Flash pyrolysis of the outer cortical tissues in Lower Devonian Psilophyton dawsonii

Edwards, Dianne; Ewbank, Greg; Abbott, Geoffrey D.

doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.1997.tb02001.x

Cited by 15 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Recently developed techniques of chemical microanalysis (Hemsley et al 1996;Edwards et al 1997;House et al 2000;Boyce et al 2001Kudryavstev et al 2001) make possible the paleontological study of ancient biochemistries at the cellular or tissue scale. Here we apply microanalytical methods to resolve the distribution of distinctive molecular and isotopic characteristics among tissues in three key early land plants from the Lower Devonian (Pragian) Rhynie Chert of Scotland.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical Evidence for Cell Wall Lignification and the Evolution of Tracheids in Early Devonian Plants

Boyce

Cody²,

Fogel³

et al. 2003

International Journal of Plant Sciences

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Anatomically preserved land plant fossils from the Lower Devonian Rhynie Chert contain conducting tissues with cells that range from dark-colored, elongated cells without secondary wall thickenings to tracheids similar to those of extant tracheophytes. A suite of tissue-specific microanalytical techniques was used to assess lignification in fossils of Aglaophyton, Rhynia, and Asteroxylon. Isotope ratio mass spectrometry provides millimeter-scale resolution of carbon isotopic abundances, whereas soft X-ray carbon (1s) spectromicroscopy provides micrometer-scale resolution of the preservation of organic molecular functionality. The isotopic and organic chemistry of Rhynie Chert plants indicates that the earliest vascular thickenings were probably unlignified and that cell wall lignification may have first appeared in the outer cortex. Only in more derived plants, it seems, was lignin deposited in conducting cells to produce the true tracheids seen today in vascular plants.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical Evidence for Cell Wall Lignification and the Evolution of Tracheids in Early Devonian Plants

Boyce

Cody²,

Fogel³

et al. 2003

International Journal of Plant Sciences

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“…The anatomical resolution provided by permineralized fossils presents opportunities for fine-scale chemical analysis of preserved organic matter, paving the way toward cell-and tissue-level studies of paleobiochemistry (7)(8)(9)(10). Maps of elemental abundances at comparable resolution can further facilitate improved understanding of the diagenetic processes that frame these exceptional windows on past biology (11).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nondestructive,in situ, cellular-scale mapping of elemental abundances including organic carbon in permineralized fossils

Boyce

Hazen

Knoll

2001

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The electron microprobe allows elemental abundances to be mapped at the m scale, but until now high resolution mapping of light elements has been challenging. Modifications of electron microprobe procedure permit fine-scale mapping of carbon. When applied to permineralized fossils, this technique allows simultaneous mapping of organic material, major matrix-forming elements, and trace elements with m-scale resolution. The resulting data make it possible to test taphonomic hypotheses for the formation of anatomically preserved silicified fossils, including the role of trace elements in the initiation of silica precipitation and in the prevention of organic degradation. The technique allows one to understand the localization of preserved organic matter before undertaking destructive chemical analyses and, because it is nondestructive, offers a potentially important tool for astrobiological investigations of samples returned from Mars or other solar system bodies.

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“…Pyritization of plant tissues may remain incomplete, the distribution of pyrite in fossil plants being generally interpreted in terms of differential biodegradability of the original organic constituents of the plant (Kenrick & Edwards ; Edwards et al . ; Grimes et al . ; Bernard et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here, to go further than previous studies conducted on fossil tracheids of different species (Edwards et al . ; Boyce et al . , , , ; Bernard et al .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

On the structure and chemistry of fossils of the earliest woody plant

et al. 2019

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Palaeontology relies on the description of fossil morphologies to understand the evolutionary history of life on Earth. Yet much remains unknown about the impact of fossilization processes, even though these may introduce biases into palaeobiological interpretations. Here, we report the characterization of fossilized remains of the earliest known woody plant Armoricaphyton chateaupannense preserved either in 2D (as flat carbonaceous films) or in 3D (as organo‐mineral structures) in early Devonian shales (c. 407 Ma) of the Armorican Massif on the northern margin of Gondwana. To document the fine‐scale structure and the chemistry of the tracheids of this ancient plant, we used propagation phase contrast synchrotron radiation X‐ray microcomputed tomography (PPC‐SRμCT), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and synchrotron‐based scanning transmission X‐ray microscopy (STXM) coupled with X‐ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy. PPC‐SRμCT enables digital visualization of cell walls in unprecedented detail for the specimens preserved in 3D revealing structures similar to those observed in extant lignified cells, thereby strongly suggesting that the earliest woody plant A. chateaupannense originally contained lignin compounds. STXM‐based XANES and TEM data show that, whatever the preservation modes (3D vs 2D), the remaining organic matter has a chemical composition rather typical of pyrobitumen compounds, raising the possibility of an original source other than lignin. The pyrobitumen compounds also contains automorphic Ti‐nanominerals interpreted as a diagenetic feature. Altogether, the present study illustrates that anatomical and chemical preservations may not always be correlated.

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Flash pyrolysis of the outer cortical tissues in Lower Devonian Psilophyton dawsonii

Cited by 15 publications

References 43 publications

Chemical Evidence for Cell Wall Lignification and the Evolution of Tracheids in Early Devonian Plants

Chemical Evidence for Cell Wall Lignification and the Evolution of Tracheids in Early Devonian Plants

Nondestructive,in situ, cellular-scale mapping of elemental abundances including organic carbon in permineralized fossils

On the structure and chemistry of fossils of the earliest woody plant

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