The use of more than one nomenclatural code is becoming increasingly common in some biological sub-disciplines. To minimize nomenclatural instability, we have decided to establish a higher level systematization for Thalattosuchia under both the International Code of Phylogenetic Nomenclature ('PhyloCode') and the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature ('Zoological Code'). We undertook a series of phylogenetic analyses with an expanded dataset to examine the origins of Thalattosuchia within Crocodylomorpha, and determined the clade's diagnostic characters. Based on these analyses, we provide updated diagnoses for Thalattosuchia and its subclades under both the PhyloCode and Zoological Code. We also introduce two new nomina that are regulated under the PhyloCode (Neothalattosuchia and Euthalattosuchia), and the nomen Dakosaurina, which is registered under both nomenclatural codes. Moreover, we introduce PhyloCode-compliant phylogenetic definitions for Thalattosuchia and its subclades. As we cannot reliably discriminate between the positional hypotheses for Thalattosuchia within Crocodylomorpha, the clades' origins are as much of a mystery today as they were over a century ago. However, we hope that using the same diagnostic characters to define the same clades, with the same nomina, under both nomenclatural codes will be an example to others to follow.

Terrestrial bipedal locomotion is one of the key adaptations defining the hominin clade. Evidences of undisputed bipedalism are known from postcranial remains of late Miocene hominins as soon as 6 Ma in eastern Africa. Bipedality of Sahelanthropus tchadensis was hitherto documented at 7 Ma in central Africa (Chad) by cranial evidence. Here, we present the first postcranial evidence of the locomotor behavior of the Chadian hominin with new insights on bipedalism at the early stage of our evolutionary history. The original material was discovered at locality TM 266 (Toros-Menalla fossiliferous area), and consists in one left femur and two antimeric ulnae. These new findings confirm that hominins were already terrestrial biped relatively soon after the human-chimpanzee divergence but also suggest that careful climbing arboreal behaviors was still a significant part of their locomotor repertoire.

A new species of the genus Serengetilagus, here named S. tchadensis n. sp., is described from Toros Menalla deposits, Late Miocene of Djurab Erg (North Chad, central Africa). It shows primitive features, such as a simple archaeolagine-type p3, with only two main external folds, and upper cheek teeth strongly widened with wear. Its size and skeletal features resemble S. praecapensis from the Middle Pliocene of Laetoli (Tanzania). They differ in several cranial and dental features (choanae width, zygoma, orbits, basicranial-basifacial angle, lack of hypoflexus in P2, short and asymmetric hypoflexus in P3-M2, lack of lingual folds in p3, etc). Individual variations in S. tchadensis n. sp. approach S. praecapensis. The genus Serengetilagus is here assigned to the subfamily Archaeolaginae and related to Hypolagus, namely to H. gromovi from the Late Miocene of Southern Russia. Other related species are Serengetilagus orientieuropaeus and primitive species of the genus Trischizolagus, such as T. maritsae and T. crusafonti. Pliocene leporids from Spain, Ukraine, Russia, Afghanistan and Mongolia have been questionably attributed to Serengetilagus or Trischizolagus. Several features are here proposed to distinguish both genera.Serengetilagus could have a mixed fossorial-cursorial mode of life, as can be inferred by its ecomorphological traits (combining features of hare and rabbit) and taphonomical indications. This new African archaeolagine is contemporaneous of the widespread palaeolagine Alilepus, recorded in the Late Miocene of Kenya. The independence of these two lineages is favoured after revision of previous hypotheses on the phylogeny of the highly diverse Mio-Pliocene peri-Tethysian leporid species.

