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1878WelckerH

  

This excerpt from an article by Hermann Welcker discusses the embryonic development of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) in pinnipeds, tapirs, and humans. The author partially touches on the topic of LCF function and its changes in congenital hip dislocation. The study is a development of the theme raised by the author in the publication “Ueber das Hüftgelenk, nebsteinigen Bemerkungen über Gelenke überhaupt, insbesondere über dasSchultergelenk” (1876).


Welcker H. Die Einwanderung der Bicepssehne in das Schultergelenk. Nebst Notizen über Ligamentim interartictilare humeri and Lig. teres femoris. Archiv für Anatomie und Phisiologie. v. His u. Braune u. Bois-Reymond. Band 1. Leipzig: von Veit & Comp, 1878: 40-42. [article fragment]
III. Zur Entwieklnng des Lig. teres femoris. III. On the development of the lig. teres femoris.

Für meine Annahme, dass der freien, nmgreifbaren Lage des Lig. teres femoris des Menschen ein Stadium vorausgehe, in welchem das Band durch eine mesenteriumartige Falte der Synovialhaut an die Kapsel festgeheftet sei (1), hatte ich bis hierher, da die jüngsten von mir untersuchten menschlichen Embryonen das Band bereits umgreifbar zeigten, nur das beibringen können, dass bei Einem Säugethier (dem Tapir) im fötalen, bei einem zweiten (dem Seehunde) im erwachsenen Zustande jene mesenteriumartige Anheftung besteht Das Hervorgehen der einen aus der anderen Form war damit allerdings nicht direkt bewiesen. Inzwischen hat meine Yermuthung, dass jene feine (in meiner Abbildung a. a. 0. Bd. 11, S. 104 sondirte) Perforation, welche die Sjnovialhaut des Lig. teres des geburtsreifen Tapir besitzt, der Anfang zur Frei werdung des Bandes sei (a. a. 0. 104) sich bestätigt: bei dem erwachsenen Thiere fand ich ein völlig freies, längs seines ganzen Verlaufes umgreifbares — in dieser Beziehung dem des Menschen völlig gleiches Lig. teres.

Es wirft dieser Befund auf die Entwicklung des runden Schenkelbandes des Menschen ein wünschenswerthes Licht Sehen wir, dass jene mesenteriumartige Anheftung des Lig. teres des Tapirembryo in der weiteren Entwicklxmg verloren geht und aus dem sessilen Bande ein dem menschlichen Lig. teres durchaus ähnliches Band hervorgeht, so bleibt umgekehrt wohl kein Zweifel, dass das Lig. teres des Menschen aus einem in ähnlicher Weise angehefteten Bande, wie das des Tapir und des Seehundes, hervorgegangen ist Das Wesentliche des Unterschiedes würde auch hier nur in der Verschiedenheit der Zeitpunkte liegen, in welchen die einzelnen Phasen der Entwicklung eintreten. Wir beobachteten:

bei Phoca auch bei ganz alten Thieren völlige Conservation des embryonalen Zustandes;(2)

bei Tapir bereits beim geburtsreifen Embryo eine feine Perforation, die zu völligem Freiwerden des Bandes führt;

beim Menschen schon in  frühester  Embryonalzeit  (mindestens schon in der 12. Woche) ringsum freies Lig. teres.(3) 

For my assumption the free, accessible position of the lig. teres femoris in humans is preceded by a stage where the ligament is attached to the capsule through a mesentery-like fold of the synovial membrane (1), until now I could only provide evidence that in one mammal (the tapir) in the fetal state, and in another (the walrus) in the adult state, such mesentery attachment exists. The transition from one form to another was not directly proven. Meanwhile, my conjecture that the thin perforation (which I noted in my illustration in Volume 11, p. 104) in the synovial membrane of the lig. teres in the mature tapir is the beginning of the ligament's liberation (ibid., p. 104) has been confirmed: in the adult animal, I found a completely free, accessible ligament along its entire course — in this respect, completely identical to the lig. teres of humans.

