Topographical Anatomy of the Adductor Muscle Group in the Albino Rat (Rattus norvegicus).

In comparative anatomy, the adductor muscles are said to be quite variable and to often cause difficulty in separation. The arrangement of these muscles and the possible occurrence of the adductor minimus and obturator intermedius muscles in the albino rat has not been investigated. The aim of this study was to accurately describe the adductor muscles in the albino rat (Rattus norvegicus). We hypothesized that all adductor muscles are constantly present and can be separated in a constant manner, and that the adductor minimus and obturator intermedius muscles are constant structures. Both pelvic limbs of 30 formalin-embalmed male albino rats were carefully dissected. The identification of the individual muscles was made based on their position in relation to the two branches of the obturator nerve and by comparing our results with previous findings in other species including humans. All examined rats had two gracilis muscles. The adductor longus muscle was the most superficial and smallest individual. The adductor brevis split into two parts of insertion-the femoral and genicular parts. The adductor magnus and minimus muscles could be separated constantly. The obturator intermedius muscle was a constant structure next to the obturator externus muscle. The adductor muscles of the albino rat were constantly separable and could be clearly assigned to their names. Further research is needed to investigate these muscles, especially the obturator intermedius muscle, in other species including humans.

Polypterus and the evolution of fish pectoral musculature.

Polypterus, a member of the most primitive living group of ray-finned fishes, has demonstrated the ability to perform fin-assisted terrestrial locomotion, a behavior that indicates a complex pectoral musculoskeletal system. Review of the literature reveals that many aspects of the pectoral muscular anatomy of Polypterus are still unclear, with a number of conflicting descriptions. We provide a new interpretation of the pectoral musculature using soft tissue-enhanced microCT scanning and gross anatomical dissection. The results demonstrate a complex musculature, with six independent muscles crossing the glenoid-fin joint. Comparisons with other bony-fish (Osteichthyes), including both ray-finned (Actinopterygii) and lobed-fin (Sarcopterygii) fish, indicate the presence of novel muscles within Polypterus: coracometapterygialis I+II and the zonopropterygialis medialis. Examination of these muscular additions in the context of osteichthyan phylogeny indicates that this represents a previously unrecognized event in the evolution of pectoral musculature in Osteichthyes. Despite its phylogenetic position as a basal actinopterygian, the musculature of Polypterus has more similarities both anatomically and functionally with that of sarcopterygians. This anatomy, along with other features of Polypterus anatomy such as lobed fins, ventral paired lungs, and a large spiracle, may make it a good model for inferences of stem tetrapod locomotion.

Highly extensible skeletal muscle in snakes.

Many snakes swallow large prey whole, and this process requires large displacements of the unfused tips of the mandibles and passive stretching of the soft tissues connecting them. Under these conditions, the intermandibular muscles are highly stretched but subsequently recover normal function. In the highly stretched condition we observed in snakes, sarcomere length (SL) increased 210% its resting value (SL0), and actin and myosin filaments no longer overlapped. Myofibrils fell out of register and triad alignment was disrupted. Following passive recovery, SLs returned to 82% SL0, creating a region of double-overlapping actin filaments. Recovery required recoil of intracellular titin filaments, elastic cytoskeletal components for realigning myofibrils, and muscle activation. Stretch of whole muscles exceeded that of sarcomeres as a result of extension of folded terminal tendon fibrils, stretching of extracellular elastin and independent slippage of muscle fibers. Snake intermandibular muscles thus provide a unique model of how basic components of vertebrate skeletal muscle can be modified to permit extreme extensibility.