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Wang H, Wang Y. Middle ear innovation in Early Cretaceous eutherian mammals. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6831. [PMID: 37884521 PMCID: PMC10603157 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42606-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The middle ear ossicles in modern mammals are repurposed from postdentary bones in non-mammalian cynodonts. Recent discoveries by palaeontological and embryonic studies have developed different models for the middle ear evolution in mammaliaforms. However, little is known about the evolutionary scenario of the middle ear in early therians. Here we report a detached middle ear preserved in a new eutherian mammal from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota. The well-preserved articulation of the malleus and incus suggest that the saddle-shaped incudomallear joint is a major apomorphy of Early Cretaceous eutherians. By contrast to the distinct saddle-like incudomallear articulation in therians, differences between the overlapping versus the half-overlapping incudomallear joints in monotremes and stem mammals would be relatively minor. The middle ear belongs to the microtype by definition, indicating its adaptation to high-frequency hearing. Current evidence indicates that significant evolutionary innovations of the middle ear in modern therians evolved in Early Cretaceous.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haibing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100044, Beijing, China.
| | - Yuanqing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100044, Beijing, China.
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
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2
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Wang HB, Hoffmann S, Wang DC, Wang YQ. A new mammal from the Lower Cretaceous Jehol Biota and implications for eutherian evolution. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210042. [PMID: 35125007 PMCID: PMC8819371 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Here we report on a new Early Cretaceous eutherian represented by a partial skeleton from the Jiufotang Formation at Sihedang site, Lingyuan City, Liaoning Province that fills a crucial gap between the earliest eutherians from the Yixian Formation and later Cretaceous eutherians. The new specimen reveals, to our knowledge for the first time in eutherians, that the Meckelian cartilage was ossified but reduced in size, confirming a complete detachment of the middle ear from the lower jaw. Seven hyoid elements, including paired stylohyals, epihyals and thyrohyals and the single basihyal are preserved. For the inner ear the ossified primary lamina, base of the secondary lamina, ossified cochlear ganglion and secondary crus commune are present and the cochlear canal is coiled through 360°. In addition, plesiomorphic features of the dentition include weak conules, lack of pre- and post-cingula and less expanded protocones on the upper molars and height differential between the trigonid and talonid, a large protoconid and a small paraconid on the lower molars. The new taxon displays an alternating pattern of tooth replacement with P3 being the last upper premolar to erupt similar to the basal eutherian Juramaia. Parsimony analysis places the new taxon with Montanalestes, Sinodelphys and Ambolestes as a sister group to other eutherians. This article is part of the theme issue 'The impact of Chinese palaeontology on evolutionary research'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hai-Bing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing, People's Republic of China.,Centre for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.,Key State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, People's Republic of China
| | - Simone Hoffmann
- Department of Anatomy, College of Osteopathic Medicine, New York Institute of Technology, Old Westbury, NY, USA
| | - Dian-Can Wang
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Peking University School of Stomatology, 22 South Zhongguancun Avenue, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Yuan-Qing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing, People's Republic of China.,Centre for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.,College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China
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3
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Suarez CA, Frederickson J, Cifelli RL, Pittman JG, Nydam RL, Hunt-Foster RK, Morgan K. A new vertebrate fauna from the Lower Cretaceous Holly Creek Formation of the Trinity Group, southwest Arkansas, USA. PeerJ 2021; 9:e12242. [PMID: 34721970 PMCID: PMC8542373 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.12242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We present a previously discovered but undescribed late Early Cretaceous vertebrate fauna from the Holly Creek Formation of the Trinity Group in Arkansas. The site from the ancient Gulf Coast is dominated by semi-aquatic forms and preserves a diverse aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial fauna. Fishes include fresh- to brackish-water chondrichthyans and a variety of actinopterygians, including semionotids, an amiid, and a new pycnodontiform, Anomoeodus caddoi sp. nov. Semi-aquatic taxa include lissamphibians, the solemydid turtle Naomichelys, a trionychid turtle, and coelognathosuchian crocodyliforms. Among terrestrial forms are several members of Dinosauria and one or more squamates, one of which, Sciroseps pawhuskai gen. et sp. nov., is described herein. Among Dinosauria, both large and small theropods (Acrocanthosaurus, Deinonychus, and Richardoestesia) and titanosauriform sauropods are represented; herein we also report the first occurrence of a nodosaurid ankylosaur from the Trinity Group. The fauna of the Holly Creek Formation is similar to other, widely scattered late Early Cretaceous assemblages across North America and suggests the presence of a low-diversity, broadly distributed continental ecosystem of the Early Cretaceous following the Late Jurassic faunal turnover. This low-diversity ecosystem contrasts sharply with the highly diverse ecosystem which emerged by the Cenomanian. The contrast underpins the importance of vicariance as an evolutionary driver brought on by Sevier tectonics and climatic changes, such as rising sea level and formation of the Western Interior Seaway, impacting the early Late Cretaceous ecosystem.
