Terminology Service for NFDI4Health

tarsal bone

Go to external page http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/UBERON_0001447


A bone that is part of the tarsal skeleton. Examples: calcaneus, talus, centralia. [ https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6601-2165 ]

Term info

Label

tarsal bone

Synonyms
  • ankle bone
  • bone of ankle
  • bone of tarsal skeleton
  • bone of tarsus
  • ossa tarsalia
  • ossa tarsi
database cross reference
Subsets

uberon_slim, pheno_slim

plural term
ossa tarsalia [ FMA : TA FMA : 71339 ]

plural term
ossa tarsi [ FMA : 71339 FMA : TA ]

depicted by

http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/Ankle_en.svg

has related synonym

bony tarsus, hind mesopodium, tarsus osseus, tarsal

id

UBERON:0001447

taxon notes

In primitive tetrapods, such as Trematops, the tarsus consists of three rows of bones. There are three proximal tarsals, the tibiale, intermedium, and fibulare, named for their points of articulation with the bones of the lower limb. These are followed by a second row of four bones, referred to as the centralia (singular: centrale), and then a row of five distal tarsals, each articulating with a single metatarsal. In the great majority of tetrapods, including all of those alive today, this simple pattern is modified by the loss and fusion of various of the bones.[3] In reptiles and mammals, there are normally just two proximal tarsals, the calcaneus (equivalent to the amphibian fibulare) and the talus (probably derived from a fusion of multiple bones). In mammals, including humans, the talus forms a hinge joint with the tibia, a feature especially well developed in the artiodactyls. The calcaneus is also modified, forming a heel for the attachment of the Achilles tendon. Neither of these adaptations is found in reptiles, which have a relatively simple structure to both bones.[3] The fifth distal tarsal disappears relatively early in evolution, with the remainder becoming the cuneiform and cuboid bones. Reptiles usually retain two centralia, while mammals typically have only one (the navicular).[3] In birds, the tarsus has disappeared, with the proximal tarsals having fused with the tibia, the centralia having disappeared, and the distal bones having fused with the metatarsals to form a single tarsometatarsus bone, effectively giving the leg a third segment