1
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Bertozzo F, Stein K, Varotto E, Galassi FM, Ruffell A, Murphy E. Histological analysis and etiology of a pathological iguanodontian femur from England. J Anat 2024; 245:490-500. [PMID: 38726991 PMCID: PMC11306762 DOI: 10.1111/joa.14053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2023] [Revised: 04/15/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 08/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Derived ornithopods, such as hadrosaurids, show a high occurrence of fossilized lesions and diseases. However, paleopathologies in iguanodontians seem to be less common, considering the rich fossil record of these taxa in Europe, in particular in Belgium, Britain and Spain. Here, we describe an iguanodontian femur discovered in England that exhibits a large overgrowth of its lateral aspect, not previously recognized in any other similar remains. The specimen was scanned with micro-computed tomography (microCT) and later sectioned in three sites of the overgrowth for histological analysis. The femur belongs to an early adult Iguanodontia indet., based on the presence of a woven parallel fibered complex in the outer cortex and three to four lines of arrested growth. Internal analysis of the dome-like overgrowth suggests it can be diagnosed as a fracture callus. The injury might have negatively impacted upon the animal's locomotion as the trauma had occurred in the region above the knee, a crucial spot for hindlimb musculature. Finally, a cancellous medullary bone-like tissue was recognized in the medullary cavity next to the pathological overgrowth. An attempt was made to determine the precise nature of this tissue, as medullary bone is linked with the ovulation period in (avian) dinosaurs, whereas other types of endosteal, medullary bone-like tissue have previously been recognized in pathological bones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filippo Bertozzo
- Operational Directorate Earth and History of Life, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels, Belgium
- Sociedade de Historia Natural, Torres Vedras, Portugal
| | - Koen Stein
- Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Elena Varotto
- Archaeology, College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
- FAPAB Research Center, Avola (SR), Sicily, Italy
| | - Francesco M Galassi
- Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland
| | - Alastair Ruffell
- School of Natural and Built Environment, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Eileen Murphy
- School of Natural and Built Environment, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
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2
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Schaeffer J, Wolff E, Witzmann F, Ferreira GS, Schoch RR, Mujal E. Paleobiological implications of chevron pathology in the sauropodomorph Plateosaurus trossingensis from the Upper Triassic of SW Germany. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0306819. [PMID: 39083447 PMCID: PMC11290664 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0306819] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 08/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Paleopathology, the study of diseases and injuries from the fossil record, allows for a unique view into the life of prehistoric animals. Pathologies have nowadays been described in nearly all groups of fossil vertebrates, especially dinosaurs. Despite the large number of skeletons, pathologies had never been reported in the sauropodomorph Plateosaurus trossingensis. Here we describe the first pathologies of Plateosaurus using two individuals with pathologies in the chevrons of the tail, from the Upper Triassic of Trossingen, SW Germany. The two specimens each contain three consecutive pathological chevrons. Our results show that the pathologies were caused by external trauma in one individual and potentially tendinous trauma in the other. Healing of the lesions allowed survival of both animals. Using additional pathological specimens found in other collections and from multiple localities, we observe that 14.8% of all individuals of Plateosaurus contain pathologies within their chevrons, suggesting it was a vulnerable bone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joep Schaeffer
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
- Institut für Biologie, Universität Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Ewan Wolff
- Honors College, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, United States of America
| | - Florian Witzmann
- Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Germany
| | - Gabriel S. Ferreira
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment (HEP) at the University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Geosciences, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Rainer R. Schoch
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
- Institut für Biologie, Universität Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Eudald Mujal
- Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
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3
