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In humans, the vermiform appendix is sometimes called a vestigial structure as it has lost much of its ancestral digestive function.. Vestigiality is the retention, during the process of evolution, of genetically determined structures or attributes that have lost some or all of the ancestral function in a given species. [1]
Goose bumps are an example of a vestigial human reaction to stress. The formation of goose bumps in humans under stress is a vestigial reflex; a possible function in the distant evolutionary ancestors of humanity was to raise the body's hair, making the ancestor appear larger and scaring off predators.
Vestigial structures and comparisons in embryonic development are largely a contributing factor in anatomical resemblance in concordance with common descent. Since metabolic processes do not leave fossils, research into the evolution of the basic cellular processes is done largely by comparison of existing organisms' physiology and biochemistry .
A vestigial twin is a form of parasitic twinning, [1] where the parasitic "twin" is so malformed and incomplete that it typically consists entirely of extra limbs or organs. It also can be a complete living being trapped inside the host person, however the parasitic twin is anencephalic and lacks consciousness.
Appendix testis, a vestigial remnant of the Müllerian duct; Epiploic appendix, one of several small pouches of fat on the peritoneum along the colon and rectum Appendix of the laryngeal ventricle, a sac that extends from the laryngeal ventricle; Mesoappendix, the portion of the mesentery that connects the ileum to the vermiform appendix
The twin reversed arterial perfusion, or T.R.A.P. sequence, results in an 'acardiac twin', a parasitic twin that fails to develop a head, arms and a heart.The parasitic twin, little more than a torso with or without legs, receives its blood supply from the host twin by means of an umbilical cord-like structure, much like a fetus in fetu, except the acardiac twin is outside the autosite's body.
Atavisms have been observed in humans, such as with infants born with vestigial tails (called a "coccygeal process", "coccygeal projection", or "caudal appendage"). [8] Atavism can also be seen in humans who possess large teeth, like those of other primates. [9]
A dewclaw is a digit – vestigial in some animals – on the foot of many mammals, birds, and reptiles (including some extinct orders, like certain theropods). It commonly grows higher on the leg than the rest of the foot, such that in digitigrade or unguligrade species, it does not make contact with the ground when the animal is standing.