{
  "abstract": "The maintenance of locomotor performance across temperatures is critical to ectotherm fitness but is limited by the thermal sensitivity of the myosin ATPase enzyme. However, sprint performance in lizards appears more thermally robust than the muscles powering it, potentially due to power amplification by elastic tendons. To explore this, we determined the thermal sensitivity of Sceloporus occidentalis acceleration at 15–35°C, used inverse dynamics to estimate in vivo muscle powers at hindlimb joints and compared these to predicted maximum muscle powers. The Q10 of acceleration was 1.7–2.5, compared with literature Q10 values of 2–3 for muscle power. Maximum in vivo power was ∼180, 622 and 881 W kg−1 at the ankle, ∼127, 393 and 433 W kg−1 at the knee, and ∼41, 176 and 193 W kg−1 at the hip at 15°C, 25°C and 35°C, respectively. Comparison with predicted maximum muscle powers suggest amplifications of ∼2.2, 3.8 and 2.7-fold at 15°C, 25°C and 35°C at the ankle. There was little power amplification at the knee and hip except for a ∼2.4-fold amplification at the knee at 25°C; hip power appeared sub-maximal at 35°C. This is consistent with the limited presence of in-series elastic elements at the knee and, particularly, the hip. These results suggest that power amplification at the ankle is critical to the sprint performance of S. occidentalis and its thermal robustness of 25–35°C, but that there is an additional limit to sprint performance at 35°C that may contribute to the apparent thermal robustness.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Biology, Barnard College, Columbia University, 3009 Broadway, New York, NY 10027, USA",
    "Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, University of California, Riverside, 900 University Ave, Riverside, CA 92521, USA",
    "Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jordan Balaban",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2848-5444"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Natalie C. Holt",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-0006-1279"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Anthony Cobos",
      "orcid": "0009-0001-9215-4052"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Emanuel Azizi"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2q97hgxeen739.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1242/jeb.252628",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13723400/",
  "id": "2q97hgxeen739",
  "issns": [
    "0022-0949",
    "1477-9145"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.252628",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Research Article"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2303|Physiological and biochemical adaptations"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223578056",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": "PMC13723400",
  "pmid": "42924554",
  "published": "2026-10-23",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2q97hgxeen739.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T12:22:02Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13723400",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.252628"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:2303|Physiological and biochemical adaptations",
      "subfield": "ecology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Muscle power amplification may enhance sprint performance and broaden the thermal performance of the lizard Sceloporus occidentalis. I: Sprint performance and joint powers",
  "title_text": "Muscle power amplification may enhance sprint performance and broaden the thermal performance of the lizard Sceloporus occidentalis. I: Sprint performance and joint powers",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-05T12:20:13Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2q97hgxeen739",
  "venue": "The Journal of Experimental Biology",
  "versions": []
}