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Baiano MA, Cerda IA, Bertozzo F, Pol D. New information on paleopathologies in non-avian theropod dinosaurs: a case study on South American abelisaurids. BMC Ecol Evol 2024; 24:6. [PMID: 38291378 PMCID: PMC10829224 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-023-02187-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 12/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Studies on pathological fossil bones have allowed improving the knowledge of physiology and ecology, and consequently the life history of extinct organisms. Among extinct vertebrates, non-avian dinosaurs have drawn attention in terms of pathological evidence, since a wide array of fossilized lesions and diseases were noticed in these ancient organisms. Here, we evaluate the pathological conditions observed in individuals of different brachyrostran (Theropoda, Abelisauridae) taxa, including Aucasaurus garridoi, Elemgasem nubilus, and Quilmesaurus curriei. For this, we use multiple methodological approaches such as histology and computed tomography, in addition to the macroscopic evaluation. The holotype of Aucasaurus shows several pathognomonic traits of a failure of the vertebral segmentation during development, causing the presence of two fused caudal vertebrae. The occurrence of this condition in Aucasaurus is the first case to be documented so far in non-tetanuran theropods. Regarding the holotype of Elemgasem, the histology of two fused vertebrae shows an intervertebral space between the centra, thus the fusion is limited to the distal rim of the articular surfaces. This pathology is here considered as spondyloarthropathy, the first evidence for a non-tetanuran theropod. The microstructural arrangement of the right tibia of Quilmesaurus shows a marked variation in a portion of the outer cortex, probably due to the presence of the radial fibrolamellar bone tissue. Although similar bone tissue is present in other extinct vertebrates and the cause of its formation is still debated, it could be a response to some kind of pathology. Among non-avian theropods, traumatic injuries are better represented than other maladies (e.g., infection, congenital or metabolic diseases, etc.). These pathologies are recovered mainly among large-sized theropods such as Abelisauridae, Allosauridae, Carcharodontosauridae, and Tyrannosauridae, and distributed principally among axial elements. Statistical tests on the distribution of injuries in these theropod clades show a strong association between taxa-pathologies, body regions-pathologies, and taxa-body regions, suggesting different life styles and behaviours may underlie the frequency of different injuries among theropod taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mattia A Baiano
- School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China.
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, 1425, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Area Laboratorio e Investigación, Museo Municipal 'Ernesto Bachmann', Dr Natali S/N, 8311, Villa El Chocon, Neuquén, Argentina.
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro (UNRN), Isidro Lobo 516, 8332, General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina.
| | - Ignacio A Cerda
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, 1425, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro (UNRN), Isidro Lobo 516, 8332, General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina
- Instituto de Investigacion en Paleobiología y Geología (IIPG), Av. Roca 1242, 8332, General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina
- Museo Carlos Ameghino, Belgrano 1700 (Paraje Pichi Ruca, Predio Marabunta), 8324, Cipolletti, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - Filippo Bertozzo
- Operational Directorate Earth and History of Life, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Diego Pol
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, 1425, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio, Av. Fontana 140, 9100, Trelew, Chubut, Argentina
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4
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Anné J, Whitney M, Brocklehurst R, Donnelly K, Rothschild B. Unusual lesions seen in the caudals of the hadrosaur, Edmontosaurus annectens. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2023; 306:594-606. [PMID: 36089756 DOI: 10.1002/ar.25078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2022] [Revised: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The study of pathologies in the fossil record allows for unique insights into the physiology, immunology, biomechanics, and daily life history of extinct organisms. This is especially important in organisms that have body structures dissimilar to those of extant organisms as well as transitional groups whose extant relatives may have very dissimilar physiologies. Comparisons between modern groups and their fossil ancestors are further complicated by the fact that fossil groups may have experienced unique biomechanical stresses as well as possessing a mixture of anatomical features seen in their related extant groups. In this study, we present lesions in the caudal vertebrae of the hadrosaur, Edmontosaurus annectens from the Ruth Mason Dinosaur Quarry of South Dakota, which exhibit unique morphologies. X-ray microtomography was performed on the most extreme example of this morphology to allow for both a detailed and more accurate diagnosis of the pathologic condition as well as virtual conservation of the specimen. Based on the location, the overall morphology of the lesion, and the relative "normal" appearance of the internal microstructure, the most probable cause is postulated as long-term biomechanical stresses exerted on this section of the tail by both lateral and dorsoventral motions of the tail. This deduction was based on a process of elimination for a variety of known osteological conditions; however, future work is needed to determine the nature of the stresses and why this condition has not been recorded in more hadrosaurian specimens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Anné
