Materials for preparation of vertebrate fossils; an analysis of their effectiveness

Materials used for conserving fossil specimens since 1930: a review

“…The early 1940s saw little further development in materials; however, Todd [19] described an effective method for the vacuum impregnation of fossil bone and shell using polyvinyl acetate, and Lewis and Lepper [20] carried out further tests which emphasized the suitability of Alvar for conserving friable vertebrate fossils. Alvar became, during the 1950s and 1960s, one of the most widely used plastics in palaeontology both in the UK, as Alvar 1570, and in the USA, as Alvar 17/20.…”

Detection of bone glue treatment as a major source of contamination in ancient DNA analyses

“…Another source of contamination is seen in the numerous substances used for hard-tissue conservation (Rixon, 1976;Brommelle et al, 1984;Horie, 1987;Collins, 1995). From the early 19th century up to the present, gelatine-based glue has been widely used, because it is cheap, easily available, and very effective (Lepper and Lewis, 1941;Shelton and Johnson, 1995). Although some authors have expressed suspicions that such conservation techniques may cause severe complications if not hindrance for the analysis of old biomolecules (Horie, 1987;Hall et al, 1993;Cooper, 1994;Shelton and Johnson, 1995), this source of experimental pitfalls is underestimated.…”