Premium
How Good are Mice and Monkeys as Models for Human Face Transplants? Comparative Physiological Perspectives on Myosin Fiber Types
Author(s) -
Burrows Anne M,
Durham Emily L,
Matthews Lea C,
Smith Timothy D,
Parr Lisa A
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.192.3
Subject(s) - facial nerve , macaque , facial muscles , rhesus macaque , anatomy , cadaver , biology , myosin , neuroscience , microbiology and biotechnology , immunology
Human face transplants are becoming a viable surgical option for patients with severe facial injuries. Reanimation of the muscles of facial expression is a desired outcome and both murines and rhesus macaques are candidate animal models of surgical protocols. However, it is not clear how appropriate these models are for the unique structural and functional complexity of the human face. The present study examines myosin fiber types and select peripheral characteristics of the facial nerve in laboratory mice and rhesus macaques in order to assess their suitability as models of human facial transplants. Samples of the zygomaticus major and orbicularis oris muscles containing ends of the facial nerve were gathered from three mice, three rhesus macaques, and three human cadavers for histochemical and immunohistochemical processing. Proportions of fast to slow twitch myosin fibers and morphometric characteristics of the facial nerve were compared among the species. Results show that like humans, mice and macaque facial musculature is dominated by fast twitch myosin fibers but many facial nerve characteristics differ among these species. Physiologically, the macaque may be the better model facial transplants, especially with respect to facial nerve characteristics. Murines may be confounding as a model due in part to the unique musculature and large number of facial nerve axons associated with the highly mobile whiskers. Support from the Samuel and Emma Winters Foundation and NIH MH082282