- The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Megan Whitney
- Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Robert Brocklehurst
- Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Kevin Donnelly
- Department of Toxicology/Pathology, Eli Lilly and Co., Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Bruce Rothschild
- Laboratory of Biological Anthropology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
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Chinzorig T, Beguesse KA, Canoville A, Phillips G, Zanno LE. Chronic fracture and osteomyelitis in a large-bodied ornithomimosaur with implications for the identification of unusual endosteal bone in the fossil record. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2022. [PMID: 36193654 DOI: 10.1002/ar.25069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Paleopathological diagnoses provide key information on the macroevolutionary origin of disease as well as behavioral and physiological inferences that are inaccessible via direct observation of extinct organisms. Here we describe the external gross morphology and internal architecture of a pathologic right second metatarsal (MMNS VP-6332) of a large-bodied ornithomimid (~432 kg) from the Santonian (Upper Cretaceous) Eutaw Formation in Mississippi, using a combination of X-ray computed microtomography (microCT) and petrographic histological analyses. X-ray microCT imaging and histopathologic features are consistent with multiple complete, oblique to comminuted, minimally displaced mid-diaphyseal cortical fractures that produce a "butterfly" fragment fracture pattern, and secondary osteomyelitis with a bone fistula formation. We interpret this as evidence of blunt force trauma to the foot that could have resulted from intra- or interspecific competition or predator-prey interaction, and probably impaired the function of the metatarsal as a weight-bearing element until the animal's death. Of particular interest is the apparent decoupling of endosteal and periosteal pathological bone deposition in MMNS VP-6332, which produces transverse sections exhibiting homogenously thick endosteal pathological bone in the absence of localized periosteal reactive bone. These distribution and depositional patterns are used as criteria for ruling out a pathological origin in favor of a reproductive one for unusual endosteal bone in fossil specimens. On the basis of MMNS VP-6332, we suggest caution in their use to substantiate a medullary bone identification in extinct archosaurians.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsogtbaatar Chinzorig
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.,Paleontology Research Laboratory, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
| | - Kyla A Beguesse
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.,Paleontology Research Laboratory, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
| | - Aurore Canoville
- Stiftung Schloss Friedenstein, Gotha & Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany
| | - George Phillips
- Conservation & Biodiversity Section, Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, Jackson, Mississippi, USA
| | - Lindsay E Zanno
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.,Paleontology Research Laboratory, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
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6
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The first occurrence of an avian-style respiratory infection in a non-avian dinosaur. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1954. [PMID: 35145134 PMCID: PMC8831536 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05761-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Other than repaired fractures, osteoarthritis, and periosteal reaction, the vertebrate fossil record has limited evidence of non-osseous diseases. This difficulty in paleontological diagnoses stems from (1) the inability to conduct medical testing, (2) soft-tissue pathologic structures are less likely to be preserved, and (3) many osseous lesions are not diagnostically specific. However, here reported for the first time is an avian-style respiratory disorder in a non-avian dinosaur. This sauropod presents irregular bony pathologic structures stemming from the pneumatic features in the cervical vertebrae. As sauropods show well-understood osteological correlates indicating that respiratory tissues were incorporated into the post-cranial skeleton, and thus likely had an ‘avian-style’ form of respiration, it is most parsimonious to identify these pathologic structures as stemming from a respiratory infection. Although several extant avian infections produce comparable symptoms, the most parsimonious is airsacculitis with associated osteomyelitis. From actinobacterial to fungal in origin, airsacculitis is an extremely prevalent respiratory disorder in birds today. While we cannot pinpoint the specific infectious agent that caused the airsacculitis, this diagnosis establishes the first fossil record of this disease. Additionally, it allows us increased insight into the medical disorders of dinosaurs from a phylogenetic perspective and understanding what maladies plagued the “fearfully great lizards”.
