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The number of vertebrae in a region can vary but overall the number remains the same. In a human spinal column, there are normally 33 vertebrae. [3] The upper 24 pre-sacral vertebrae are articulating and separated from each other by intervertebral discs, and the lower nine are fused in adults, five in the sacrum and four in the coccyx, or tailbone.
Each vertebra (pl.: vertebrae) is an irregular bone with a complex structure composed of bone and some hyaline cartilage, that make up the vertebral column or spine, of vertebrates. The proportions of the vertebrae differ according to their spinal segment and the particular species.
Modern human hip joints are larger than in quadrupedal ancestral species to better support the greater amount of body weight passing through them. [7] They also have a shorter, broader shape. This alteration in shape brought the vertebral column closer to the hip joint, providing a stable base for support of the trunk while walking upright. [15]
The axial skeleton (80 bones) is formed by the vertebral column (32–34 bones; the number of the vertebrae differs from human to human as the lower 2 parts, sacral and coccygeal bone may vary in length), a part of the rib cage (12 pairs of ribs and the sternum), and the skull (22 bones and 7 associated bones).
The spinal nerves arise from the spinal column. The top section of the spine is the cervical section, which contains nerves that innervate muscles of the head, neck and thoracic cavity, as well as transmit sensory information to the CNS. The cervical spine section contains seven vertebrae, C-1 through C-7, and eight nerve pairs, C-1 through C-8.
The vertebral column, also known as the spinal column, spine or backbone, is the core part of the axial skeleton in vertebrate animals.The vertebral column is the defining and eponymous characteristic of the vertebrate endoskeleton, where the notochord (an elastic collagen-wrapped glycoprotein rod) found in all chordates has been replaced by a segmented series of mineralized irregular bones ...
The species is a tetrapod, its four legs adapting the fish-like body plan for walking on land. The specimen is 26 m (85 ft) long. As embryos, vertebrates still have a notochord; as adults, all but the jawless fishes have a vertebral column, made of bone or cartilage, instead. [7]
Sectional organization of spinal cord. The spinal cord is the main pathway for information connecting the brain and peripheral nervous system. [3] [4] Much shorter than its protecting spinal column, the human spinal cord originates in the brainstem, passes through the foramen magnum, and continues through to the conus medullaris near the second lumbar vertebra before terminating in a fibrous ...