INDEX

EX. No DATE NAME OF THE EXPERIMENTS PAGE MARK FACULTY

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 Ex. No: 4 Date:
IDENTIFICATION OF AXIAL BONES

Aim: To study and identify the Axial skeletal bones

Requirements: Skeleton and bone models

Principle:
The axial skeleton can be defined as those bones within the long axis of the body, which include
the skull, vertebral column, ribs, sternum, hyoid bone and Auditory ossicle.
The skull and vertebral column work together to protect the central nervous system (Brain
&Spinal cord)
The vertebral column also serves as the central support axis for the body as a whole.
The ribs and sternum (along with the vertebral column) form the thoracic cage, which supports
and protects the heart and lungs.
All these bones are situated around the central longitudinal axis of the body.

The axial skeleton made up of 80 bones.

• 22 bones are of skull

• 26 bones are of vertebral column
• 25 bones are of thorax
• 6 Auditory ossicles
• 1 Hyoid bone
1. The skull

• The bony structure of head referred as skull

• Cranial bones & facial bones together constitute the skull
• Highly organized and complex structure, Made up of 22 bones
• Situated on the superior end of the backbone
• Bones are joined by sutures
• Only the mandible is attached by a freely movable joint
Functions of Skull

• Protects and supports sensitive organs of the body: Brian, Eyes and Ears
• Movement in the head are possible due to presence of cranial bone, which provide large
area of attachment to various muscles
• Skull enclose various cavities which helps the organs to communicate with environment
 • The serve as support system for entry into the digestive and respiratory system
• The mandible and maxilla contain alveolar ridges in which teeth are present
• Chewing of the food is possible because of the presence of the mandible
• Facial bones form the framework of the face

i. Cranial bones

The cranium considered as a protective cover for the brain and is made up of eight cranial bones.
It is made up of two portions known as base and vault that surrounds and covers it.

Cranial vault otherwise known as calvaria is the area within which the brain is enclosed and
cranial base of floor portion of the skull on which the brain rests.

All the bones of the cranium are interconnected via immovable joints (sutures)

The eight cranial bones you should be able to identify are:

 The singular frontal, occipital, ethmoid, and sphenoid

 The paired temporal and the paired parietal (1 Frontal bone, 2 Parietal bones, 2 Temporal
bones, 1 Occipital bone. 1 Sphenoid bone)

Frontal bone

This is the bone of the forehead. It forms part of the orbital cavities (eye sockets) and the
prominent ridges above the eyes, the supraorbital margins. Just above the supraorbital margins,
within the bone

There are two air-filled cavities or sinuses lined with ciliated mucous membrane which have
openings into the nasal cavity.

The coronal suture joins the frontal and parietal bones. The bone originates in two parts joined in
the midline by the frontal suture.

Misalignment of this bone may affect: Change in voice tone, Sinus congestion, Loss of smell,
Sinus headaches, Eye strain, or pain

Parietal bones

These bones form the sides and roof of the skull.

They articulate with each other at the sagittal suture, with the frontal bone at the coronal suture,
with the occipital bone at the lambdoidal suture and with the temporal bones at the squamous
sutures

The inner surface is concave and is grooved by the brain and blood vessels.

Misalignment of these bones may cause one to experience:Visual problems, Attention problems,
Sleep issues and Headaches/migraines.

Temporal bones

These bones lay one on each side of the head and form immovable joints with the parietal,
occipital, sphenoid and zygomatic bones

Each temporal bone has several important features

The squamous part is the thin fan-shaped part that articulates with the parietal bone.

The zygomatic process articulates with the zygomatic bone to form the zygomatic arch

The mastoid part contains the mastoid process, a thickened region behind the ear.

It contains a large number of very small air sinuses which communicate with the middle ear and
are lined with squamous epithelium.

The petrous portion forms part of the base of the skull and contains the organs of hearing (the
spiral organ) and balance.

The temporal bone articulates with the mandible at the temporomandibular joint, the only
movable joint of the skull.

Immediately behind this articulating surface is the external auditory meatus (auditory canal),
which passes inwards towards the petrous portion of the bone.

Occipital bone

This bone forms the back of the head and part of the base of the skull. It has immovable joints
with the parietal, temporal and sphenoid bones.

