Publication Database

Mammalian maxilloturbinal evolution does not reflect thermal biology (2023)

Art

Zeitschriftenartikel / wissenschaftlicher Beitrag

Autoren

Martinez, Quentin

Okrouhlík, Jan

Šumbera, Radim

Wright, Mark

Araújo, Ricardo

Braude, Stan

Hildebrandt, Thomas B (WE 18)

Holtze, Susanne

Ruf, Irina

Fabre, Pierre-Henri

Quelle

Nature Communications

Bandzählung: 14

Heftzählung: 1

Seiten: Artikel 4425

ISSN: 2041-1723

Sprache

Englisch

Verweise

URL (Volltext): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-39994-1

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39994-1

Pubmed: 37479710

Kontakt

Nutztierklinik

Königsweg 65
14163 Berlin
+49 30 838 62261
klauentierklinik@vetmed.fu-berlin.de

Abstract / Zusammenfassung

The evolution of endothermy in vertebrates is a major research topic in recent decades that has been tackled by a myriad of research disciplines including paleontology, anatomy, physiology, evolutionary and developmental biology. The ability of most mammals to maintain a relatively constant and high body temperature is considered a key adaptation, enabling them to successfully colonize new habitats and harsh environments. It has been proposed that in mammals the anterior nasal cavity, which houses the maxilloturbinal, plays a pivotal role in body temperature maintenance, via a bony system supporting an epithelium involved in heat and moisture conservation. The presence and the relative size of the maxilloturbinal has been proposed to reflect the endothermic conditions and basal metabolic rate in extinct vertebrates. We show that there is no evidence to relate the origin of endothermy and the development of some turbinal bones by using a comprehensive dataset of µCT-derived maxilloturbinals spanning most mammalian orders. Indeed, we demonstrate that neither corrected basal metabolic rate nor body temperature significantly correlate with the relative surface area of the maxilloturbinal. Instead, we identify important variations in the relative surface area, morpho-anatomy, and complexity of the maxilloturbinal across the mammalian phylogeny and species ecology.