A Whiff of Oxygen Before the Great Oxidation Event?

Anbar, Ariel D.; Duan, Yun; Lyons, Timothy W.; Arnold, Gail Lee; Kendall, Brian; Creaser, Robert A.; Kaufman, Alan J.; Gordon, Gwyneth W.; Scott, Clint; Garvin, Jessica; Buick, Roger

doi:10.1126/science.1140325

Cited by 858 publications

(598 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…The partitioning of extant lineages at high clade levels within our Rubisco phylogeny indicates that horizontal transfer of Rubisco is a relatively infrequent event. Therefore, it is possible that these mutational enrichment periods correspond to the adaptation of key oxygen‐sensitive components of Rubisco prior to the GOE (Anbar et al., 2007; Planavsky, Reinhard, et al., 2014). This would further indicate that calibrating the Rubisco tree to the appearance of cyanobacterial fossils or the GOE itself must be undertaken with care, given the possibility that stem group oxygenic photosynthetic organisms could have existed long before the appearance of recognizable Cyanobacteria in the fossil record (Blankenship & Hartman, 1998; Cardona, 2016; Fischer, Hemp, & Johnson, 2016; Johnson et al., 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Constraining the timing of the Great Oxidation Event within the Rubisco phylogenetic tree

et al. 2017

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Ribulose 1,5‐bisphosphate (RuBP) carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO, or Rubisco) catalyzes a key reaction by which inorganic carbon is converted into organic carbon in the metabolism of many aerobic and anaerobic organisms. Across the broader Rubisco protein family, homologs exhibit diverse biochemical characteristics and metabolic functions, but the evolutionary origins of this diversity are unclear. Evidence of the timing of Rubisco family emergence and diversification of its different forms has been obscured by a meager paleontological record of early Earth biota, their subcellular physiology and metabolic components. Here, we use computational models to reconstruct a Rubisco family phylogenetic tree, ancestral amino acid sequences at branching points on the tree, and protein structures for several key ancestors. Analysis of historic substitutions with respect to their structural locations shows that there were distinct periods of amino acid substitution enrichment above background levels near and within its oxygen‐sensitive active site and subunit interfaces over the divergence between Form III (associated with anoxia) and Form I (associated with oxia) groups in its evolutionary history. One possible interpretation is that these periods of substitutional enrichment are coincident with oxidative stress exerted by the rise of oxygenic photosynthesis in the Precambrian era. Our interpretation implies that the periods of Rubisco substitutional enrichment inferred near the transition from anaerobic Form III to aerobic Form I ancestral sequences predate the acquisition of Rubisco by fully derived cyanobacterial (i.e., dual photosystem‐bearing, oxygen‐evolving) clades. The partitioning of extant lineages at high clade levels within our Rubisco phylogeny indicates that horizontal transfer of Rubisco is a relatively infrequent event. Therefore, it is possible that the mutational enrichment periods between the Form III and Form I common ancestral sequences correspond to the adaptation of key oxygen‐sensitive components of Rubisco prior to, or coincident with, the Great Oxidation Event.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Constraining the timing of the Great Oxidation Event within the Rubisco phylogenetic tree

et al. 2017

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“…These data were compiled from primary references 1-37 , although in some cases age constraints for certain units were obtained from other sources [38][39][40][41] or estimated. For Main Text Figure 1b, we calculated the cumulative average ∆ 33 S value for all samples up to each year of publication.…”

Section: Sulphur Isotope Databasementioning

confidence: 99%

“…(4) that small inputs of solubilized sulphur from the weathering crust as a result of low-level oxidative processing (e.g., ref. 40,68,[78][79][80] could potentially act to greatly amplify any isotopic asymmetry initialized as described above.…”