The detailed sedimentary study of the deposit sequences of the ancient hominid sector (SahelanthropustchadensisalisToumaï) of Toros-Menalla, presented here addresses new aspects of the sedimentary geology of the Chad Basin through an original field study of Moi-sediments: Pliocene of the northern basin of CHAD. This is an original contribution that sheds light on new knowledge of sedimentary series of fluvio-lacustrine and aeolian origin in the Djourab desert which are essential for understanding the paleoenvironments and paleoclimates of Chad, the Sahara and Africa. Aged from the Terminal Miocene to the present day, these deposits which constitute the last stages of the filling of this basin are exclusively of the continental type and concern in the broad sense the following four major sedimentary systems: Fluvial, deltaic, lacustrine and aeolian. From a lithological point of view, these sedimentary series are very heterogeneous and include sandstones, sands, clays and diatomites. Key words: Sedimentary deposit, Djourab, Toros-Menalla, Chad, fluvio-lacustrine, Aeolian.

Major evolutionary transitions, in which animals develop new body plans and adapt to dramatically new habitats and lifestyles, have punctuated the history of life. The origin of cetaceans from land-living mammals is among the most famous of these events. Much earlier, during the Mesozoic Era, many reptile groups also moved from land to water, but these transitions are more poorly understood. We use computed tomography to study changes in the inner ear vestibular system, involved in sensing balance and equilibrium, as one of these groups, extinct crocodile relatives called thalattosuchians, transitioned from terrestrial ancestors into pelagic (open ocean) swimmers. We find that the morphology of the vestibular system corresponds to habitat, with pelagic thalattosuchians exhibiting a more compact labyrinth with wider semicircular canal diameters and an enlarged vestibule, reminiscent of modified and miniaturized labyrinths of other marine reptiles and cetaceans. Pelagic thalattosuchians with modified inner ears were the culmination of an evolutionary trend with a long semiaquatic phase, and their pelagic vestibular systems appeared after the first changes to the postcranial skeleton that enhanced their ability to swim. This is strikingly different from cetaceans, which miniaturized their labyrinths soon after entering the water, without a prolonged semiaquatic stage. Thus, thalattosuchians and cetaceans became secondarily aquatic in different ways and at different paces, showing that there are different routes for the same type of transition.

Central Africa is known as a major center of diversification for extant Old World Monkeys (OWM) and yet has a poorly documented fossil record of monkeys. Here we report a new colobine monkey (Cercopithecoides bruneti sp. nov.) from the Central African hominin-bearing fossiliferous area of Toros-Menalla, Chad at ca. 7 Ma. In addition to filling a gap in the spatial and temporal record of early OWM evolutionary history, we assess the ecomorphological diversity of early OWM by providing evidence on the onset of a folivorous diet and a partial reacquisition of terrestrial locomotor habits among Miocene colobines. We also support the phylogenetic affinities of the genus Cercopithecoides among the stem group of the extant African colobine monkeys.

The late Miocene fossil-bearing localities of Toros Menalla (Chad) have yielded a huge amount of vertebrate remains with, in particular, the hominid Sahelanthropus tchadensis Brunet et al., 2002. The order Carnivora is well represented in the fauna (with up to 23 species) and we describe here a new genus and species together with a species not previously recorded in the fauna. Both species belong to the saber-toothed felids. The new genus, size of a lynx, is known by jaws and several post-cranial bones. It displays in the upper canines, mandible and bones of the fore limb some features indicating machairodont affinities. The second genus, size of a leopard and well known in Africa, is only present through a characteristic upper canine. The presence of eight species of Felidae into 23 species of carnivorans is much rare into the Miocene carnivoran assemblages and is discussed in the conclusions.

OBJECTIVES:Depression is a frequent but potentially treatable clinical dimension in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (PWS). However, there is a lack of consensual recommendations regarding the optimal strategy to manage depression in PWS. In this study, we aimed to compare the various proposed strategies to define a core set of valid care recommendations for depression management in PWS.METHODS:After a systematic search of the literature, the methodological quality of 10 international guidelines from four continents was compared using a validated guideline appraisal instrument (AGREE II). Key recommendations for the management of depression in PWS were subsequently reviewed and discussed.RESULTS:The methodological quality of the guidelines was heterogeneous. Although all guidelines proposed pharmacotherapy, psychosocial interventions were a minor concern. Waiting for antipsychotic effects mostly was recommended during the acute phase of schizophrenia. During the postpsychotic phase of the illness, a switch to a second-generation antipsychotic and/or the adjunction of an antidepressant were the primary recommendations. Cognitive behavioural therapy and other medications were considered with strong variations.CONCLUSIONS:Further studies are needed to strengthen the level of evidence for antidepressive approaches in PWS. The inclusion of PWS as stakeholders is also considered to be a major issue for future guideline development.

