A comparative study of the trabecular bony architecture of the talus in humans, non-human primates, and Australopithecus

DeSilva, Jeremy M.; Devlin, Maureen J.

doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2012.06.006

Cited by 61 publications

(75 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Comparative studies characterizing the microarchitecture of trabecular bone have consistently found that humans have a lower bone volume fraction (BV/TV) than chimpanzees. Whether in the humeral head (Shaw and Ryan, 2012;Scherf et al, 2013), first metacarpal head (Lazenby et al, 2011), thoracic vertebra (Cotter et al, 2011), femoral head (Shaw and Ryan, 2012), calcaneal body (Maga et al, 2006), talar body (DeSilva and Devlin, 2012), or medial metatarsal heads (Griffin et al, 2010), humans consistently possess lower BV/TV than chimpanzees. Under the Achilles tendon insertion, however, we found a trend towards slightly higher BV/TV in humans than in chimpanzees, though this trend was not statistically significant.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Alternatively, if our model for how the Achilles tendon loads calcaneal trabecular bone is correct, then our findings contradict some predictions of Wolff's "Law." Although many have found evidence for trabecular bone adaptation to changes in diet and hormones (Hodgkinson et al, 1978;Reeve et al, 1980;Devlin et al, 2010), and loading (Pontzer et al, 2006;Barak et al, 2011), others (Fajardo et al, 2007;Ryan and Walker, 2010;Shaw and Ryan, 2012;DeSilva and Devlin, 2012) have found the relationship between trabecular bone and inferred mechanical loading in primates to be more complicated. Although trabecular bone clearly is responsive to a variety of factors, Achilles tendon length may not affect trabecular properties as we had predicted.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…An adaptive iterative thresholding (AIT) program was used to determine the ideal threshold for each specimen following the methodology of previous studies (Ridler and Calvard, 1978;Trussel, 1979;Ryan and Ketcham, 2002;Maga et al, 2006;Fajardo et al, 2007;DeSilva and Devlin, 2012). In the event that the two taxa being compared did not have statistically different thresholds, they were evaluated at one fixed threshold, which was the average of the two taxa.…”

Section: Thresholds and Evaluationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Effect of the Achilles Tendon on Trabecular Structure in the Primate Calcaneus

Kuo

DeSilva

Devlin

et al. 2013

The Anatomical Record

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Humans possess the longest Achilles tendon relative to total muscle length of any primate, an anatomy that is beneficial for bipedal locomotion. Reconstructing the evolutionary history of the Achilles tendon has been challenging, in part because soft tissue does not fossilize. The only skeletal evidence for Achilles tendon anatomy in extinct taxa is the insertion site on the calcaneal tuber, which is rarely preserved in the fossil record and, when present, is equivocal for reconstructing tendon morphology. In this study, we used high-resolution three-dimensional microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) to quantify the microstructure of the trabecular bone underlying the Achilles tendon insertion site in baboons, gibbons, chimpanzees, and humans to test the hypothesis that trabecular orientation differs among primates with different tendon morphologies. Surprisingly, despite their very different Achilles tendon lengths, we were unable to find differences between the trabecular properties of chimpanzee and human calcanei in this specific region. There were regional differences within the calcaneus in the degree of anisotropy (DA) in both chimpanzees and humans, though the patterns were similar between the two species (higher DA inferiorly in the calcaneal tuber). Our results suggest that while trabecular bone within the calcaneus varies, it does not respond to the variation of Achilles tendon morphology across taxa in the way we hypothesized. These results imply that internal bone architecture may not be informative for reconstructing Achilles tendon anatomy in early hominins. Anat Rec, 296:1509Rec, 296: -1517Rec, 296: , 2013. V C 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Thresholds and Evaluationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Effect of the Achilles Tendon on Trabecular Structure in the Primate Calcaneus

