The other day, Lauren mentioned to me that her anatomy professor was teaching the class that the appendix is a functionless organ. This view, that it is a vestigal organ, a remnant of evolution, is certainly a common one. There is, however, no real reason to believe it. What follows is a collection of articles I have found, either directly via google search, or indirectly via the references in other articles (some of which are here).
- Loren G. Martin. Answering "What is the function of the human appendix? Did it once have a purpose that has since been lost?" in the "Ask the Experts" section of Scientific American. Answer posted 1999-10-21. http://www.sciam.com/askexpert_question.cfm?articleID=000CAE56-7201-1C71-9EB7809EC588F2D7
- Ms. Julie Pomerantz. Answering "Does the appendix serve a purpose in any animal?" in the "Ask the Experts" section of Scientific American. Answer posted 2002-12-02.
- Fisher, RE. 2000. "The primate appendix: a reassessment." The Anatomical Record (New Anatomist) 261:228-236.
- Dasso JF. Obiakor H. Bach H. Anderson AO. Mage RG. 2000. "A morphological and immunohistological study of the human and rabbit appendix for comparison with the avian bursa." Developmental & Comparative Immunology. 24(8):797-814.
- NIAID. "The Immune System" NIAID NetNews. 2003-09-25. http://www.niaid.nih.gov/final/immun/immun.htm
- Professor Gordon C. Mills, Professor Malcolm Lancaster, Professor Walter L. Bradley. "Origin of Life & Evolution in Biology Textbooks - A Critique." Reposted at Access Research Network. 2001-10-03. http://www.arn.org/docs/mills/gm_originoflifeandevolution.htm
- Mr. Christopher Wanjek. "The Appendix: Slimy But Not Worthless." Health SciTech 2006-05-30. http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/060530_bad_appendix.html