Acta Anatomica Sinica ›› 2018, Vol. 49 ›› Issue (5): 666-670.doi: 10.16098/j.issn.0529-1356.2018.05.018

• Anthropology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Comparison of femoral neck cross-sectional morphology between gorilla and human

DU Bao-pu 1, 2 ZHANG Li-zhao1 ZHAO Ling-xia 1*   

  1. 1. Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China;  2. College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2017-10-17 Revised:2017-12-06 Online:2018-10-06 Published:2018-10-06
  • Contact: ZHAO Ling-xia E-mail:dubaopu1989@163.com

Abstract:

Objective To analyze the mechanical effect of different modes of locomotion on the whole femoral neck of the gorilla and human. Methods The femoral specimens of the gorilla(n=8)and human(n=18)were scanned by the computed tomography. We obtained five femoral neck slices from the base of the femoral head to the trochanteric line, and measured the crosssectional geometric properties. Results Cross-sectional geometric properties [eg, Ix/Iy, Zx/Zy and standardized cortical area(CA)] of the femoral neck were increasing from the proximal to distal portion, besides the standardized polar section modulus(Zp) of the human. The values of standardized CA and Zp were lower in the gorilla than the human. Conclusion The similarity and difference of cross-sectional geometric properties between the gorilla and human femoral neck, respectively, correspond to its structure character which acts as a cantilevered beam and the different load conditions during bipedal andquadrupedalwalking. Additionally, the polar section modulus of human mid-neck is significantly lower than other cross-sections, making it a fracture-prone region.

Key words: Femoral neck, Locomotor;Cross-sectional geometry, CT scan, Gorilla, Extant hominoid