Meeting Abstract

P2.117  Saturday, Jan. 5  Comparative trabecular bone morphology in two locomotor-diverse primates SU, A.; Cleveland State University, OH a.su@csuohio.edu

The morphology of mammalian trabecular bone has been shown in controlled experiments to reflect habitual locomotor loads. It is thus widely hypothesized that trabeculae from wild animals with different observed locomotor repertoires would have different morphologies. In this study of the primate astragalus, high resolution micro-computed tomography images were analyzed and the distribution of trabecular structure was compared between two species with clearly different locomotor modes: Indri indri, a vertical clinger and powerful leaper, and Chlorocebus aethiops, a digitigrade/semiplantigrade terrestrial quadruped. It was predicted that Indri would show a trabecular bone distribution pattern related to habitually dorsiflexed talocrural joints and that that of Chlorocebus would reflect more varied joint loading postures. The results showed that overall Indri had thinner, more numerous trabeculae versus thicker, fewer trabeculae in Chlorocebus. In pattern of distribution, Indri was found to have significantly thicker trabeculae (Tb.Th) in the anterior regions of the astragalus versus the posterior regions as predicted. However, no differences were found among regions in Indri in the other standard measures of morphology: overall bone volume (BV/TV), number of trabeculae (Tb.N), or degree of anisotropy (DA). Among regions of the Chlorocebus astragalus no significant differences were found in Tb.Th, BV/TV, Tb.N, or DA. Surprisingly few differences were found between the two species, underscoring the complex structure-function relationship of trabecular bone.