pons: on the floor of the hindbrains in amniotes: pontine nuclei, convey information to cerebellar
cortex from cerebral cortex
cerelellum: medial corpus and a paired lateral auricle
maintaining equilibrium; information of senses and motor input are processed here.
refinement of motor functions
midbrain
roof, tectum, receive sensory information, i.e., optic tectum and torus semicularis
floor: tegmentum, initiate motor output through IV and III nerves
forebrain
diencephalon
epithalamus: include pineal gland (biologicl rhythm, skin pigmentation), and habenular
nucleus (function unclear)
hypothalamus: floor of diencephalon
mammillary bodies (part of the Papez circuit involved in reproductive behavior and short-
term memory); responsible for homeostatis mechanisms
ventral thalamus: small area between the midbrain and the rest of the diencephalon
dorsal thalamus: nuclei receiving sensory input (relay center for sensory information going to
cerebrum)
Limbic system: first described by Paul Broca, and later functions described by James Papez
“cerebral cortex immediately encircling the corpus callosum and brain stem” (including the deept
parts of the cerebral cortex (cingulate gyrus) and medial surface of the temporal lobe of the cerebral
cortex).
It includes thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, hipppocampus, cingulate gyrus, and septum; with the
fornex connecting all nuclei of the system.
hypothalamus: contains nuclei affecting heart rate, respiration, the general visceral activity through the
autonomic system
amygdala: active in the production of aggressive behavior and fear
hippocampus (medial pallium): damages causes loss of recent memory
cingulate gyrus: damage results in disruption of the order of compelx behavior
Reticular formation
in medulla and midbrain: diffused neurons and fibers without well-defined tracts or nuclei.
functions
arousal in action vis its awakening or stimulation of the cerebral cortex
filter: selecting information to be relayed to higher centers or down the spinal cord.
association neurons in the spinal cord
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Senseory organs
A sensory organ
nerve fibes; dendrites connected to tissues that amplify the stimulus and translates energy from one kind
(sound) to electrical.
olfactory system develops from olfactory placodes, invaginates to form respiratory epithelium (lateral
wall) and sensory epithelium (center). Neurons grows out from the epithelium and reaches telencephalon
to induce the brain to form olfactory bulb.
Radiation receptors: every species detects a limited range of the full electromagnetic spectrum. (most in
the 380 to 760 nm range)
eye
sclera
uvea:
choroid: pigmented, and vascular (including tapetum lucidum in some nocturnal animals).
ciliary body: smooth muscle around the interior of the eyeball; attached to the lens through suspensory
ligament.
iris: thin continuation of the uvea across the front of the eyeball.
pupil: not a structure!!
retina: three cell layers: photoreceptors (rods, cones); amacrine cells, ganglion cells
three chambers
anterior chamber: between iris and cornea (aqueous humor)
posterior chamber: between iris and lens (aqueous humor)
vitreal chamber: vitreous humor
four regions (from anterior): paraphysis, dorsal sac, parietal organ, and epiphysis.
Infrared receptors:
auditory system (lagena, cochlea): an enlargement of the sacculus and forming cochlea in mammals
organ of Corti: sensory receptors in the lagena.
middle ear cavity, and the eustachian tube form from the first pharyngeal pouch
middle ear ossicles: stapes (columella) from the hyomandibular; in all tetrapods. incus (quadrate) and
malleus (articular) onlyin mammals
inner ear:
vestibular apparatus and the surrounding perilymphatic spaces
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