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7
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Bertozzo F, Manucci F, Dempsey M, Tanke DH, Evans DC, Ruffell A, Murphy E. Description and etiology of paleopathological lesions in the type specimen of Parasaurolophus walkeri (Dinosauria: Hadrosauridae), with proposed reconstructions of the nuchal ligament. J Anat 2020; 238:1055-1069. [PMID: 33289113 PMCID: PMC8053592 DOI: 10.1111/joa.13363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2020] [Revised: 10/23/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Paleopathology, or the study of ancient injuries and diseases, can enable the ecology and life history of extinct taxa to be deciphered. Large-bodied ornithopods are the dinosaurs with the highest frequencies of paleopathology reported to-date. Among these, the crested hadrosaurid Parasaurolophus walkeri is one of the most famous, largely due to its dramatic elongated and tubular nasal crest. The holotype of Parasaurolophus walkeri at the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada, displays several paleopathologies that have not been discussed in detail previously: a dental lesion in the left maxilla, perhaps related to periodontal disease; callus formation associated with fractures in three dorsal ribs; a discoidal overgrowth above dorsal neural spines six and seven; a cranially oriented spine in dorsal seven, that merges distally with spine six; a V-shaped gap between dorsal spines seven and eight; and a ventral projection of the pubic process of the ilium which covers, and is fused with, the lateral side of the iliac process of the pubis. These lesions suggest that the animal suffered from one or more traumatic events, with the main one causing a suite of injuries to the anterior aspect of the thorax. The presence of several lesions in a single individual is a rare observation and, in comparison with a substantial database of hadrosaur paleopathological lesions, has the potential to reveal new information about the biology and behavior of these ornithopods. The precise etiology of the iliac abnormality is still unclear, although it is thought to have been an indirect consequence of the anterior trauma. The discoidal overgrowth above the two neural spines also seems to be secondary to the severe trauma inflicted on the ribs and dorsal spines, and probably represents post-traumatic ossification of the base of the nuchal ligament. The existence of this structure has previously been considered in hadrosaurs and dinosaurs more generally through comparison of origin and insertion sites in modern diapsids (Rhea americana, Alligator mississippiensis, Iguana iguana), but its presence, structure, and origin-attachment sites are still debated. The V-shaped gap is hypothesized as representing the point between the stresses of the nuchal ligament, pulling the anterior neural spines forward, and the ossified tendons pulling the posterior neural spines backward. Different reconstructions of the morphology of the structure based on the pathological conditions affecting the neural spines of ROM 768 are proposed. Finally, we review the history of reconstructions for Parasaurolophus walkeri showing how erroneous misconceptions have been perpetuated over time or have led to the development of new hypotheses, including the wide neck model supported in the current research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filippo Bertozzo
- School of Natural and Built EnvironmentQueen’s University BelfastBelfastUK
- CI2PaleoSociedade de Historia NaturalTorres VedrasPortugal
| | - Fabio Manucci
- Associazione Paleontologica Paleoartistica ItalianaParmaItaly
| | - Matthew Dempsey
- Department of Musculoskeletal & Ageing ScienceUniversity of LiverpoolLiverpoolUK
| | | | - David C. Evans
- Royal Ontario MuseumTorontoONCanada
- Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of TorontoTorontoONCanada
| | - Alastair Ruffell
- School of Natural and Built EnvironmentQueen’s University BelfastBelfastUK
| | - Eileen Murphy
- School of Natural and Built EnvironmentQueen’s University BelfastBelfastUK
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Hamm CA, Hampe O, Schwarz D, Witzmann F, Makovicky PJ, Brochu CA, Reiter R, Asbach P. A comprehensive diagnostic approach combining phylogenetic disease bracketing and CT imaging reveals osteomyelitis in a Tyrannosaurus rex. Sci Rep 2020; 10:18897. [PMID: 33144637 PMCID: PMC7642268 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-75731-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2019] [Accepted: 10/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Traditional palaeontological techniques of disease characterisation are limited to the analysis of osseous fossils, requiring several lines of evidence to support diagnoses. This study presents a novel stepwise concept for comprehensive diagnosis of pathologies in fossils by computed