We investigate the feasibility and potential relevance of studying growth patterns in the bones of fossil freshwater ectotherms with the aim of developing new markers for continental palaeoenvironments and climates. This prospective study is based on Late Neogene material from Chad. It thus provides preliminary results that interest the reconstruction of paleoenvironments in ancient hominid bearing sites and that also document paleoenvironmental changes in continental Africa along a critical time period for global change. We prepared a set of various fish bones and turtle plates from Chadian Mio-Pliocene fossiliferous areas. We were able to analyse growth rates recorded during the course of the life of the animals in about half of the fossils initially sampled for the study. The main conclusions are: 1) the absence of a relationship between the external aspect of the fossils and the preservation of the growth marks, which means that visible features are not helpful in primary sampling; 2) at least in the Neogene Chadian sites, cathodoluminescence does not help to reveal growth marks; 3) growth rate patterns observed in the section of the body of the fin spines in claroteids, latids and polypterids and in pelomedusoid plates seem to be informative about environmental control of animal growth; and 4) depending on the taxa, different environmental informations can be obtained.

We analyzed phytolith and diatom remains preserved at 45 Miocene and Pliocene localities dated between 8 and 1 Ma in northern Chad (16-17 degrees N). Some of these localities yielded cranial remains, lower jaws, and teeth of the hominin species Australopithecus bahrelghazali (similar to 3.6 Ma) and Sahelanthropus tchadensis (similar to 7 Ma). Of the 111 sediment samples analyzed, 41 yielded phytoliths, 20 yielded diatoms, and seven yielded both phytoliths and diatoms. Freshwater planktonic and tychoplanktonic diatom species, indicative of lacustrine conditions, are dominant (>91%) in the samples. The phytolith assemblages indicate an opening of the vegetation and a general trend toward an expansion of grass-dominated environments during the time spanning the two hominin occurrences in Chad. The phytoliths suggest the presence of a mosaic environment, including closed forest patches, palm groves, and mixed/grassland formations, between 7.5 and 7 Ma, the replacement by palm grove-like vegetation at approximately 6.5-5 Ma, and the presence of exclusive grass-dominated formations after 4.5 Ma. The type-locality of S. tchadensis (TM266) was likely similar to modern palm grove formations with an arboreal cover percentage >= 40%. The type locality of A. bahrelghazali (KT12) was a grass-dominated ecosystem (likely savanna) with an unrated percentage of arboreal cover. Furthermore, the grass phytolith data support the existence of a (recurrent) Sahelian-like dry climate in northern Chad since at least 8 Ma. Therefore the local closed vegetation formations in the Djurab region at 7.5-7 Ma were sustained by aquatic systems (such as lakes or related rivers, marshes) rather than by extensive annual precipitation. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The labyrinth has two functional parts: the cochlea for audition and the vestibular system for equilibrioception. In the latter, the semicircular ducts and the otolithic organs are sensitive to rotational and linear accelerations of the head, respectively. The labyrinthine morphology influences perception accuracy, hence the adaptation to a specific locomotor pattern. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between locomotion and semicircular canal morphology using geometric morphometrics, and to explain these links with existing functional models. The influence of factors other than functional constraints on labyrinthine morphology is discussed. The left bony labyrinth of 65 specimens was extracted virtually. Five extant hominoid species with various locomotion modes were sampled. A set of 13 landmarks was placed on the semicircular canals. After a Procrustes fit, their coordinates were analyzed using a principal component analysis. It was found that labyrinthine morphology is significantly distinct between species. More specifically, the differences involve a posterolateral projection of the lateral semicircular canal and the rotation of this canal relative to the vertical canals. This rotation occurs in the sagittal plane, which is consistent with previous studies based on traditional morphometrics. Among extant hominoids, the shape of the canals potentially discriminates species based on posture. This result could be used to reconstruct the locomotor pattern of fossil hominoids.

