Extreme leg action and hip-joint dynamics in wild primates
- Published
- Accepted
- Subject Areas
- Anthropology, Ecology, Evolutionary Studies, Geriatrics
- Keywords
- Aging, Exercise, Joints, Longevity, Mobility, Primates
- Copyright
- © 2014 Madden et al.
- Licence
- This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ PrePrints) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited.
- Cite this article
- 2014. Extreme leg action and hip-joint dynamics in wild primates. PeerJ PrePrints 2:e727v1 https://doi.org/10.7287/peerj.preprints.727v1
Abstract
We measure how leg actions of cadaver monkeys are transferred within the hip-joint, and we compare physical femoral mobility of wild and captive monkeys in Panama, Costa Rica, and in zoological parks of California. We acquire leg movement data of howler, capuchin and spider monkeys with random 1 second digital photography during 4 months in Central America, and weekly visits for 2 months in California zoos (n=47 wild primates, 1879 focal events; 24 captive primates, 959 focal events). We employ computer software to objectively assess leg angle in regards to flexion, neutral and extension postures of the femur, relative to the hip socket. We apply leg action data to cadaver pelvises in primate bone collections at University of California, Davis, University of Oregon Osteology Lab, and the Denver Museum. Our study reveals that extreme femoral action translates as high diversity of articular contacts within the primate hip joint, and that captive monkeys in artificial habitats have less femoral movements than wild monkeys, with statistical comparisons being: Full leg flexion P = 0.0012; Flexion P = 0.023; Ambulatory as in walking P = 0.075; Extension P = 0.002; and Full extension with leg in line with body P = 0.00011. We speculate that the primate body is built to move in extreme but non-traumatic, wide-ranging appendicular actions. Such movements may help to simulate peripheral articular cartilage, contributing to the longevity of joints, and perhaps extending the life of primates who move in this manner.
Author Comment
Here is research supporting our poster on monkey movement and osteoarthritis, presented at the Aging Society of America Conference, San Diego, 2014. Primary emphasis of this work is to evaluate how leg movement in primates is associated with ways in which the femoral head and hip socket (acetabulum) make contact, and how movement may be influenced by age and structural obstacles in a primate's habitat. This is a submission to PeerJ for review.
Supplemental Information
Statistics spreadsheet
Preliminary data on La Suerte and Costa Rica data, including trials on regression, etc.