Molecular Taphonomy of Plant Organic Skeletons

Collinson, Margaret E.

doi:10.1007/978-90-481-8643-3_6

Cited by 13 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…The mesophyll and the lower epidermis were more quickly affected by decay, while the upper epidermis remained undamaged for longer. This latter tissue is covered by the cuticle, which is a protective layer that is composed of insoluble biopolyester that is resistant to degradation [66]. The higher frailty that was observed in the lower epidermis could be due to the presence of stomata, where the protection of the cuticle is lost.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fossil leaves can be preserved as compressions (compressed plant material preserved as a thin carbonaceous layer, generally including the cuticle), as coal and charcoal, as impressions (negative imprints of the plant parts where the biological material has disintegrated), as permineralizations (where minerals fill the cell lumen and intercellular spaces, but do not replace the cell walls completely, e.g., silica, iron oxide, or limonite), as petrifications (where all of the original organic matter in the plant has been replaced by minerals), or as mummifications (where the plant material is unaltered) [41,86]. These types of preservation provide variable degrees of quality in the external and internal structures of the fossil leaves [41,47,66]. The relevance of external impressions in fossil plants is undebated [87], since they give reliable information about the surface of plant parts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Plant Tissue Decay in Long-Term Experiments with Microbial Mats

et al. 2018

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The sequence of decay in fern pinnules was tracked using the species Davallia canariensis. Taphonomic alterations in the sediment–water interface (control tanks) and in subaqueous conditions with microbial mats were compared. The decay sequences were similar in control and mat tanks; in both cases, pinnules preserved the shape throughout the four-month experience. However, the quality and integrity of tissues were greater in mats. In control tanks, in which we detected anoxic and neutral acid conditions, the appearance of a fungal–bacterial biofilm promoted mechanical (cell breakage and tissue distortions) and geochemical changes (infrequent mineralizations) on the external and internal pinnule tissues. In mats, characterized by stable dissolved oxygen and basic pH, pinnules became progressively entombed. These settings, together with the products derived from mat metabolisms (exopolymeric substances, proteins, and rich-Ca nucleation), promoted the integrity of external and internal tissues, and favored massive and diverse mineralization processes. The experience validates that the patterns of taphonomic alterations may be applied in fossil plants.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plant Tissue Decay in Long-Term Experiments with Microbial Mats

et al. 2018

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“…Older samples of arthropod cuticle are dominated by longer chain molecules (aliphatic or aromatic), indicating modification of the cuticle composition by some kind of polymerization process . A similar transformation affects plant fossils . Traces of cutin and lignocellulose in young fossil leaves are absent in older ones, where spectra are dominated by aliphatic or aromatic components.…”

Section: How Does Fossilization Affect the Chemistry Of Arthropod Cutmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ancient biomolecules: Their origins, fossilization, and role in revealing the history of life

2014

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The discovery of traces of a blood meal in the abdomen of a 50-million-year-old mosquito reminds us of the insights that the chemistry of fossils can provide. Ancient DNA is the best known fossil molecule. It is less well known that new fossil targets and a growing database of ancient gene sequences are paralleled by discoveries on other classes of organic molecules. New analytical tools, such as the synchrotron, reveal traces of the original composition of arthropod cuticles that are more than 400 my old. Pigments such as melanin are readily fossilized, surviving virtually unaltered for ∼200 my. Other biomarkers provide evidence of microbial processes in ancient sediments, and have been used to reveal the presence of demosponges, for example, more than 635 mya, long before their spicules appear in the fossil record. Ancient biomolecules are a powerful complement to fossil remains in revealing the history of life.

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“…More decay‐resistant tissues, such as arthropod and plant cuticles, may be preserved as carbonaceous material, but their original chemistry is modified over time. There have been considerable advances in our understanding of the processes involved in the diagenesis and preservation of carbonaceous fossils in the last 20 years (Gupta and Briggs ; Collinson ). Analyses have shown that cuticular materials are transformed from their original composition to one dominated by aliphatics (or occasionally aromatics).…”

Section: Maturationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of experiments in investigating the taphonomy of exceptional preservation

Briggs

McMahon

2015

Palaeontology

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In the last 20 years, much taphonomic experimentation has focused on the interpretation of exceptionally preserved fossils. Decay experiments have been used to interpret the features preserved in soft-bodied fossils and to determine the sequence of character loss and its impact on phylogenetic position. Experiments on the impact of microbial communities on decay and mineralization have started to illuminate the processes involved in the fossilization of soft tissues, including embryos. The role of decay in promoting authigenic mineralization has been used to investigate the formation of Ediacaran macrofossils and concretions. Maturation experiments have shown how the constituents of animals and plants are transformed over time to a macromolecular material that converges on a similar stable composition. Other maturation experiments have explained how structural colours in fossils are altered from the original. A major area requiring investigation is the role of specific types of microbes in decay and their impact on sediment and pore water chemistry, as well as the environmental controls that determine their presence and level of activity. Microbial activity has received less attention than other factors in attempts to explain why the occurrence and nature of exceptional preservation varies in time and space through the fossil record.

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Molecular Taphonomy of Plant Organic Skeletons

Cited by 13 publications

References 74 publications

Plant Tissue Decay in Long-Term Experiments with Microbial Mats

Plant Tissue Decay in Long-Term Experiments with Microbial Mats

Ancient biomolecules: Their origins, fossilization, and role in revealing the history of life

The role of experiments in investigating the taphonomy of exceptional preservation

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