Its inner surface is deeply concave and the concavity is occupied by the occipital lobes of the
cerebrum and by the cerebellum.
The occiput has two articular condyles that form hinge joints with the first bone of the vertebral
column, the atlas. Between the condyles there is the foramen magnum (meaning Targe hole')
through which the spinal cord passes into the cranial cavity

Sphenoid bone

This bone occupies the middle portion of the base of the skull and it articulates with the occipital,
temporal, parietal and frontal bones. On the superior surface in the middle of the bone there is a
little saddle-shaped depression, the hypophyseal fossa (sellaturcica) in which the pituitary gland
rests.

The body of the bone contains some fairly large air sinuses lined by ciliated mucous membrane
with openings into the nasal cavity.

Ethmoid bone

The ethmoid bone occupies the anterior part of the base of the skull and helps to form the orbital
cavity, the nasal septum and the lateral walls of the nasal cavity

On each side are two projections into the nasal cavity, the upper and middle conchae or
turbinated processes. It is a very delicate bone containing many air sinuses lined with ciliated
epithelium and with openings into the nasal cavity

a. Facial bones

The facial skeleton is sometimes called the membranous viscerocranium,the facial skeleton
consists of fourteen bones in the face

Inferior nasal concha (2), Lacrimal bones (2), Mandible (1), Maxilla (2), Nasal bones (2),
Palatine bones (2), Vomer (1), Zygomatic bones (2).

Maxilla (or) Upper jaw

This originates as two bones but fusion takes place before birth.

The maxilla forms the upper jaw, the anterior part of the roof of the mouth, the lateral walls of
the nasal cavity and part of the floor of the orbital cavities

Nasal bones

These are two small flat bones, which form the greater part of the lateral and superior surfaces of
the bridge of the nose
The outer surface is concavo-convex from above downward, convex from side to side; it is
covered by the procerus and nasalis muscles, and perforated about its center by a foramen, for
the transmission of a small vein.

The inner surface is concave from side to side, and is traversed from above downward, by a
groove for the passage of a branch of the nasociliary nerve

Lacrimal bones

These two small bones are posterior and lateral to the nasal bones and form part of the medial
walls of the orbital cavities. Each is pierced by a foramen for the passage of the nasolacrimal
duct which carries the tears from the medial canthus of the eye to the nasal cavity

Vomer

The vomer is a thin flat bone which extends upwards from the middle of the hard palate to form
the main part of the nasal septum. Superiorly it articulates with the perpendicular plate of the
ethmoid bone

Palatine bones

These are two L-shaped bones

The horizontal parts unite to form the posterior part of the hard palate and the perpendicular parts
project upwards to form part of the lateral walls of the nasal cavity

At their upper extremities they form part of the orbital cavities

Inferior conchae

Each concha is a scroll-shaped bone which forms part of the lateral wall of the nasal cavity and
projects into it below the middle concha. The superior and middle conchae are parts of the
ethmoid bone

Mandible

This is the only movable bone of the skull. It originates as two parts which unite at the midline.

Each half consists of two main parts: a curved body with the alveolar ridge containing the lower
teeth and a ramus which projects upwards almost at right angles to the posterior end of the body
At the upper end the ramus divides into the condi/lar process which articulates with the temporal
bone to form the temporomandibular joint and the coronoid process that gives attachment to
muscles and ligaments. The point where the ramus joins the body is the angle of the jaw.

2. The vertebral column

In a human's vertebral column there are normally thirty-three vertebrae; the upper twenty-four
are articulating and separated from each other by intervertebral discs, and the lower nine are
fused in adults, five in the sacrum and four in the coccyx or tailbone.

7 Cervical, 12 Thoracic, 5 Lumbar, 5Sacrum (five fused bones) and 4Coccyx (four fused
bones)

• Vertebrae separated by intervertebral discs

• The spine has a normal curvature

• Each vertebrae is given a name according to its location

Characteristics of typical vertebrae:

The body & the vertebral (neural)

• The body of each vertebra is situated anteriorly

• They are smallest in the cervical region and become larger towards the lumbar region

• The vertebral (neural) arch encloses a large vertebral foramen.

• The ring of bone consists of two pedicles that project backwards from the body and two
laminae

• The neural arch has four articular surfaces: two articulate with the vertebra above and
two with the one below.

