Segmental Arterial Mediolysis in a Patient With Ascending Aorta Dilatation.

A 70-year-old woman consulted us for dyspnea. Echocardiography revealed moderate aortic regurgitation secondary to ascending aorta dilatation. Study was completed with aortic angiography computed tomography, showing stenosis and dissection of several visceral arteries. There were no abnormal inflammatory or autoimmune markers, nor fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography uptake. Segmental arterial mediolysis was diagnosed.

Osteohistological characterization of notosuchian osteoderms: Evidence for an overlying thick leathery layer of skin.

Osteoderms are mineralized structures embedded in the dermis, known for nonavian archosaurs, squamates, xenarthrans, and amphibians. Herein, we compared the osteoderm histology of Brazilian Notosuchia of Cretaceous age using three neosuchians for comparative purposes. Microanatomical analyses showed that most of them present a diploe structure similar to those of other pseudosuchians, lizards, and turtles. This structure contains two cortices (the external cortex composed of an outer and an inner layers, and the basal cortex) and a core in-between them. Notosuchian osteoderms show high bone compactness (>0.85) with varying degrees of cancellous bone in the core. The neosuchian Guarinisuchus shows the lowest bone compactness with a well-developed cancellous layer. From an ontogenetic perspective, most tissues are formed through periosteal ossification, although the mineralized tissues observed in baurusuchid LPRP/USP 0634 suggest a late metaplastic development. Histology suggests that the ossification center of notosuchian osteoderm is located at the keel. Interestingly, we identified Sharpey's fibers running perpendicularly to the outer layer of the external cortex in Armadillosuchus arrudai, Itasuchus jesuinoi, and Baurusuchidae (LPRP/USP 0642). This feature indicates a tight attachment within the dermis, and it is evidence for the presence of an overlying thick leathery layer of skin over these osteoderms. These data allow a better understanding of the osteohistological structure of crocodylomorph dermal bones, and highlight their structural diversity. We suggest that the vascular canals present in some sampled osteoderms connecting the inner layer of the external cortex and the core with the external surface may increase osteoderm surface and the capacity of heat transfer in terrestrial notosuchians.

Fossil basicranium clarifies the origin of the avian central nervous system and inner ear.

Among terrestrial vertebrates, only crown birds (Neornithes) rival mammals in terms of relative brain size and behavioural complexity. Relatedly, the anatomy of the avian central nervous system and associated sensory structures, such as the vestibular system of the inner ear, are highly modified with respect to those of other extant reptile lineages. However, a dearth of three-dimensional Mesozoic fossils has limited our knowledge of the origins of the distinctive endocranial structures of crown birds. Traits such as an expanded, flexed brain, a ventral connection between the brain and spinal column, and a modified vestibular system have been regarded as exclusive to Neornithes. Here, we demonstrate all of these 'advanced' traits in an undistorted braincase from an Upper Cretaceous enantiornithine bonebed in southeastern Brazil. Our discovery suggests that these crown bird-like endocranial traits may have originated prior to the split between Enantiornithes and the more crownward portion of avian phylogeny over 140 Ma, while coexisting with a remarkably plesiomorphic cranial base and posterior palate region. Altogether, our results support the interpretation that the distinctive endocranial morphologies of crown birds and their Mesozoic relatives are affected by complex trade-offs between spatial constraints during development.

Dental replacement in Mesozoic birds: evidence from newly discovered Brazilian enantiornithines.

Polyphyodonty-multiple tooth generations-in Mesozoic birds has been confirmed since the nineteenth century. Their dental cycle had been assessed through sparse data from tooth roots revealed through broken jawbones and disattached teeth. However, detailed descriptions of their tooth cycling are lacking, and the specifics of their replacement patterns remain largely unknown. Here we present unprecedented µCT data from three enantiornithine specimens from the Upper Cretaceous of southeastern Brazil. The high resolution µCT data show an alternating dental replacement pattern in the premaxillae, consistent with the widespread pattern amongst extinct and extant reptiles. The dentary also reveals dental replacement at different stages. These results strongly suggest that an alternating pattern was typical of enantiornithine birds. µCT data show that new teeth start lingually within the alveoli, resorb roots of functional teeth and migrate labially into their pulp cavities at an early stage, similar to modern crocodilians. Our results imply that the control mechanism for tooth cycling is conserved during the transition between non-avian reptiles and birds. These first 3D reconstructions of enantiornithine dental replacement demonstrate that 3D data are essential to understand the evolution and deep homology of archosaurian tooth cycling.

A new titanosaur sauropod from the Late Cretaceous of Brazil.

