Melody W. Young

New York Institute of Technology | NYIT · Department of Anatomy

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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, we first discuss how the activation of this pathway is determined. We then provide up-to-date statistics on the c...

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...