Functional Morphology and Kinematics of the Spine in Prosimians

在灵长类动物中，步行和运动是影响肌肉骨骼系统适应和进化的两个最重要因素。 脊柱尤其如此，它在姿势和运动行为中起着关键的功能作用。 本研究的目的是探讨背部功能和脊椎结构之间的关系，在一个广泛的样本原猴纲灵长类动物。 原猴在体型、解剖学、姿势和运动方面的多样性使它们成为研究脊椎形状和功能的极好的“自然实验”。 该方法将采用两种方法解决形式和功能问题：1）椎骨解剖结构的定量分析，2）使用无创视频分析对脊柱运动进行定量分析。 这项研究的结果将直接关系到化石灵长类动物运动和姿势适应的重建，从而有助于更深入地了解灵长类动物的进化，包括导致人类两足行走的直立姿势的适应。

Posture and locomotion are two of the most important influences on the adaptation and evolution of the musculoskeletal system in primates. This is especially true of the spine, which plays a key functional role in both posture and locomotor behavior. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between back function and vertebral structure in a broad sample of prosimian primates. Prosimian diversity in body size, anatomy, posture, and locomotion makes them an excellent `natural experiment` with which to investigate vertebral form and function. The methodology will address form as well as function by employing two approaches: 1) quantitative analysis of vertebral anatomical structure, and 2) quantitative analysis of spinal movements using noninvasive video analysis. The results of this study will be directly relevant to reconstructions of locomotor and postural adaptations in fossil primates, thereby contributing to a more thorough understanding of primate evolution, including the adaptations to upright posture that led to human bipedalism.