On the morphology of the brachial plexus of the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) and the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)

Abstract

Four forelimbs of 3 platypuses and 3 forelimbs of 2 echidnas were examined to study the precise form of the brachial plexus and to clarify the structural characteristics of the brachial plexus in phylogeny. The spinal components contributing to the plexus (C4–T2) and the formation patterns of the 3 trunks of the plexus were the same as those generally observed in mammals. In the cranial half of the brachial plexus from C4, 5 and 6 in monotremes, division into the ventral bundle (lateral cord) and dorsal bundle (axillary nerve) is clear, as in other mammals. However, for monotremes, in the caudal half of the plexus from C7 and T1 (+T2) and the nerves arising from the caudal plexus there is no definite division into the ventral and dorsal bundles, which distribute to the flexor and extensor parts of the forelimbs, respectively. The lower trunk of the monotreme brachial plexus forms a cord which contains both ventral and dorsal components. This characteristic diverges from the generally accepted idea that the tetrapod limb plexus is divided clearly into 2 layers: a dorsal layer for extensors and a ventral layer for flexors of the limb. Considering the incomplete dorsoventral division of forelimb nerves in some reptiles and urodeles, the caudal half of the monotreme brachial plexus has characteristics in common with those of lower tetrapods.