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Affiliation(s)
- Celina A Suarez
- Department of Geosciences, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Joseph Frederickson
- Weis Earth Science Museum, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Fox Cities Campus, Menasha, WI, USA
| | - Richard L Cifelli
- Department of Vertebrate Paleontology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
| | | | - Randall L Nydam
- Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, Arizona, USA
| | | | - Kirsty Morgan
- Department of Geosciences, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
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4
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Martinelli AG, Soto-Acuña S, Goin FJ, Kaluza J, Bostelmann JE, Fonseca PHM, Reguero MA, Leppe M, Vargas AO. New cladotherian mammal from southern Chile and the evolution of mesungulatid meridiolestidans at the dusk of the Mesozoic era. Sci Rep 2021; 11:7594. [PMID: 33828193 PMCID: PMC8027844 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-87245-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last decades, several discoveries have uncovered the complexity of mammalian evolution during the Mesozoic Era, including important Gondwanan lineages: the australosphenidans, gondwanatherians, and meridiolestidans (Dryolestoidea). Most often, their presence and diversity is documented by isolated teeth and jaws. Here, we describe a new meridiolestidan mammal, Orretherium tzen gen. et sp. nov., from the Late Cretaceous of southern Chile, based on a partial jaw with five cheek teeth in locis and an isolated upper premolar. Phylogenetic analysis places Orretherium as the earliest divergence within Mesungulatidae, before other forms such as the Late Cretaceous Mesungulatum and Coloniatherium, and the early Paleocene Peligrotherium. The in loco tooth sequence (last two premolars and three molars) is the first recovered for a Cretaceous taxon in this family and suggests that reconstructed tooth sequences for other Mesozoic mesungulatids may include more than one species. Tooth eruption and replacement show that molar eruption in mesungulatids is heterochronically delayed with regard to basal dryolestoids, with therian-like simultaneous eruption of the last premolar and last molar. Meridiolestidans seem endemic to Patagonia, but given their diversity and abundance, and the similarity of vertebrate faunas in other regions of Gondwana, they may yet be discovered in other continents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agustín G Martinelli
- CONICET-Sección Paleontología de Vertebrados, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia", Av. Ángel Gallardo 470, C1405DJR, CABA, Argentina.
- Red Paleontológica U-Chile, Laboratorio de Ontogenia y Filogenia, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Las Palmeras 3425, 7750000, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Sergio Soto-Acuña
- Red Paleontológica U-Chile, Laboratorio de Ontogenia y Filogenia, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Las Palmeras 3425, 7750000, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile.
- KayTreng Consultores SpA, José Domingo Cañas 1640, Apt. 1502, 7750000, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Francisco J Goin
- CONICET-División Paleontología Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, B1900FWA, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Jonatan Kaluza
- Red Paleontológica U-Chile, Laboratorio de Ontogenia y Filogenia, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Las Palmeras 3425, 7750000, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile
- Fundación de Historia Natural Félix de Azara, Universidad Maimónides, Hidalgo 775, C1405BCK, CABA, Argentina
| | - J Enrique Bostelmann
- Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Austral de Chile, Los Laureles s/n, 5090000, Valdivia, Chile
- Programa de Doctorado en Ciencias Mención Ecología y Evolución, Universidad Austral de Chile, Los Laureles s/n, 5090000, Valdivia, Chile
- Museo Regional de Aysén, Kilómetro 3 camino a Coyhaique Alto, Coyhaique, Región de Aysén, Chile
| | - Pedro H M Fonseca
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Geociências, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9500 Agronomia, Porto Alegre, RS, 91501-970, Brazil
| | - Marcelo A Reguero
- CONICET-División Paleontología Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, B1900FWA, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Marcelo Leppe
- Laboratorio de Paleobiología de Antártica y Patagonia, Instituto Antártico Chileno, Plaza Muñoz Gamero 1055, 6200000, Punta Arenas, Chile
| | - Alexander O Vargas
- Red Paleontológica U-Chile, Laboratorio de Ontogenia y Filogenia, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Las Palmeras 3425, 7750000, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile
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5
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Mao F, Hu Y, Li C, Wang Y, Chase MH, Smith AK, Meng J. Integrated hearing and chewing modules decoupled in a Cretaceous stem therian mammal. Science 2019; 367:305-308. [PMID: 31806694 DOI: 10.1126/science.aay9220] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2019] [Accepted: 11/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
On the basis of multiple skeletal specimens from Liaoning, China, we report a new genus and species of Cretaceous stem therian mammal that displays decoupling of hearing and chewing apparatuses and functions. The auditory bones, including the surangular, have no bone contact with the ossified Meckel's cartilage; the latter is loosely lodged on the medial rear of the dentary. This configuration probably represents the initial morphological stage of the definitive mammalian middle ear. Evidence shows that hearing and chewing apparatuses have evolved in a modular fashion. Starting as an integrated complex in non-mammaliaform cynodonts, the two modules, regulated by similar developmental and genetic mechanisms, eventually decoupled during the evolution of mammals, allowing further improvement for more efficient hearing and mastication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangyuan Mao
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China. .,CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing 100044, China.,Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Yaoming Hu
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China
| | - Chuankui Li
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing 100044, China
| | - Yuanqing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing 100044, China
| | - Morgan Hill Chase
- Microscopy and Imaging Facility, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Andrew K Smith
- Microscopy and Imaging Facility, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY 10024, USA. .,Earth and Environmental Sciences, Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, NY 10016, USA
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6
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Kusuhashi N, Wang YQ, Jin X. A New Eobaatarid Multituberculate (Mammalia) from the Lower Cretaceous Fuxin Formation, Fuxin-Jinzhou Basin, Liaoning, Northeastern China. J MAMM EVOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-019-09481-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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7
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Mao FY, Meng J. A new haramiyidan mammal from the Jurassic Yanliao Biota and comparisons with other haramiyidans. Zool J Linn Soc 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zly088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Fang-Yuan Mao
- Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Systematics of Vertebrates, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, China
| | - Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
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