Kuo

DeSilva

Devlin

et al. 2013

The Anatomical Record

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“…The subsidence of the talar component in total ankle arthroplasty is an important reason for implant failures in older patients, which leaves open the question as to whether some age-related changes do occur. Despite previous descriptions of the talar microarchitecture, these studies were either just descriptive in nature [4,21,34] or focused on the evaluation of the talar body only [18,26,39] without consideration of age-or sex-related differences. In this study, we were able to show an age-related talar bone loss, which predominantly affects the talar body rather than the neck or head, regardless of sex.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is noteworthy that the anatomical partner of the talus for conferring the contact energy of the foot to the ground, the calcaneus, displays age-related changes in its microarchitecture similar to the proximal humerus or the distal radius [7,8,37]. Although there have been a number of histological analyses of talar microarchitecture, the effects of age and sex on talar microarchitecture changes remain poorly characterized [4,18,21,34,39].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bone Microarchitecture of the Talus Changes With Aging

Krause

Rupprecht

Mumme

et al. 2013

Clinical Orthopaedics &Amp; Related Research

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Background Fractures of the talus in the elderly are rare and usually result from high-impact injuries, suggesting only minor age-related bone structure changes. However, total ankle replacement failures with age often result from talar subsidence, suggesting age-related bone loss in the talus. Despite a number of histological analyses of talar microarchitecture, the effects of age and sex on talar microarchitecture changes remain poorly defined.Questions/purposes The aim of this study was to analyze changes or differences in the trabecular microarchitecture of the talus with regard to (1) age and (2) sex. Methods Sixty human tali were harvested from 30 patients at autopsy of three different age groups (20-40, 41-60, 61-80 years). The specimens were analyzed by radiography, micro-CT, and histological analysis. Given that there was no difference between the left and right talus, static histomorphometric parameters were assessed in three regions of interest of the right talus only (body, neck, head; n = 30). Results The talar body, neck, and head were affected differently by age-related changes. The greatest loss of bone volume with age was seen in the talar body (estimate: À0.239; 95% confidence interval [CI], À0.365 to À0.114; p \ 0.001). In the talar neck (estimate: À0.165; 95% CI, À0.307 to À0.023; p = 0.025), bone loss was only moderate and primarily was the result of reduction in trabecular thickness (estimate: À1.288; 95% CI, À2.449 to À0.127; p = 0.031) instead of number (estimate: À0.001; 95% CI, À0.005 to À0.003; p = 0.593). Bone structure changes were independent of sex. Conclusions Age-related bone structure changes predominantly occur in the talar body, which poses a potential risk factor for total ankle replacement loosening. The moderate changes in the talar neck might explain the persistent low incidence of talar neck fractures with age.

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Using point clouds to investigate the relationship between trabecular bone phenotype and behavior: An example utilizing the human calcaneus

DeMars

Stephens

Saers

et al. 2020

American J Hum Biol

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Objectives The objective of this study is to demonstrate a new method for analyzing trabecular bone volume fraction and degree of anisotropy in three dimensions. Methods We use a combination of automatic mesh registration, point‐cloud correspondence registration, and P‐value corrected univariate statistical tests to compare bone volume fraction and degree of anisotropy on a point by point basis across the entire calcaneus of two human groups with different subsistence strategies. Results We found that the patterns of high and low bone volume fraction and degree of anisotropy distribution between the Black Earth (hunter‐gatherers) and Norris Farms (mixed‐strategy agriculturalists) are very similar, but differ in magnitude. The hunter‐gatherers exhibit higher levels of bone volume fraction and less anisotropic trabecular bone organization. Additionally, patterns of bone volume fraction and degree of anisotropy in the calcaneus correspond well with biomechanical expectations of relative forces experienced during walking and running. Conclusions We conclude that comparing site‐specific, localized differences in trabecular bone variables such as bone volume fraction and degree of anisotropy in three‐dimensions is a powerful analytical tool. This method makes it possible to determine where similarities and differences between groups are located within the whole skeletal element of interest. The visualization of multiple variables also provides a way for researchers to see how the trabecular bone variables interact within the morphology, and allows for a more nuanced understanding of how they relate to one another and the broader mechanical environment.

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A comparative study of the trabecular bony architecture of the talus in humans, non-human primates, and Australopithecus

Cited by 61 publications

References 55 publications

The Effect of the Achilles Tendon on Trabecular Structure in the Primate Calcaneus

The Effect of the Achilles Tendon on Trabecular Structure in the Primate Calcaneus

Bone Microarchitecture of the Talus Changes With Aging

Using point clouds to investigate the relationship between trabecular bone phenotype and behavior: An example utilizing the human calcaneus

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