Anatomical and histological observations on a musk ox brain ( Ovibos moschatus)

• Published in: The FASEB Journal
• Main Author: Ackermans, Nicole L.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2020
• Subjects: musk ox; ovibos moschatus; Tundra
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.09488; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1096%2Ffasebj.2020.34.s1.09488; http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/wol1/doi/10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.09488/fullpdf

Musk oxen are large tundra‐dwelling bovids that, when in rut, can strike heads at speeds around 30 mph. The wide base of their large horns armor their skull against such impacts, although it is unknown if they sustain brain trauma. There is no literature describing concussion, or other adverse repercussions of severe cranial contact in musk oxen. Our research explores the brain and skull anatomy of combative bovids, specifically focusing on whether these animals sustain brain injury after head‐butting, and if not, what features most likely provide protection. Achieving a better understanding of how these extreme animals may avoid brain injury will provide insight to develop strategies for the reduction of traumatic brain injury in humans. An archived brain of an adult male musk ox was used in this preliminary study. It had been collected after humane euthanasia and preserved in formalin following a goring injury in the wild where it had been observed clashing heads with another musk ox bull in the moments before its death. The brain was MR scanned and examined histologically for evidence of traumatic brain injury. The right hemisphere was fixed in paraformaldehyde (4%, buffered) and prepared using a variety of exploratory histological protocols, to investigate abnormalities in neurons, microglia, astrocytes, and blood vessels. Specifically, Tau protein, a biomarker found in the cerebrospinal fluid and in neurodegenerative lesions, was used to detect any brain trauma‐related cellular consequence of chronic or acute head clashing. Preliminary histological results indicate no apparent abnormalities. A high‐resolution 7‐T MRI scan additionally revealed no abnormal neuropathological changes. This brain being a single sample does not allow us to make sweeping assumptions. However, these preliminary investigations lead us to believe that musk oxen do not appear to suffer from chronic or acute brain trauma after head clashing. A more in‐depth exploration with a larger sample size is proposed to better understand the ...