tomography imaging for morphological assessment combined with likelihood estimation based on systematic phylogenetic disease bracketing. This approach was applied to characterise pathologies of the left fibula and fused caudal vertebrae of the non-avian dinosaur Tyrannosaurus rex. Initial morphological assessment narrowed the differential diagnosis to neoplasia or infection. Subsequent data review from phylogenetically closely related species at the clade level revealed neoplasia rates as low as 3.1% and 1.8%, while infectious-disease rates were 32.0% and 53.9% in extant dinosaurs (birds) and non-avian reptiles, respectively. Furthermore, the survey of literature revealed that within the phylogenetic disease bracket the oldest case of bone infection (osteomyelitis) was identified in the mandible of a 275-million-year-old captorhinid eureptile Labidosaurus. These findings demonstrate low probability of a neoplastic aetiology of the examined pathologies in the Tyrannosaurus rex and in turn, suggest that they correspond to multiple foci of osteomyelitis.
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Affiliation(s)
- C A Hamm
- Department of Radiology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Diagnostic Radiology and Neuroradiology, Greifswald University Hospital, Ferdinand-Sauerbruch-Straße, 17475, Greifswald, Germany
| | - O Hampe
- Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - D Schwarz
- Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - F Witzmann
- Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - P J Makovicky
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA
- Field Museum of Natural History, 1400 S. Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, IL, 60605, USA
| | - C A Brochu
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
| | - R Reiter
- Department of Radiology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Richard and Loan Hill Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, 60607, USA
| | - P Asbach
- Department of Radiology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.
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9
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Hearn L, Williams ACDC. Pain in dinosaurs: what is the evidence? Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2019; 374:20190370. [PMID: 31544618 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
How far back can we trace behaviour associated with pain? Behaviour is not preserved in the palaeontological record, so, for dinosaurs, we are restricted to what we can deduce from fossilized bones and tracks. This review is a thought experiment using circumstantial evidence from dinosaur fossils and from the behaviour of their extant relatives to describe probable responses of dinosaurs to serious injuries. Searches yielded 196 papers and chapters with: reports of healed serious injuries, and limping gait and injured feet in trackways; information about physiology and behaviour relevant to healing; evidence of evolutionary connections with birds and crocodilians, and their behaviour; and information about relevant aspects of evolution. Clearly, many dinosaurs survived injuries that would have seriously hampered mobility, impairing hunting or escape from predators, and affecting social interactions. Recovery from severe injuries implies pain-mediated responses. Rates of healing seem faster than for other reptiles, possibily aided by warm-bloodedness. Nesting was often communal, raising the possibility of parental and group protection for injured young. The existence of family groups, packs or herds raises the possibility of protection or feeding from pack kills. This is the first study, to our knowledge, of possible pain behaviour and responses to injury in dinosaurs. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Evolution of mechanisms and behaviour important for pain'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Les Hearn
- Cochrane Pain, Palliative and Supportive Care Review Group, Oxford, UK
| | - Amanda C de C Williams
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
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10
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Xing L, Rothschild BM, Randolph-Quinney PS, Wang Y, Parkinson AH, Ran H. Possible bite-induced abscess and osteomyelitis in Lufengosaurus (Dinosauria: sauropodomorph) from the Lower Jurassic of the Yimen Basin, China. Sci Rep 2018; 8:5045. [PMID: 29568005 PMCID: PMC5864883 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23451-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 03/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We report an osseous abnormality on a specimen of the sauropod dinosaur Lufengosaurus huenei from the Fengjiahe Formation in Yuxi Basin, China. A gross pathological defect occurs on the right third rib, which was subjected to micro-computed tomographic imaging as an aid