New anuran remains from the late Cretaceous of western São Paulo (Brazil) enlarge the record of the bizarre frog Baurubatrachus

We present new remains of a fossil frog from the outcrops of the Adamantina Formation (Campanian; Bauru Group) at Catanduva city, São Paulo state, Brazil. The specimen consists of associated, though disarticulated, cranial and postcranial elements, whose preservation retains many details; some of the bones are even preserved in their full extent. Dermal skullroof elements show hyperossification in the ways of sculpturing and wide extension of some bones. According to its ossification degree, including the fused ilia and the fully ossified puboischiadic plate, the skeleton corresponds to a fully grown individual. The preliminary study indicates this specimen has the peculiar combination of characters described for the neobatrachian Baurubatrachus pricei from the younger Serra da Galga Formation (Maastrichtian) of the same group. This combination includes a squamosal bearing a lamella alaris surrounding what might have been the tympanic membrane, a long scapula having a ventrally deflected tenuita cristaeformis, and ischia well ossified with an extensive posterodorsal expansion. The specimen is certainly referred to Baurubatrachus, denoting the early presence of this taxon in the Campanian Adamantina Formation. The new specimen shows some differences from the holotype of B. pricei regarding the proportion of the skeleton, suggesting that it might represent a new species. It is noteworthy, however, the striking similarity of the two specimens even coming from different and successive formations, indicating a marked morphological stasis for the genus. Besides, the Bauru Group stands as a relevant unit for the understanding of the early evolution of Neobatrachia.Fil: Muzzopappa, Paula. Universidad Maimónides. Área de Investigaciones Biomédicas y Biotecnológicas. Centro de Estudios Biomédicos, Biotecnológicos, Ambientales y de Diagnóstico; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación de Historia Natural Félix de Azara; ArgentinaFil: Iori, Fabbiano V.. Museu de Paleontologia “Prof. Antonio Celso de Arruda Campos"; BrasilFil: Muniz, Felipe P.. Universidade de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: Martinelli, Agustín Guillermo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentina34º Jornadas Argentinas de Paleontología de VertebradosMendozaArgentinaMuseo de Historia Natural de San RafaelMuseo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientale

A kaleidoscope of photosynthetic antenna proteins and their emerging roles

The latest fundamental knowledge obtained on the light-harvesting mechanisms of the antenna proteins can be bridged to biotechnical optimization of photosynthesis.Photosynthetic light-harvesting antennae are pigment-binding proteins that perform one of the most fundamental tasks on Earth, capturing light and transferring energy that enables life in our biosphere. Adaptation to different light environments led to the evolution of an astonishing diversity of light-harvesting systems. At the same time, several strategies have been developed to optimize the light energy input into photosynthetic membranes in response to fluctuating conditions. The basic feature of these prompt responses is the dynamic nature of antenna complexes, whose function readily adapts to the light available. High-resolution microscopy and spectroscopic studies on membrane dynamics demonstrate the crosstalk between antennae and other thylakoid membrane components. With the increased understanding of light-harvesting mechanisms and their regulation, efforts are focusing on the development of sustainable processes for effective conversion of sunlight into functional bio-products. The major challenge in this approach lies in the application of fundamental discoveries in light-harvesting systems for the improvement of plant or algal photosynthesis. Here, we underline some of the latest fundamental discoveries on the molecular mechanisms and regulation of light harvesting that can potentially be exploited for the optimization of photosynthesis

A glimpse at the ontogeny of the fossil neobatrachian frog Calyptocephalella canqueli from the Deseadan (Oligocene) of Patagonia, Argentina

Two fossil tadpoles collected in the Deseadan levels (Oligocene) at the Scarritt Pocket locality of central Patagonia are studied herein. These specimens, which show different degrees of skeletal development, have been assigned to the neobatrachian Calyptocephalella canqueli based on the morphology of the frontoparietals and the presence of adult specimens of this fossil species at the same locality. The concurrent analysis of three developmental stages (Gosner Stages 35/36 and 38/39, and adult) has provided significant data about the ontogeny of this species, including the change of the pattern of exostosis of the frontoparietals, from a pitted to a tuberculated pattern, and the corroboration of the inclusion of two neural arches in the formation of the urostyle. This evidence will shed light on developmental mechanisms that might be involved in the evolution of the genus Callyptocephalella

Exceptional avian pellet from the Paleocene of Patagonia and description of its content: a new species of calyptocephalellid (Neobatrachia) anuran

A fossil gastric pellet from the Danian ‘Banco Negro Inferior’ of the Salamanca Formation at Punta Peligro Locality (Chubut, Argentina) and its 3D preserved fossil content is studied herein. The structure of the pellet and the condition of the enclosed bones suggest that it was produced by a bird of prey, although birds of any kind are as yet unknown from osteological remains in the Banco Negro ecosystem. The content of the pellet originated from a single anuran individual, representing a new species of the genus Calyptocephalella, is described herein as C. sabrosa sp. nov. The new find highlights the broad temporal, geographical and taxonomic diversity of this frog genus in Patagonia's geological past.Fil: Muzzopappa, Paula. Fundación de Historia Natural Félix de Azara; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Martinelli, Agustín Guillermo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Garderes, Juan Pablo. Fundación de Historia Natural Félix de Azara; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Rougier, Guillermo Walter. University of Louisville; Estados Unido