%A Prof. Dr. Uner Tan
%J Frontiers in Neuroscience
%T Two families with quadrupedalism, mental retardation, no
speech, and infantile hypotonia (Uner Tan Syndrome
Type-II); a novel theory for the evolutionary emergence of
human bipedalism
%X Two consanguineous families with Uner Tan Syndrome (UTS) were analyzed in relation to self-organizing processes in complex systems, and the evolutionary emergence of human
bipedalism. The cases had the key symptoms of previously reported cases of UTS, such as quadrupedalism, mental retardation, and dysarthric or no speech, but the new cases
also exhibited infantile hypotonia and are designated UTS Type-II. There were 10 siblings in Branch I and 12 siblings in Branch II. Of these, there were seven cases exhibiting habitual quadrupedal locomotion (QL): four deceased and three living. The infantile hypotonia in the
surviving cases gradually disappeared over a period of years, so that they could sit by about 10 years, crawl on hands and knees by about 12 years. They began walking on all fours at around 14 years, habitually using QL. Neurological examinations showed normal tonus in
their arms and legs, no Babinski sign, brisk tendon re?exes especially in the legs, and mild tremor. The patients could not walk in a straight line, but (except in one case) could stand up and maintain upright posture with truncal ataxia. Cerebello-vermial hypoplasia and mild gyral simpli?cation were noted in their MRIs. The results of the genetic analysis were inconclusive: no genetic code could be identi?ed as the triggering factor for the syndrome
in these families. Instead, the extremely low socio-economic status of the patients was thought to play a role in the emergence of UTS, possibly by epigenetically changing the brain structure and function, with a consequent selection of ancestral neural networks for
QL during locomotor development. It was suggested that UTS may be regarded as one of the unpredictable outcomes of self-organization within a complex system. It was also
noted that the prominent feature of this syndrome, the diagonal-sequence habitual QL, generated an interference between ipsilateral hands and feet, as innon-humanprimates. It was suggested that this may have been the triggering factor for the attractor state ?bipedal locomotion? (BL), which had visual and manual bene?ts for our ape-like ancestors, and therefore enhancing their chances for survival, with consequent developments in the psychomotor domain of humans. This was put forward as a novel theory of the evolution of BL in human beings.
%N 84
%K Uner Tan syndrome, ataxia, quadrupedalism, evolution, complex systems, self-organization
%E Dr. J. Michael Williams
%V 8
%D 2014
%I www.frontiers.org
%L cogprints9686

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