Origens, distribuições e ramificações dos nervos femorais no tamanduá bandeira (Myrmecophaga tridactyla Linnaeus, 1758)

Abstract

The study of the lumbosacral plexus nerves constituents is extremely important because it relates the various evolutionary aspects of animal locomotion and posture. Considering that the femoral nerve is the largest cranial part of the lumbosacral plexus, aimed to describe the origins, distributions and ramifications of the femoral nerve in giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), comparing with the literature described for domestic and wild animals in to establish correlations of morphological similarities and providing subsidies for similar areas. For the work three specimens were used prepared by injection of aqueous 10% formaldehyde in the femoral artery, for keeping the specimens and further dissection. The origin of the femoral nerve in the right and left sides, is the ventral brach of the lumbar spinal nerves one, two and three. As to the distributions and ramifications, the femoral nerve provides branches to the major and minor psoas muscle, lateral and medial iliac, pectineus, adductor magnus, sartorius and quadriceps. The anatomical origin of the femoral nerve in M. tridactyla shows a variation due to the difference in the number of vertebrae (L1, L2 and L3). But in most distributions and ramifications of the femoral nerve, this species has a significant degree of morphological similarities with domestic and wild animals in this study.