A new titanosaur dinosaur, Brasilotitan nemophagus gen. et sp. nov., is described from the Adamantina Formation (Turonian-Santonian, Bauru Basin). The specimen consists of a dentary, cervical and sacral vertebrae, one ungual and remains of the pelvic region, that were collected near Presidente Prudente city, Sdo Paulo State. It shows a mandible with an 'L' shaped morphology, with the symphyseal region of the dentary slightly twisted medially, a feature never recorded before in a titanosaur. Brasilotitan nemophagus can be further separated from other members of this clade by: (1) the dorsal portion of the dentary symphyseal contact is broader anteroposteriorly than the ventral part; (2) the ventral portion of the cervical centrum is arched dorsally; (3) the presence of an anteriorly directed accessory prezygapophyseal articulation surface on the cervical vertebrae; (4) the intraprezygapophyseal laminae of the cervical vertebrae are 'V' shaped in dorsal view; and other features. Although the phylogenetic position of Brasilotitan nemophagus is difficult to establish, the new species is neither a basal nor a derived member of the Titanosauria and, based on the lower jaw morphology, appears to be closely related to Antarctosaurus wichmannianus and Bonitasaura salgadoi. This discovery enriches the titanosaur diversity of Brazil and further provides new anatomical information on the lower jaws of those herbivorous dinosaurs.

A new squamate lizard from the Upper Cretaceous Adamantina Formation (Bauru Group), São Paulo State, Brazil.

The record of non-mosasaur squamates (Reptilia, Squamata) is sparse in the Cretaceus fossil record of Brazil and include six putative reports, three from the Aptian-Albian of the Araripe Basin (Tijubina pontei Bonfim-Júnior and Marques, Olindalacerta brasiliensis Evans and Yabumoto, and a lizard indet.) and three from the Upper Cretaceous of the Bauru Group (Pristiguana brasiliensis Estes and Price, Anilioidae gen. et sp. indet., and Squamata gen. et sp. indet.). In this contribution, a new genus and species of lizard, Brasiliguana prudentis gen. et sp. nov., is described based on an isolated left maxilla with teeth. The material was discovered in an outcrop of the Upper Cretaceous Adamantina Formation (Bauru Group) located in the proximity of Presidente Prudente Municipality, São Paulo State, Brazil. The new taxon is considered a basal non-Priscagamidae+Acrodonta iguanian based on the presence of a weakly inclined anterior margin of the maxillary nasal process and maxillary tooth shape and tooth implantation similar to that of iguanians rather than of other lizard groups (e.g. teiids). This finding significantly increases the squamate lizard diversity of South America, which is still poorly understood and sparsely represented in the fossil record.

A new squamate lizard from the Upper Cretaceous Adamantina Formation (Bauru Group), São Paulo State, Brazil

The record of non-mosasaur squamates (Reptilia, Squamata) is sparse in the Cretaceus fossil record of Brazil and include six putative reports, three from the Aptian-Albian of the Araripe Basin (Tijubina pontei Bonfim-Júnior and Marques, Olindalacerta brasiliensis Evans and Yabumoto, and a lizard indet.) and three from the Upper Cretaceous of the Bauru Group (Pristiguana brasiliensis Estes and Price, Anilioidae gen. et sp. indet., and Squamata gen. et sp. indet.). In this contribution, a new genus and species of lizard, Brasiliguana prudentis gen. et sp. nov., is described based on an isolated left maxilla with teeth. The material was discovered in an outcrop of the Upper Cretaceous Adamantina Formation (Bauru Group) located in the proximity of Presidente Prudente Municipality, São Paulo State, Brazil. The new taxon is considered a basal non-Priscagamidae+Acrodonta iguanian based on the presence of a weakly inclined anterior margin of the maxillary nasal process and maxillary tooth shape and tooth implantation similar to that of iguanians rather than of other lizard groups (e.g. teiids). This finding significantly increases the squamate lizard diversity of South America, which is still poorly understood and sparsely represented in the fossil record.

Os achados de escamados (Reptilia, Squamata) são escassos no Cretáceo do Brasil, incluindo cinco registros pontuais, dois do Aptiano-Albiano da Bacia do Araripe (Tijubina pontei Bonfim-Júnior e Marques e Olindalacerta brasiliensis Evans e Yabumoto), e três do Cretáceo Superior do Grupo Bauru (Pristiguana brasiliensis Estes and Price, Anilioidae gen. et sp. indet., Squamata gen. et sp. indet.). Nesta contribuição apresentamos um novo gênero e espécie de lagarto, Brasiliguana prudentis, baseado numa maxila esquerda com dentição. O material provém de depósitos da Formação Adamantina aflorantes próximos a cidade de Presidente Prudente, Estado de São Paulo, Brasil. O novo táxon é considerado um iguanídeo não-Priscagamidae+Acrodonta baseado na presença de uma margem anterior do processo nasal do maxilar pouco inclinada e na morfologia maxilar e dentaria mais semelhante à de outros iguanideos que a outros grupos de lagartos (ex. teiídeos). A presente descoberta aumenta a diversidade de lagartos escamados na América do Sul onde o registro fóssil é ainda raro.

Presencia de quiste de baker asociada a patología intraarticular / Baker's cyst associative a intraarticular pathology

Este es un estudio retrospectivo donde se revisaron las historias de 2439 pacientes, entre diciembre 1994 y enero 1997 y se seleccionaron 56 que presentaran un quiste de baker al examen físico se correlacionaron, con su motivo de consulta, el examen físico y los hallazgos de patología intraarticular encontrados en el acto quirúrgico promedio de edad: 57 años (19-82 años). La presencia de plica sinoviales (25 por ciento) seguido de lesiones meniscales (19,6 por ciento) fueron los hallazgos más comunes intraarticulares