in diagnosis. The analysis of pathological characteristics and the shape of the abnormality is incompatible with impact or healed trauma, such as a common rib fracture, and instead suggests focal penetration of the rib, possibly due to a failed predator attack. The identification of characteristics based on gross morphology and internal micro-morphology presented by the specimen, suggests an abscess with osteomyelitis as the most parsimonious explanation. Osteomyelitis is a severe infection originating in the bone marrow, usually resulting from the introduction of pyogenic (pus-producing) bacteria into the bone. Micro-tomographic imaging of the lesion suggests a degree of healing and bone remodelling following post-traumatic wound infection with evidence of sclerotic bone formation at the site of pathological focus, indicating that L. huenei survived the initial trauma. However, as osteomyelitis can express through widespread systemic effects, including a lowering of immune response and overall condition, this disease may have been a contributing factor to the eventual death of the individual.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lida Xing
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China.,School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China
| | - Bruce M Rothschild
- Division of Vertebrate Paleontology, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, 4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15271, USA.,West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown, WV, 26506, USA
| | - Patrick S Randolph-Quinney
- School of Forensic and Applied Sciences, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, PR1 2HE, UK. .,Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa. .,School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand Medical School, Johannesburg, South Africa.
| | - Yi Wang
- Yuxi Museum, Yunnan, 653100, China
| | - Alexander H Parkinson
- School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand Medical School, Johannesburg, South Africa.,School of Geosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Hao Ran
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650223, China. .,Key Laboratory of Ecology of Rare and Endangered Species and Environmental Protection, Ministry of Education, Guilin, 541004, China.
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11
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Surmik D, Rothschild BM, Dulski M, Janiszewska K. Two types of bone necrosis in the Middle Triassic Pistosaurus longaevus bones: the results of integrated studies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2017; 4:170204. [PMID: 28791147 PMCID: PMC5541542 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.170204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2017] [Accepted: 06/28/2017] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Avascular necrosis, diagnosed on the basis of either a specific pathological modification of the articular surfaces of bone or its radiologic appearance in vertebral centra, has been recognized in many Mesozoic marine reptiles as well as in present-day marine mammals. Its presence in the zoological and paleontologic record is usually associated with decompression syndrome, a disease that affects secondarily aquatic vertebrates that could dive. Bone necrosis can also be caused by infectious processes, but it differs in appearance from decompression syndrome-associated aseptic necrosis. Herein, we report evidence of septic necrosis in the proximal articular surface of the femur of a marine reptile, Pistosaurus longaevus, from the Middle Triassic of Poland and Germany. This is the oldest recognition of septic necrosis associated with septic arthritis in the fossil record so far, and the mineralogical composition of pathologically altered bone is described herein in detail. The occurrence of septic necrosis is contrasted with decompression syndrome-associated avascular necrosis, also described in Pistosaurus longaevus bone from Middle Triassic of Germany.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dawid Surmik
- Park of Science & Human Evolution, 1 Maja 10, 46-040 Krasiejów, Poland
- Faculty of Earth Science, University of Silesia, Będzińska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland
- Author for correspondence: Dawid Surmik e-mail:
| | - Bruce M. Rothschild
- Carnegie Museum, 4400 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
| | - Mateusz Dulski
- Silesian Centre for Education and Interdisciplinary Research, 75 Pułku Piechoty 1A, 41-500 Chorzów, Poland
- Institute of Material Science, University of Silesia, 75 Pułku Piechoty 1A, 41-500 Chorzów, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Janiszewska
- Institute of Paleobiology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Twarda 51/55, 00-818 Warsaw, Poland
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