
Melody W. YoungDuke University | DU · Department of Biology
Melody W. Young
PhD
About
49
Publications
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Introduction
Skills and Expertise
Education
August 2021 - February 2024
New York Institute of Technology
Field of study
- Biomechanics
August 2019 - May 2027
New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine
Field of study
- Medicine
August 2016 - May 2019
Publications
Publications (49)
No vertebrate, living or extinct, is known to have possessed an odd number of limbs. Despite this ‘forbidden phenotype’, gaits that use odd numbers of limbs (e.g. tripedalism or pentapedalism) have evolved in both avian and mammalian lineages. Tripedal locomotion is commonly employed by parrots during climbing, who use their beaks as an additional...
Birds encompass vast ecomorphological diversity and practise numerous distinct locomotor modes. One oft-cited feature seen in climbing birds is an increase in tail ‘stiffness’, yet it remains unclear to what extent these feathers are altered, and the specific mechanism by which differences in functional performance are attained. We collected a broa...
Across tetrapods, the proportional lengths of the manual and pedal phalanges are highly constrained, following a generalized blueprint of shortening in a proximodistal gradient. Despite this, several lineages of both mammals (e.g. sloths, bats and colugos) and birds (e.g. raptors, parrots and woodpeckers) have broken this pattern, shortening the pr...
Prokinesis, a mode of avian cranial kinesis involving motion between the neurocranium and upper beak, has long been investigated in biomechanical analyses of avian feeding and drinking. However, the modern avian beak is also used in a number of non-feeding functions. Here we investigate the dual function of prokinesis in the feeding and locomotor s...
Occupation of arboreal habitats poses myriad locomotor challenges, driving both anatomical and behavioural innovations across various tetrapod lineages. Here, we report and biomechanically assess a novel, beak-driven locomotor mode-'beakiation'-by which parrots advance along the underside of narrow arboreal substrates. Using high-speed videography...
Powerful digital grasping is essential for primates navigating arboreal environments and is often regarded as a defining characteristic of the order. However, in vivo data on primate grip strength are limited. In this study, we collected grasping data from the hands and feet of eleven strepsirrhine species to assess how ecomorphological variables—s...
The gait characteristics associated with arboreal locomotion have been frequently discussed in the context of primate evolution, wherein they present as a trio of distinctive features: a diagonal-sequence, diagonal-couplet gait pattern, a protracted arm at forelimb touchdown, and a hindlimb-biased weight support pattern. The same locomotor characte...
Synopsis
Center of mass (COM) mechanics, often used as an energetic proxy during locomotion, has primarily focused on level movement and hardly explores climbing scenarios. This study examines three-dimensional COM movements across five phylogenetically distinct species to test theoretical expectations of climbing costs, explore how interspecific v...
Climbing animals theoretically need to optimize the energetic costs of vertical climbing while also maintaining stability. Many modifications to climbing behaviors have been proposed as methods of satisfying these criteria, focusing on controlling the center of mass (COM) during ascent. However, the link between COM movements and metabolic energy c...
Climbing represents a critical behavior in the context of primate evolution. However, anatomically modern human populations are considered ill-suited for climbing. This adaptation can be attributed to the evolution of striding bipedalism, redirecting anatomical traits away from efficient climbing. Although prior studies have speculated on the kinet...
Mustn1, a gene expressed exclusively in the musculoskeletal system, was shown in previous in vitro studies to be a key regulator of myogenic differentiation and myofusion. Other studies also showed Mustn1 expression associated with skeletal muscle development and hypertrophy. However, its specific role in skeletal muscle function remains unclear. T...
Parrots (Order: Psittaciformes) represent one of the most striking and ecomorphologically diverse avian clades, spanning more than two orders of magnitude in body size with populations occupying six continents. The worldwide diaspora of parrots is largely due to the pet trade, driven by human desire for bright, colorful, and intelligent animals as...
At what inclination does climbing begin? In this paper, we investigate the transition from walking to climbing in two species of parrot (Agapornis roseicollis and Nymphicus hollandicus) that are known to incorporate both their tail and their craniocer-vical system into the gait cycle during vertical climbing. Locomotor behaviors ranging in inclinat...
Brachiation is a form of suspensory locomotion observed only in Primates. The non-human hominoids (e.g., gibbons, orangutans, chimpanzees, and gorillas) are considered specialized brachiators, yet peculiar among the living apes are anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens), who have forgone this locomotor mode in favor of bipedal striding. Humans c...
Understanding the locomotor characteristics of early diverging ground-walking chameleons (members of the genera Brookesia, Rhampholeon, Palleon, and Rieppeleon) can help to explain how their unique morphology is adapted to fit their environment and mode of life. However, nearly all quantitative studies of chameleon locomotion thus far have focused...
