The Brain of the Domestic Bos taurus: Weight, Encephalization and Cerebellar Quotients, and Comparison with Other Domestic and Wild Cetartiodactyla

Abstract

The domestic bovine Bos taurus is raised worldwide for meat and milk production, or even for field work. However the functional anatomy of its central nervous system has received limited attention and most of the reported data in textbooks and reviews are derived from single specimens or relatively old literature. Here we report information on the brain of Bos taurus obtained by sampling 158 individuals, 150 of which at local abattoirs and 8 in the dissecting room, these latter subsequently formalin-fixed. Using body weight and fresh brain weight we calculated the Encephalization Quotient (EQ), and Cerebellar Quotient (CQ). Formalin-fixed brains sampled in the necropsy room were used to calculate the absolute and relative weight of the major components of the brain. The data that we obtained indicate that the domestic bovine Bos taurus possesses a large, convoluted brain, with a slightly lower weight than expected for an animal of its mass. Comparisons with other terrestrial and marine members of the order Cetartiodactyla suggested close similarity with other species with the same feeding adaptations, and with representative baleen whales. On the other hand differences with fish-hunting toothed whales suggest separate evolutionary pathways in brain evolution. Comparison with the other large domestic herbivore Equus caballus (belonging to the order Perissodactyla) indicates that Bos taurus underwent heavier selection of bodily traits, which is also possibly reflected in a comparatively lower EQ than in the horse. The data analyzed suggest that the brain of domestic bovine is potentially interesting for comparative neuroscience studies and may represents an alternative model to investigate neurodegeneration processes.

Neurosurgical cadaveric and in vivo large animal training models for cranial and spinal approaches and techniques — a systematic review of the current literature

“…The neuromorphology of bovines is very similar to that of sheep, and the imagistic particularities can be used in translational research due to their structure [28]. Given their weight and structure, their brains can be successfully used in neurodegenerative disease investigations [29]. The angioanatomy has certain particularities.…”

Mapping of the Early Intrauterine Morphogenesis in the Alpaca (Vicugna pacos): External Features and Development of the Cephalic Vesicle in Comparison with the Progressive Carnegie Scale

“…The alpaca is a species with considerably long gestation (340 days) and possesses a gyrencephalic brain (presenting sulci and gyri). These morphological and gestational characteristics are closer to other Cetartiodactyla, such as pig ( Sus scrofa ), bovine ( Bost taurus ), sheep ( Ovis aries ), giraffe ( Giraffa camelopardalis ; Ballarin et al, ; Graïc et al, ); Perissodactyla, as the horse (Cozzi et al, ); and apes. The specimens that we used in our experimental set were accompanied by notes referring to the age (in days) of the embryos and fetuses.…”

The Brain of the Giraffe (Giraffa Camelopardalis): Surface Configuration, Encephalization Quotient, and Analysis of the Existing Literature

“…Second, intraspecific variation may sometimes yield huge differences: In a recent study of our group (Cozzi et al, ), 7 out of 131 horses showed an EQ in the cat or primate range. An EQ of 0.76 for the giraffe is also more consistent with the Ruminantia clad (0.86, Boddy et al ; Ballarin et al ). The cluster is very obvious on the Figure , while the non‐ruminant even‐hoofed swine ( Sus scrofa ) is rather distant from this tendency (Minervini et al, ).…”