This study presents mineralogical and geochemical data from a borehole drilled near the locality of Bol (13 degrees 27'N, 14 degrees 44'E), in the eastern archipelago of the modern Lake Chad (Chad). Samples were taken from a similar to 200 m long core section forming a unique sub-continuous record for Central Africa. Among these samples, 25 are dated between 6.4 and 2.4 Ma. Dominant minerals are clays (66% average) mixed with varying amounts of silt and diatomite. The clay fraction consists of Fe-beidellite (87% average), kaolinite, and traces of illite. Clay minerals originate from the erosion of the vertisols that surrounded the paleolake Chad. Sedimentological data indicate that a permanent lake (or recurrent lakes) existed from 6.7 until 2.4 Ma in the vicinity of Bol. By comparison with modern latitudinal distribution of vertisols in Africa the climate was Sudanian-like. Changes in the sedimentation rate suggest a succession of wetter and dryer periods during at least six million years in the region during the critical time period covering the Miocene-Pliocene transition. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A decommissioning plan should involve a comprehensive review of the feasibility of the safety measures, economics and so on. There is a variety of information required for the review of each decommissioning phase, ranging from the conformity of the dismantling process to radioactive waste management. The space dose rate of a nuclear facility is one of the major data points that must be obtained during the early planning stage for the decommissioning of a nuclear facility. We propose the framework for the visualization of the analyzed space dose rate on the dismantling simulation system with the solid modeling method, which is generally used for a CAD (computer-aided design)-based digital manufacturing platform. The visualization module applying this framework is implemented using the suitable software framework that can directly interface with the dismantling simulation system. The framework of the visualization module is composed of a pre-processing stage for creating an optimal data-structure of the analyzed space does rates and a configuration stage for a visualization of the 3-dimensional models of dose on the dismantling simulation system. As a result, the module in the dismantling simulation system can visualize both the 3-dimensional space dose rate and radioactive equipment model in the same virtual space and provides useful information to users in real time for planning the dismantling process.

A discontinuous 200 m-long borehole drilled in the Bol Archipelago (13 degrees N, Lake Chad) provided 25 samples, which were dated using the Be-10/Be-9 method and analyzed for their micro-biological content. The dating provided ages ranging from 63 +/- 0.1 to 2.6 +/- 0.1 Ma, a period contemporaneous with the Pliocene fossil localities located in the current Djurab desert of Chad (16-17 degrees N).Well-preserved diatom assemblages first occurred at 4.7 +/- 0.1 Ma and were dominated by the freshwater planktonic genera Aulacoseira and Stephanodiscus until the end of the Pliocene. This supports the recurrence of lacustrine conditions at Bol during all the Pliocene. The presence of pelite and argillaceous deposits in the core before 4.7 +/- 0.1 Ma, however, suggests that the lake settled earlier, at least since 6.3 +/- 0.1 Ma. The abundance of Afromontane pollen taxa at 4.2 +/- 0.1 Ma and the occurrence of trapeziform polylobate phytoliths throughout the sequence suggest significant vegetation inputs from the southern highlands, while the importance of kaolinite in the clay sediments indicates a water supply predominantly from the south during the Pliocene.Phytolith assemblages are all dominated by lobate grass silica short cells and by blocky and elongate types, which attest to the presence of herbaceous-dominated vegetation around Bol and/or in the southern drainage basin during the Pliocene. This result is also supported by the pollen assemblage described at 4.2 +/- 0.1 Ma, which shows highest affinity for the savanna biome. Moreover, low values for the Xerophytic grass phytolith index indicate the presence of humid-loving (mesophytic and aquatic) grass communities in this vegetation.At last, significant variations in the abundance of blocky and elongate phytoliths are indicative of local alternations of fully lacustrine and marshy conditions at Bo!. Particularly between 3.6 and 2.7 Ma, the abundance of silicified bulliform cells combined with the absence of diatoms support a significant lacustrine reduction at Bol favoring the increasing of local marshy vegetation. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.