• The vertebral foramina form the vertebral (neural) canal that contains the spinal cord

Cervical vertebrae

The cervical vertebrae are the bones within the neck. The vertebrae are the bones that make
up the backbone of vertebrate animals.

These cervical bones are the smallest in the body in mammals. The bones are identified as C1
through C7, and they increase in size as you move down the body.
 These are important for the movement of the head and neck, including the action of
nodding.The cervical vertebrae has varying structures depending on their location in the
neck.

C1, or the atlas, is the only vertebra without a body; instead, it articulates with C2, the axis,
at the odontoid process, a bony knob.

C2 has a large perpendicular process known as the dens, and its body extends down, covering
part of C3.

The vertebrae C3 through C6 have a more regular shape. They have small bodies, with
pedicles that extend backwards and laterally.

These vertebrae have large vertebral foramen in the transverse processes, which the vertebral
artery, veins, and inferior cervical ganglion pass through.

Thoracic vertebrae

In vertebrates, thoracic vertebrae compose the middle segment of the vertebral column, between
the cervical vertebrae and the lumbar vertebrae.

In humans, there are twelve thoracic vertebrae

The first and ninth through twelfth vertebrae contain certain peculiarities

First thoracic vertebra (T1): The first thoracic vertebra has, on either side of the body

The superior articular surfaces are directed upward and backward; the spinous process is thick,
long, and almost horizontal.

The transverse processes are long, and the upper vertebral notches are deeper than those of the
other thoracic vertebrae. The thoracic spinal nerve 1 (T1) passes out underneath it

Second thoracic vertebra (T2): The thoracic spinal nerve 2 (T2) passes out underneath it. The
second thoracic vertebra is larger than the first thoracic vertebrae

Third thoracic vertebra (T3): The thoracic spinal nerve 3 (T3) passes out underneath it.

Fourth thoracic vertebra (T4): The fourth thoracic vertebra, together with the fifth, is at the
same level as the sternal angle. Thethoracic spinal nerve 4 (T4) passes out underneath it.

Fifth thoracic vertebra (T5): The fifth thoracic vertebra, together with the fourth, is at the same
level as the sternal angle.
The human trachea divides into two main bronchi at the level of the 5th thoracic vertebra, but
may also end higher or lower, depending on breathing. The thoracic spinal nerve 5 (T5) passes
out underneath it.

Sixth thoracic vertebra (T6): The thoracic spinal nerve 6 (T6) passes out underneath it.

Seventh thoracic vertebra (T7): The thoracic spinal nerve 7 (T7) passes out underneath it.

Eighth thoracic vertebra (T8): The eighth thoracic vertebra is, together with the ninth thoracic
vertebra, at the same level as the xiphisternum.

The thoracic spinal nerve 8 (T8) passes out underneath it.

Ninth thoracic vertebra (T9): The thoracic spinal nerve 9 (T9) passes out underneath it. The
xiphisternum (or xiphoid process of the sternum) is at the same level in the axial plane

Tenth thoracic vertebra (T10): It doesn't have any kind of facet below, because the following
ribs only have one facet on their heads.

The thoracic spinal nerve 10 (T10) passes out underneath it.

Eleventh thoracic vertebra (T11): The spinous process is short, and nearly horizontal in
direction. The transverse processes are very short, tuberculated at their extremities, and do not
have articular facets.

Twelfth thoracic vertebra (T12): The twelfth thoracic vertebra has the same general
characteristics as the eleventh, but may be distinguished from it by its inferior articular surfaces
being convex and directed lateralward, like those of the lumbar vertebrae

Lumbar vertebrae

The lumbar vertebrae are, in human anatomy, the five vertebrae between the rib cage and the
pelvis.

They are the largest segments of the vertebral column and are characterized by the absence of the
foramen transversarium within the transverse process (since it is only found in the cervical
region) and by the absence of facets on the sides of the body (as found only in the thoracic
region).
They are designated L1 to L5, starting at the top. The lumbar vertebrae help support the weight
of the body, and permit movement.

Sacrum

This consists of five rudimentary vertebrae fused to form a triangular or wedge-shaped bone with
a concave anterior surface.

The upper part, or base, articulates with the 5th lumbar vertebra.

On each side it articulates with the ilium to form a sacroiliac joint, and at its inferior tip it
articulates with the coccyx.

