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Two specimens of the pycnodont Haquelpycnodus picteti from the Cenomanian (Late Cretaceous) of Lebanon possess small non-dental odontodes flanking the teeth inside the oral cavity. These odontodes are distributed labially with respect to the vomerine and prearticular dentition, corresponding to the internal face of the cheek and in front of the maxilla. They have no relation to any of the bones in the mouth region and were situated in the endo-oral mucosa. This dentition pattern resembles that of the earliest osteichthyans and stem-gnathostomes. SEM-investigation of the non-dental odontodes demonstrates a thick layer of orthodentine covered by two thin outer layers of acrodin. The microchemical composition of these odontodes corresponds to those of the dermal scales (derived from odontodes) that are distributed in the integument of the same examined specimen. Both morphology, ultrastructure, and topographic relationships demonstrate that these structures are dermal and not dental odontodes. The reappearance of dermal odontodes in the dentition of individual specimens of Haquelpycnodus thus reflects the latent capacity of the endo-oral mucosa to form non-dental odontodes. These odontodes probably exerted lateral pressure to the content within the oral cavity, which took place synchronously with the prehensile movements of the incisors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By comparing the morphological variability of two groups of pycnodonts, the Coccodontoidea and the Nursalliini, the author demonstrates that in the Late Cretaceous these two groups had adopted completely different blauplans. Throughout the Cretaceous and the Eocene, the Nursalliini maintained the typical shape of the pycnodonts, rounded and flattened. The Cocodontoidea expressed 21 new species that belonged to 17 new genera, across which there was extraordinary biodiversity. The typical body plan was almost abandoned, and elongated, and somewhat very tapered, forms emerged (Stenoprotome), which lived alongside very short and very high fish. Indeed, this period produced the shortest and the highest fish that have ever lived (Maraldichthys). Indeed, while the more highly variable groups (Coccodontoidea) represented a punctiform episode in the evolutionary history of pycnodonts, remaining confined to the arm of Tethys (central Lebanon) and to the time period corresponding to the lower upper Cenomanian, the morphologically more conservative groups (Nursalliini) colonised the seas of the entire planet from the Cretaceous to the Eocene, even surviving the great mass extinction period corresponding to the Mesozoic-Cenozoic passage. Thus, the enormous biodiversity of Coccodointoidea did not represent a selective advantage over the environmental crisis at the end of the Cretaceous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, a fossil egg case that contains a well-preserved embryo is described. The embryo is characterised by (i) a rostral cartilage, (ii) some ribs, (iii) and a well-developed stinger; (iv) absence of thoracolumbar synarcual. This represents an unique combination of characters which demonstrate that the batoid that produced the egg case was a completely new form, possibly a stem–Myliobatiformes, which remains undetermined in the absence – to date – of any comparable adult specimen. SEM morphological analysis demonstrates that the wall of the fossil egg case was multilaminate, made up of collagen fibres (with a thickness of 2–4 μm): an ultrastructure that has been positively compared to the egg case of living Rajiformes (Raja asteria) and Myliobatifirmes (Hemitrygodon akajeri). The egg case also contains a mass that is interpreted as the remains of yolk sac, internally organised in platelets with a diameter of 25–35 μm. Since in living Myliobatiformes the egg cases disappears from inside the uterus before the end of the embryogenesis, the described fossil is interpreted as an embryo that was prematurely emitted by the pregnant mother, such as an abortion of a batoid dated to the Late Cretaceous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Until now it was believed that the discovery of the Early Cretaceous fossil fish of the Santana Formation, Araripe Plateu, Cearà, Brazil, dated back to the period between 1817 and 1820, when the two Austrian naturalists Johann Baptist von Spix and Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius made an exploratory journey in Brazil. New documents show, however, that it was the German naturalist, naturalized Dutch, Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) who came into possession of at least one specimen of fossil fish from the Araripe Plateau, during her exploratory journeys made in Suriname between 1669 and 1701. Merian inserted an unequivocal drawing of this fish (probably a specimen of Rhacolepis buccalis, insided in a typical concretion nodule from the Santana Formation) in Plate LIX of the book by Jorg Eberhardt Rumph (1628-1702) entitled "D'Amboinsche Rariteitkamer, etc.", which was published posthumously (1705) and which Merian was commissioned to illustrate. The pre-dating of this important scientific event places the discovery of the fossil fish of the Early Cretaceous of Cearà among the first discoveries of fossil fish that took place on a global level, reinforcing the importance of this locality also under a historical point of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author describes the new species of pycnodont, Nursallia fenestrata n. sp., from the Akrabou Formation, dated to the lower Turonian (Late Cretaceous), outcropping in the Moroccan High Atlas Mountains. The new species is a mediumsized pycnodont, characterized by the presence of the following unique combination of the anatomical traits: (i) vomerine teeth with crown with a circular outline and a median notch, (ii) large, well-developed temporal fenestra, (iii) extremely complex intervertebral joints, due to the presence of three pairs (anterior and posterior) of zygoapophyses on each both ventral and dorsal arcocentra, (iv) bar-scales extending exclusively in the dorsal region, never ventrally beyond the vertebral column. The new species has some highly developed characteristics typical of the Nursalliini tribe, such as the complexity of the intervertebral joints. In fact, in Nursallia fenestrata n. sp. the articulations between adjacent arcocentra are hyper-complex throughout the spine. On the other hand, the new species Nursallia fenestrata n. sp. demonstrates that it possesses skeletal characteristics hitherto never found within the Nursalliini tribe, as is the case with the parietal window. Finally, the new species represents the first report of a skeletal remains - moreover in a very peculiar state of conservation (in a three-dimensional