The Crocodylian proatlas functions to redistribute venous blood and cerebrospinal fluid
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Journal of Morphology
Abstract
Abstract
The proatlas, a bone located between the skull and the neural spines of the cervical vertebrae, is best known from reptiles. Most previous studies of the proatlas have centered on its developmental, debating the relationship between the proatlas and the cervical neural arches. The present study was intended as a description of the proatlas in the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) and an experimental test of its hypothesized role in venous blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) distribution. In Alligator, the proatlas is chevron-shaped; ventrally it has a loose connection to the dorsal surface of the first cervical vertebrae, dorsally it has a robust elastic tissue tether on the otoccipital and supraoccipital bones. The ventral surface of the proatlas parallels the dorsal margin of the foramen magnum and rests on the dorsal surface of the spinal venous sinus. Experimental manipulation of the proatlas demonstrated that displacement of the proatlas causes pressure changes in both the spinal venous sinus and the enclosed spinal CSF. The results of this study represent the first demonstration of an explicit functional role for the proatlas, the circulation of fluids between the cranial and spinal compartments of the central nervous system.
DOI
10.1002/jmor.21683.
Publication Date
3-2024
Recommended Citation
Swords, A., Cramberg, M., Parker, S., Scott, A., Sopko, S., Taylor, E., & Young, B. A. (2024). The Crocodylian proatlas functions to redistribute venous blood and cerebrospinal fluid. Journal of morphology, 285(3), e21683.
Comments
Swords, A., Cramberg, M., Parker, S., Scott, A., Sopko, S., Taylor, E., & Young, B. A. (2024). The Crocodylian proatlas functions to redistribute venous blood and cerebrospinal fluid. Journal of morphology, 285(3), e21683.
https://doi.org/10.1002/jmor.21683
Accepted Version
12 Month embargo, Publisher source must be acknowledged with citation, Must link to publisher version with set statement (see policy) and DOI