The anterior edge of the base, the promontory, protrudes into the pelvic cavity.

Coccyx

Commonly referred to as the tailbone

This consists of the four terminal vertebrae fused to form a very small triangular bone, the broad
base of which articulates with the tip of the sacrum.

It comprises three to five separate or fused coccygeal vertebrae below the sacrum, attached to the
sacrum by a fibrocartilaginousjoint, the sacrococcygealsymphysis, which permits limited
movement between the sacrum and the coccyx.
The coccyx is formed of three, four or five rudimentary vertebrae. It articulates superiorly with
the sacrum. In each of the first three segments may be traced a rudimentary body and articular
and transverse processes; the last piece (sometimes the third) is a mere nodule of bone.
All the segments lack pedicles, laminae and spinous processes.
It has been claimed that the coccyx is not entirely useless in humans, based on the fact that the
coccyx has attachments to various muscles, tendons and ligaments.
However, these muscles, tendons and ligaments are also attached at many other points, to
stronger structures than the coccyx.
Functions of the vertebral column

These include the following.

• Collectively the vertebral foramina form the vertebral canal which provides a strong bony
protection for the delicate spinal cord lying within it.
• The pedicles of adjacent vertebrae form intervertebral foramina, one on each side, providing
access to the spinal cord for spinal nerves, blood vessels and lymph vessels.

The numerous individual bones enable a certain amount of movement.

• It supports the skull.

• The intervertebral discs act as shock absorbers, protecting the brain.

• It forms the axis of the trunk, giving attachment to the ribs, shoulder girdle and upper limbs,
and the pelvic girdle and lower limbs.

3. The hyoid bone

Its name is derived from Greekhyoeides, meaning 'shaped like the letter upsilon (υ)
The hyoid bone (lingual bone or tongue-bone) is a horseshoe-shaped bone situated in the anterior
midline of the neck between the chin and the thyroid cartilage.

• The only bone that does not articulate with another bone

The hyoid is anchored by muscles from the anterior, posterior and inferior directions, and aids in
tongue movement and swallowing.

The hyoid bone provides attachment to the muscles of the floor of the mouth and the tongue
above, the larynx below, and the epiglottis and pharynx behind.
The hyoid bone is classed as an irregular bone and consists of a central part called the body, and
two pairs of horns, the greater and lesser horns.

Blood is supplied to the hyoid bone via the lingual artery, which runs down from the tongue to
the greater horns of the bone.
The suprahyoid branch of the lingual artery runs along the upper border of the hyoid bone and
supplies blood to the attached muscles.
4. Thoracic cage

The bones of the thorax or thoracic cage are: • 1 sternum

• 12 pairs of ribs

• 12 thoracic vertebrae.
Sternum or breast bone

This flat bone can be felt just under the skin in the middle of the front of the chest.

The manubrium is the uppermost section and articulates with the clavicles at the sternodavicular
joints and with the first two pairs of ribs.

The body or middle portion gives attachment to the ribs.

The xiphoid process is the tip of the bone.
It gives attachment to the diaphragm, muscles of the anterior abdominal wall and the lineaalba.

Ribs

There are 12 pairs of ribs which form the bony lateral walls of the thoracic cage and articulate
posteriorly with the thoracic vertebrae.

The first 10 pairs are attached anteriorly to the sternum by costal cartilages, some directly and
some indirectly).

The last two pairs (floating ribs] have no anterior attachment.

Thoracic cage Sternum

The sternal end is attached to the sternum by a costal cartilage, i.e. a band of hyaline cartilage.

The superior border is rounded and smooth while the inferior border has a marked groove
occupied by the intercostal blood vessels and nerves.

The first rib does not move during respiration. The spaces between the ribs are occupied by the
intercostal muscles. During inspiration, when these muscles contract, the ribs and sternum are
lifted upwards and outwards, increasing the capacity of the thoracic cavity

5. Auditory Ossicles

The auditory ossicles are three bones in either middle ear that are among the smallest bones in
the human body.

They serve to transmit sounds from the air to the fluid-filled labyrinth (cochlea).

The absence of the auditory ossicles would constitute a moderate-to-severe hearing loss.

The term "ossicle" literally means "tiny bone".

Though the term may refer to any small bone throughout the body, it typically refers to the
malleus, incus, and stapes (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) of the middle ear.

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