Endocranial development in non-avian dinosaurs reveals an ontogenetic brain trajectory distinct from extant archosaurs

Logan King (), Qi Zhao, David L. Dufeau, Soichiro Kawabe, Lawrence Witmer, Chang-Fu Zhou, Emily J. Rayfield, Michael J. Benton and Akinobu Watanabe ()
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Logan King: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Qi Zhao: Chinese Academy of Sciences
David L. Dufeau: Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Soichiro Kawabe: Eiheiji
Lawrence Witmer: Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine
Chang-Fu Zhou: Shandong University of Science and Technology
Emily J. Rayfield: Tyndall Avenue
Michael J. Benton: Tyndall Avenue
Akinobu Watanabe: New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Modern birds possess highly encephalized brains that evolved from non-avian dinosaurs. Evolutionary shifts in developmental timing, namely juvenilization of adult phenotypes, have been proposed as a driver of head evolution along the dinosaur-bird transition, including brain morphology. Testing this hypothesis requires a sufficient developmental sampling of brain morphology in non-avian dinosaurs. In this study, we harness brain endocasts of a postnatal growth series of the ornithischian dinosaur Psittacosaurus and several other immature and mature non-avian dinosaurs to investigate how evolutionary changes to brain development are implicated in the origin of the avian brain. Using three-dimensional characterization of neuroanatomical shape across archosaurian reptiles, we demonstrate that (i) the brain of non-avian dinosaurs underwent a distinct developmental trajectory compared to alligators and crown birds; (ii) ornithischian and non-avialan theropod dinosaurs shared a similar developmental trajectory, suggesting that their derived trajectory evolved in their common ancestor; and (iii) the evolutionary shift in developmental trajectories is partly consistent with paedomorphosis underlying overall brain shape evolution along the dinosaur-bird transition; however, the heterochronic signal is not uniform across time and neuroanatomical region suggesting a highly mosaic acquisition of the avian brain form.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51627-9

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