These results shed light on the development of the human round ligament. Considering that that mesenteric fixation lig. teres in the tapir embryo disappears in further development, and from the fixed ligament a ligament arises that is completely analogous to the human lig. teres, there is no doubt that lig. The teres of man is derived from a ligament similarly attached to that of the tapir and walrus. The main difference lies only in the difference in time when the individual phases of development occur. We observed:

in the walrus, even in very old animals, complete preservation of the embryonic state (2);

in the tapir, already in a mature embryo, there is a thin perforation, which leads to the complete release of the ligament;

in humans, already in the early embryonic period (at least by the 12th week) completely free lig. teres around the entire perimeter (3).


1. Zeitschr. F. Anal. u. Entwicklungsgesch, Bd. I. S. 71—79. Ebendas. Bd. 11. S. 98 und S. 231.

2. Ob niemals bei einem alten Thiere eine theilweise Resorption erfolgt, moss ich unentschieden lassen.

3. Nicht Tuiinteressant ist es, dass bei den genannten Geschöpfen auch die die Bicepssehne anheftende Membran in ganz ähnlichem Gange sich vergänglich zeigt:

bei Phoca besteht dieselbe noch im nahezu erwachsenen Thiere und dauert möglicherweise zeitlebens aus ;

bei Tapir kommt, da die Bicepssehne hier nicht einwandert, eine derartige Anheftung überhaupt nicht zu Stande;

beim Menschen verschwindet sie um den dritten Embryonalmonat

 

Notes:

1. Journal of Analysis and Developmental Studies, Volume I, pp. 71-79. Ibid. Volume 11, p. 98 and p. 231.

2. I must leave open the question of whether partial resorption occurs in old animals.

3. It is interesting to note that in the creatures mentioned, the membrane attached to the biceps tendon also appears to be transient in a very similar way:

In seals, such a condition still exists even in nearly adult animals and may continue throughout their entire lives;

In tapirs, since the biceps tendon does not migrate here, such attachment does not occur at all;

In humans, it disappears around the third month of embryonic development.

Ich habe nun auch bei einem menschlichen Fötus das Lig. teres sessile femoris beobachtet Bei einem siebenmonatlichen, mit mehrfachen Missbildungen geringeren Grades behafteten, vom Scheitel bis zum Steisse 193mm messenden Fötus (1) fand ich das Lig. teres in Form einer strangartigen Yorragung des unteren Theiles des Eapselbandes , welche sich nach Spaltung des vorderen und oberen Theiles der Kapsel bequem übersehen lässt. An seinem Beckenursprunge zeigt der abgeplattete etwa 3.5 mm breite, 1 mm dicke Bandstrang eine beginnende, 2 mm tiefe, taschenartige ünterminirung seines vorderen Bandes, so dass der Querschnitt der Hüftkapsel ungefähr der oben für die Bicepssehne gegebenen Abbildung (S. 25, Fig. 3.2 a) entsprechen würde. Am Femur inserirt dieses Lig. teres, indem es der Länge nach mit der Kapsel verwachsen ist, selbstverständlich mit dieser, mithin an dem in unserm Falle sehr kurzen Schenkelhalse; es zieht sich dasselbe aber als ein abgeplatteter, seidenglänzender Strang bis auf die Mitte des Schenkelkopfes, auch diesem mit seiner lateralen Fläche unmittelbar und ohne den mindesten Vorsprung zu bilden, aufgelöthet Auf den ersteu Blick wird man diesen Theil des Bandes, da derselbe durchaus kein Eelief besitzt und sich nur durch den Lichiglanz von dem übrigen Glenoidalüberzuge des Kopfes unterscheidet, leicht übersehen können. Von einer Fovea capitis femoris ist keine Spur vorhanden; da wo die Grenze sein sollte, hört das Sehnengewebe ohne Niveauveränderung auf.

