Phylogeneric use of development anatomy of the ala temporalis in mammals

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Project objective

The evolution of modern mammalian groups and their fossil precursors is still hotly debated. This project seeks to establish a new approach to this old problem - that of embryological analysis. A part of the embryonic braincase, the ala temporalis, is an anatomical structure with a large suite of varying features. A documentation of cartilaginous connections and relationships to soft tissue structures in the ala temporalis of eutherians, marsupials and monotremes will establish criteria to define that region. The data and informations from fossil mammals and therapsids will lead to the reconstruction of a hypothetical ancestral morphotype. The phylogeny of mammals will be reevaluated by a cladistic analysis based upon apomorphies determined in this study. Finally, the hypothesis will be tested against independend evidence from palaeontological and molecular genetic data.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

• UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL · BRISTOL, CLIFTONCoordinatorUnited Kingdom
• Not availableCity levelGermany

Links

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