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confidence: 99%

Long-term sedimentary recycling of rare sulphur isotope anomalies

Reinhard

Planavsky

Lyons

2013

Nature

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Sulphur Isotope Database:An extensive sulphur isotope database was used in the construction of Main Text Figure 1. These data were compiled from primary references 1-37 , although in some cases age constraints for certain units were obtained from other sources [38][39][40][41] or estimated. For Main Text Figure 1b, we calculated the cumulative average ∆ 33 S value for all samples up to each year of publication. The average values reported here thus include some contribution from sulphate minerals. However, the overwhelming majority of the data are sulphide mineral phases, and given that most sulphate data are characterized by negative ∆ 33 S values their inclusion will largely attenuate the pattern emphasized here, rendering our argument conservative. Furthermore, the overall effect of their inclusion is quite small (Fig. S1a,b). We also examined the effect of filtering data from analyses made via secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and analyses of macroscopic pyrite textures, which are not likely to be representative of bulk weathering crust, but again note that the basic pattern remains unchanged (Fig. S1a,b).The mean ∆ 33 S values shown in Fig. 1 are presented as unweighted averages. We consider this approach qualitatively justified, in that the database is composed largely of fine-grained siliciclastic sedimentary rocks that are relatively organic carbon and sulphur rich. Such rocks will not only be, on average, the most sulphur-enriched phases of the crust, but they will also likely hold the majority of the weathering sulphur reservoir at Earth's surface. Nonetheless, it is important to consider the possibility that there is a bias related to systematic relationships between the sulphur content of sedimentary rocks and their ∆ 33 S value. For this purpose, we compiled the available sulphur concentration data for the units within the isotope database and performed concentration-weighted statistical analyses.There does not appear to be any systematic relationship between rare sulphur isotope composition and sulphur content within the database (Fig. S2a). In addition, the cumulative unweighted average is nearly indistinguishable from the concentration-weighted average within this subset of the database (Fig. S2a,b). When the evolution of the overall ∆ 33 S value of the database is concentration-weighted, it shows a generally similar pattern through time to that of the overall mean values (Fig. S2b). Indeed, the mean ∆ 33 S value when weighted by concentration is more positive than the unweighted mean for a given population from the database. We stress the caveat that many of the published rare sulphur isotope datasets do not contain sulphur concentration data, so unfortunately this analysis cannot be performed on the entire database. However, the coupled isotope and concentration data represent well over 500 samples that range in sulphur content over three orders of magnitude. These considerations lead us to conclude that the pattern expressed in the overall mean ∆ 33 S values through time is robust and is ...

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“…The abundance of redox-sensitive elements in sedimentary rocks is a useful proxy of atmospheric O 2 levels 5,6,11 . Under an oxidizing atmosphere, the redox-sensitive elements in continental crust (for example, Os, Re and Mo) are mobilized in the hydrological cycle by oxidative weathering, leading to high concentrations in sediments deposited within anoxic oceans 11 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Under an oxidizing atmosphere, the redox-sensitive elements in continental crust (for example, Os, Re and Mo) are mobilized in the hydrological cycle by oxidative weathering, leading to high concentrations in sediments deposited within anoxic oceans 11 . Under an anoxic atmosphere, in contrast, redox-sensitive elements do not enter the oceans through continental weathering 11 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Osmium evidence for synchronicity between a rise in atmospheric oxygen and Palaeoproterozoic deglaciation

et al. 2011

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Early Palaeoproterozoic (2.5-2.0 billion years ago) was a critical phase in Earth's history, characterized by multiple severe glaciations and a rise in atmospheric o 2 (the Great oxidation Event). Although glaciations occurred at the time of o 2 increase, the relationship between climatic and atmospheric transitions remains poorly understood. Here we report high concentrations of the redox-sensitive element os with high initial 187 os/ 188 os values in a sandstone-siltstone interval that spans the transition from glacial diamictite to overlying carbonate in the Huronian supergroup, Canada. Together with the results of Re, mo and s analyses of the sediments, we suggest that immediately after the second Palaeoproterozoic glaciation, atmospheric o 2 levels became sufficiently high to deliver radiogenic continental os to shallow-marine environments, indicating the synchronicity of an episode of increasing o 2 and deglaciation. This result supports the hypothesis that climatic recovery from the glaciations acted to accelerate the Great oxidation Event.

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A Whiff of Oxygen Before the Great Oxidation Event?

Cited by 858 publications

References 24 publications

Constraining the timing of the Great Oxidation Event within the Rubisco phylogenetic tree

Constraining the timing of the Great Oxidation Event within the Rubisco phylogenetic tree

Long-term sedimentary recycling of rare sulphur isotope anomalies

Osmium evidence for synchronicity between a rise in atmospheric oxygen and Palaeoproterozoic deglaciation

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