Evolution of the Dorsal Muscles of the Spine in Light of Their Adaptation to Gravity Effects
Evolution of the Dorsal Muscles of the Spine in Light of Their Adaptation to Gravity Effects
The function and morphology of the neck muscles are the outcome of a long evolutionary process that was started approximately 500 million years ago with jawless-headed, bilaterally symmetric and aquatic animals. Vertebrates are distinct from other animals by their possession of an internal, flexible axial structure and a single nerve cord running dorsally along its axial supporting structure. The major evolutionary trends of vertebrate morphology were correlated with the basic ecologic changes that vertebrates experienced. As living organisms are biologic entities comprised of integrated morphofunctional systems interacting with the environment, adaptation needs correlated with changes of all parts. However, it appears that the changing environment restrictions influenced the respiratory and locomotor systems.
Keywords: neck muscles, aquatic animals, vertebrates, axial structure, nerve cord
Oxford Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs , and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us .