calcareous nodule) - of a pycnodon within the Akrabou Formation, dated to the Lower Turonian, outcropping in the Moroccan High Atlas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To document skin lesions on a mummified individual from the XIX century and to diagnose the pathology based historical documentation and physical examination. Marie Leonie Martin (1863–1941) was a Roman Catholic nun. Her naturally mummified body is currently preserved in the Monastery of the Visitation in Caen (France). On the occasion of her beatification, the body was exhumed, studied and restored for conservation purposes. The mummy was analyzed histologically and with CT imaging. The examination of the body noted areas of skin discoloration of reddish color; the paleopathological investigations revealed the presence of skin lesions (pustules) distributed throughout the body, with the exception of the face, abdomen and palms. The histological analyses of the pustules showed the presence of a central duct for the leakage of exudate, hyperkeratosis of the stratum corneum and a proliferation of cells in the spinous layer (acanthosis) of the epidermis. The red discoloration of the skin is typical of extensive erythema. Our understanding of skin conditions in the past is extremely limited. This study provides the first paleopathological case of diagnosed unclassified endogenous eczema and provides insight into the antiquity and effects of the disease. It was not possible to carry out a genetic analysis due to DNA contamination of the mummy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a single vomer with partial dentition collected from the lower part of the Beris member, Dakhla Formation, dated to the Maastrichtian, we describe the new pycnodont Diastemapycnodus tavernensis gen et sp. nov. The characteristics of the new genus are (i) five rows of teeth and (ii) very large diastema interposed between the primary lateral rows and the medial dental row. The new species has the following combination of characteristics: (i) paired primary lateral rows composed of large, rounded teeth that are not ornamented and are significantly larger than the adjacent teeth in both the medial and secondary lateral rows; (ii) teeth of the primary lateral rows with an elliptical profile, with a major axis normal to the major axis of the vomer, and (iii) they are the largest teeth among those that arm the vomer; and (iv) all of the teeth are mostly not ornamented and are smooth on the unworn occlusal surfaces. Diastemapycnodus tavernensis is a pycnodont with a very reduced vomerine dental floor, which certainly falls within the well-known evolutionary lineage with an almost edentulous vomer (Serrasalmimidae). The authors attribute to the new genus Diastemapycnodus also the species 'Typodus' valens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the collective imagination derived from scientific and popular literature, Triceratops often faced each other in combat. Thus, from the second half of the twentieth century, these ceratopsids were described as pugnacious animals. This arises primarily from the interpretation of extracranial fenestrae in ceratopsids being the result of combat trauma. However, the diagnosis of the traumatic nature of these anatomical variants of their neck frill requires evidence of bone healing and remodelling by microscopy analysis. Here, we present the case of the Triceratops horridus known as Big John, which is one of the largest specimens discovered in the Hell Creek Formation (Upper Cretaceous; MT, USA). Its right squamosal bone shows an extrafenestra with irregular margins and signs of inflammation. Microscopy analysis revealed newly formed and healing bone, with histological signs typical of the bone remodelling phase. Chemical analysis revealed sulphur that was derived from glycosaminoglycan's and sulphated glycoproteins of the preosseous osteoid substance present in the healing phases of a bone trauma. Histological and microanalytical analyses confirm that the squamosal fenestra of Big John is the result of a traumatic event, which might indeed have occurred during combat with another Triceratops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blessed Egidio was a revered Catholic friar who lived in Basilicata (southern Italy) between the 15th and 16th centuries A.D. His natural mummy is preserved in the Mother Church of Laurenzana, the village where he lived. During the recent restoration and conservation of the relic, palaeopathological analysis was carried out. This revealed osteolytic lesions that affected the maxillary bones, as two injuries that were different in morphology and size that distinctly afflicted the right and left maxillae. The macroscopic and radiographic appearance of the lesion on the right maxilla and its proximity to the right premolar tooth that showed periapical granuloma suggest a diagnosis of an inflammatory odontogenic cyst (radicular cyst). The second lesion, of the left maxilla, was non‐specific and might have been the consequence of an inflammatory process. Odontogenic cysts are common in modern human populations but have been poorly described to date in ancient populations. The case of Blessed Egidio represents a new and rare case diagnosed in the field of palaeopathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Correction to: I Scientific Reports i https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-08033-2, published online 07 April 2022 The original version of this Article contained errors, where the place of discovery of I Triceratops horridus, i known as Big John, was incorrectly stated as "Hell Creek Formation (Upper Cretaceous; MT, USA)". As a result, in the Abstract, "Here, we present the case of the I Triceratops horridus i known as Big John, which is one of the largest specimens discovered in the Hell Creek Formation (Upper Cretaceous; MT, USA)." now reads: "Here, we present the case of the I Triceratops horridus i known as Big John, which is one of the largest specimens discovered in the Hell Creek Formation (Upper Cretaceous; South Dakota, USA)." Additionally, in the third paragraph of the Introduction, "The specimen of I Triceratops horridus i known as Big John (due to its large size) was discovered in 2014 in the Upper Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation (MT, USA), from where numerous remains of Ceratopsidae (Chasmosaurinae) have been recovered SP 4-6 sp (see Supplementary Information)." now reads: "The specimen of I Triceratops horridus i known as Big John (due to its large size) was discovered in 2014 in the Upper Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation (South Dakota, USA), from where numerous remains of Ceratopsidae (Chasmosaurinae) have been recovered SP 4-6 sp (see Supplementary Information).". [Extracted from the article]