De Vreese Steffen, Orekhova Ksenia, Morell Maria, Gerussi Tommaso, Graïc Jean-Marie
Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics (LAB), Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya-BarcelonaTech (UPC), 08800 Vilanova i la Geltrú, Spain.
Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science (BCA), University of Padova, 35020 Legnaro, Italy.
Animals (Basel). 2023 Dec 23;14(1):66. doi: 10.3390/ani14010066.
Cetaceans have undergone profound sensory adaptations in response to their aquatic environment during evolution. These adaptations are characterised by anatomo-functional changes in the classically defined sensory systems, shaping their neuroanatomy accordingly. This review offers a concise and up-to-date overview of our current understanding of the neuroanatomy associated with cetacean sensory systems. It encompasses a wide spectrum, ranging from the peripheral sensory cells responsible for detecting environmental cues, to the intricate structures within the central nervous system that process and interpret sensory information. Despite considerable progress in this field, numerous knowledge gaps persist, impeding a comprehensive and integrated understanding of their sensory adaptations, and through them, of their sensory perspective. By synthesising recent advances in neuroanatomical research, this review aims to shed light on the intricate sensory alterations that differentiate cetaceans from other mammals and allow them to thrive in the marine environment. Furthermore, it highlights pertinent knowledge gaps and invites future investigations to deepen our understanding of the complex processes in cetacean sensory ecology and anatomy, physiology and pathology in the scope of conservation biology.
鲸类在进化过程中为适应水生环境经历了深刻的感官适应性变化。这些适应性变化的特征是经典定义的感官系统发生了解剖功能上的改变，并相应地塑造了它们的神经解剖结构。本综述简要且最新地概述了我们目前对与鲸类感官系统相关的神经解剖学的理解。它涵盖范围广泛，从负责检测环境线索的外周感觉细胞，到中枢神经系统中处理和解释感官信息的复杂结构。尽管该领域取得了显著进展，但仍存在许多知识空白，阻碍了对它们感官适应性以及通过这些适应性对它们的感官视角进行全面和综合的理解。通过综合神经解剖学研究的最新进展，本综述旨在阐明使鲸类与其他哺乳动物区分开来并使其在海洋环境中繁衍生息的复杂感官变化。此外，它突出了相关的知识空白，并呼吁未来进行研究，以加深我们在保护生物学范围内对鲸类感官生态、解剖学、生理学和病理学中复杂过程的理解。
