Browse Items (31 total)

Locomotor researchers have long known that adult primates employ a unique footfall sequence during walking. Most mammals use lateral sequence (LS) gaits, in which hind foot touchdowns are followed by ipsilateral forefoot touchdowns. In contrast, most…

Despite the importance that concepts of arboreal stability have in theories of primate locomotor evolution, we currently lack measures of balance performance during primate locomotion. We provide the first quantitative data on locomotor stability in…

The importance of locomotion to evolutionary fitness has led to extensive study of primate locomotor behavior, morphology and ecology. Most previous research has focused on adult primates, but in the last few decades, increased attention to locomotor…

OBJECTIVES: Laboratory studies have yielded important insights into primate locomotor mechanics. Nevertheless, laboratory studies fail to capture the range of ecological and structural variation encountered by free-ranging primates. We present…

Functional studies of skeletal anatomy are predicated on the fundamental assumption that form will follow function. For instance, previous studies have shown that the femora of specialized leaping primates are more robust than those of more…

What happens to early acquired but later abandoned motor skills? To investigate effects of disuse on early-developing motor skills, we examined crawling in two groups of habitual crawlers (34 6-12-month-old infants and five adults with Uner Tan…

The need to maintain stability on narrow branches is often presented as a major selective force shaping primate morphology, with adaptations to facilitate grasping receiving particular attention. The functional importance of a long and mobile tail…

As the smallest living primate, the mouse lemur is a suitable model for reconstructing the locomotor mechanisms by which primate ancestors might have responded to the challenges of an arboreal environment. In this study, we tested the effects of…

The grasping capabilities and gait kinematics characteristic of primates are often argued to be adaptations for safely moving on small terminal branches. The goal of this study was to identify whether Eastern gray squirrels (Sciurus…

The acoustic startle reflex (ASR) is subject to substantial variability. This inherent variability consequently shapes the conclusions drawn from gap-induced prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle reflex (GPIAS) assessments. Recent studies have…

The distribution of peak vertical forces between the forelimbs and the hind limbs is one of the key traits distinguishing primate quadrupedal locomotion from that of other mammals. Whereas most mammals generate greater peak vertical forelimb forces,…

Recently proposed ancestral locomotor and morphological 'stages' leading to the evolution of primates have emphasized small body size, and a transition from a clawed non-grasping stage, to a clawed, grasping stage with clawless opposable hallux, to a…

Locomotion is precarious in an arboreal habitat, where supports can vary in both diameter and level of compliance. Several previous studies have evaluated the influence of substrate diameter on the locomotor performance of arboreal quadrupeds. The…

Since 2005, an extensive literature documents individuals from several families afflicted with "Uner Tan Syndrome (UTS)," a condition that in its most extreme form is characterized by cerebellar hypoplasia, loss of balance and coordination, impaired…

Axonal transport deficits have been reported as an early pathology in several neurodegenerative disorders, including glaucoma. However, the progression and mechanisms of these deficits are poorly understood. Previous work suggests that anterograde…

Parkinson's disease (PD) is an age-associated neurodegenerative disorder hallmarked by a loss of mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons. Accurate recapitulation of the PD movement phenotype in animal models of the disease is critical for understanding…

Given that most species of primates are predominantly arboreal, maintaining the ability to move among branches of varying sizes has presumably been a common selective force in primate evolution. However, empirical evaluations of the relationships…

Juvenile animals must survive in the same environment as adults despite smaller sizes, immature musculoskeletal tissues, general ecological naïveté and other limits of performance. Developmental changes in muscle leverage could constitute one…

Objectives: Primate diagonal sequence (DS) gaits are often argued to be an adaptation for moving and foraging in the fine‐branch niche; however, existing data have come predominantly from laboratory studies that are limited in taxonomic breadth and…

Wild primates encounter complex matrices of substrates that differ in size, orientation, height, and compliance, and often move on multiple, discontinuous substrates within a single bout of locomotion. Our current understanding of primate gait is…

Age-related hearing loss, one of the most frequently diagnosed disabilities in industrialized countries, may result from declining levels of GABA in the aging inferior colliculus (IC). However, the mechanisms of aging and subsequent disruptions of…

Fine-branch models have long played a central role in primate evolutionary research. Nevertheless, recent studies of positional behavior in nonprimate arboreal mammals have challenged the idea that synapomorphic primate features, such as grasping…

Arboreal environments present considerable biomechanical challenges for animals moving and foraging among substrates varying in diameter, orientation, and compliance. Most studies of quadrupedal gait kinematics in primates and other arboreal mammals…
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