Modern tree sloths are one of few mammalian taxa for which quadrupedal suspension is obligatory. Sloth limb musculature is specialized for slow velocity, large force contractions that stabilize their body below branches and conserves energy during locomotion. However, it is unknown if two and three-toed sloths converge in their use of limb biomecha...
Despite the high mechanical demands associated with climbing, the ability to ascend vertically has evolved independently in most major animal lineages. However, little is known about the kinetics, mechanical energy profiles, or spatiotemporal gait characteristics of this locomotor mode. In this study, we explore the dynamics of horizontal locomotio...
Living sloths exhibit numerous anatomical specializations towards inverted quadrupedalism, however, previous studies have noted a more varied locomotor repertoire than previously anticipated. In this study, we present spatiotemporal gait characteristics and triaxial kinetic data from the brown-throated three-toed sloth (Bradypus variegatus) across...
Sloths are among the most specialized arboreal species and have evolved a suite of anatomical features that support suspensory behaviors. While sloths generally show a reduction in skeletal muscle mass, the digital flexor musculature (i.e., the muscles associated with grip strength) remains relatively large. It may therefore be inferred that grip s...
The ability to securely grasp substrates of variable diameter is critical to arboreal animals. Arboreal specialists have emerged across several vertebrate lineages – including mammals, lizards, and amphibians – and several attempts have been made to quantify their grasping performance, by measuring either gripping (i.e., forces generated about an o...
Bite force represents a critical measure of an animal's feeding capabilities and has been analyzed in the context of ecology and body size in numerous vertebrate lineages. Among birds, bite force potential has been comprehensively quantified in finches; however, no in vivo data have been reported within parrots (order: Psittaciformes), and an anato...
Positional behaviors have been broadly quantified across the Order Primates, and in several other mammalian lineages, to contextualize adaptations to, and evolution within, an arboreal environment. Outside of Mammalia, however, such data are yet to be reported. In this study, we present the first quantitative report of positional behavior within Av...
The biomechanical demands of arboreal locomotion are generally thought to necessitate specialized kinetic and kinematic gait characteristics. While such data has been widely collected across arboreal quadrupeds, no study has yet explored how arboreal substrates influence the locomotor behavior of birds. Parrots – an ancient arboreal lineage that ex...
The locomotor behaviors of treeshrews are often reported as scurrying "squirrel-like" movements. As such, treeshrews have received little attention beyond passing remarks in regard to primate locomotor evolution. However, scandentians vary considerably in habitat and substrate use, thus categorizing all treeshrew locomotion based on data collected...
Evolutionary analyses of joint kinematics and muscle mechanics suggest that, during cyclic behaviors, tetrapod feeding systems are optimized for precise application of forces over small displacements during chewing while locomotor systems are more optimized for large and rapid joint excursions during walking and running. If this hypothesis is corre...
Supplemental Tables from Overcoming a ‘forbidden phenotype’: the parrot's head supports, propels and powers tripedal locomotion
Raw data from Overcoming a ‘forbidden phenotype’: the parrot's head supports, propels and powers tripedal locomotion
Bird Climbing Video from Overcoming a ‘forbidden phenotype’: the parrot's head supports, propels and powers tripedal locomotion
A key characteristic of primate above-branch arboreal locomotion is hindlimb-biased weight support, subverting the typical mammalian condition in which the majority of the body weight is supported by the forelimb. This shift is thought to reflect an adaptation toward the arboreal niches exploited by early primates. However, above-branch quadrupedal...
No vertebrate, living or extinct, is known to have possessed an odd number of limbs. Despite this ″forbidden phenotype″, gaits that utilize odd numbers of limbs (e.g., tripedalism or pentapedalism) have evolved in both avian and mammalian lineages. Tripedal locomotion is commonly employed by parrots during climbing, who utilize their beaks as an ad...
Simple Summary
Since it was first described over two decades ago, the Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (ALT) pathway has been well accepted to hold clinical significance in cancer development, cancer diagnosis, and cancer treatment. In this review, first, we discuss how the activation of this pathway is determined. Then, we provide up-to-date s...
Breast Cancer 1 (BRCA1) gene is a well-characterized tumor suppressor gene, mutations of which are primarily found in women with breast and ovarian cancers. BRCA1-associated RING domain 1 (BARD1) gene has also been identified as an important tumor suppressor gene in breast, ovarian, and uterine cancers. Underscoring the functional significance of t...
Phosphorylation and dephosphorylation are fundamental regulatory mechanisms in a myriad of proteins. Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) and their integration with protein tyrosine kinases contribute to an important role in the maintenance of normal cell function. More specifically, the reversible phosphorylation of tyrosine residues in receptor t...