I also discovered lig. teres femoris in the human fetus. The fetus, seven months old, with minor birth defects and a length from vertex to sacrum of 193 mm, lig. teres is a thread-like formation from the lower part of the capsular ligament, which is easily visible after incision of the anterior and superior part of the capsule. At its origin in the pelvis, this flattened band, about 3.5 mm wide and 1 mm thick, demonstrates an initial formation of a pocket about 2 mm deep on its anterior aspect, so that the cross-section of the joint capsule roughly corresponds to the image above for the biceps tendon (see page 25, Fig. 3.2 a). The lig. teres attaches to the femur by merging with the capsule along its length, naturally to the short neck of the femur; however, it extends into a flat, glossy band to the middle of the femoral head, directly attached to it by its lateral surface without any projection. At first glance, this part of the ligament could be easily overlooked, as it lacks any relief and is distinguished only by its shine from the rest of the coverage of the head in the shoulder joint. No traces of the fovea capitis femoris are found; where the boundary should be, the tendon tissue ends without a change in level.


1. Die Finger zeigen Andeutung von Klumphand. Die Hüftpfannen sind klein und flach; der in Luxatio congenita befindliche Schenkelkopf ist nach aufwärts gegen das Darmbein gerückt, so dass derselbe mit seinem oberen, ausserhalb der Pfanne liegenden Theile gegen den oberen Theil des Kapselbandes andrängt. Es scheint, dass derselbe in diesem Andrängen vorzugsweise durch das in unserem Falle sehr derbe Lig. teres zurückgehalten wird.

Notes:

1. Fingers resemble a baton. The hip joints are small and shallow; The head of the femur, which is congenitally dislocated, has moved upward towards the ilium, so that its upper part, lying outside the socket, is pressed against the upper part of the capsular ligament. It seems that at this pressure it is mainly held by the round ligament, which in our case is very strong. 

Erlaubt dieser Befund – offenbar ein Fall von Hemmungsbildung und, wie ich vermuthe, diejenige Form, welche von verschiedenen Autoren als „angeborner Mangel des Lig. teres" aufgefiisst worden ist – einen Schluss auf die normale Entwicklung, so würde anzunehmen sein, dass die Bildung des Lig. teres beim Menschen nicht Mos auf jenem bei Thieren von mir beobachteten pilasterförmigen Einrücken beruht, sondern, dass der femorale Abschnitt des Pilasters sich von der Fläche des Schenkelkopfes, auf welcher derselbe ursprünglich festverwachsen aufliegt, loszuheben hat. Im Gefolge dieser Loshebung dürfte dann auch die Fovea sich bilden. 

If this result appears to be a case of delayed development and, as I suppose, the case which is considered by various authors as "congenital absence of lig. teres" leads to the conclusion of normal development, then one might assume that the formation of lig. teres in man does not depend on such a pilaster-shaped depression as I have observed in animals, but on the fact that the femoral part of the pilaster must be separated from the surface of the femoral head on which it is originally firmly fixed. As a result of this detachment, the formation of the fovea [of the head] presumably occurs.



External links

Welcker H. Die Einwanderung der Bicepssehne in das Schultergelenk. Nebst Notizen über Ligamentim interartictilare humeri and Lig. teres femoris. Archiv für Anatomie und Phisiologie. v. His u. Braune u. Bois-Reymond. Band 1. Leipzig: von Veit & Comp, 1878: 21-42. [archive.org ]

Authors & Affiliations

Hermann Welcker (1822-1897) was a German anatomist, anthropologist also a specialist in the fields of microscopy and biology, a professor and prosector at the University of Halle. [wikipedia.org   , whonamedit.com , catalogus-professorum-halensis.de]

Portrait of Hermann Welcker 
Unknown date; published in 1880s, unknown author; 
Original in the wikimedia.org collection (CC0 – Public Domain, no changes)

Keywords

ligamentum capitis femoris, ligamentum teres, ligament of head of femur, anatomy, embryology, development, zoology, animals 

                                                                     

NB! Fair practice / use: copied for the purposes of criticism, review, comment, research and private study in accordance with Copyright Laws of the US: 17 U.S.C. §107; Copyright Law of the EU: Dir. 2001/29/EC, art.5/3a,d; Copyright Law of the RU: ГК РФ ст.1274/1.1-2,7

MORPHOLOGY AND TOPOGRAPHY
ZOOLOGY AND PALEONTOLOGY
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