Preservation of fossil biopolymeric structures: Conclusive immunological evidence

Collins, Matthew J.; Muyzer, Gerard; Westbroek, Peter; Curry, Gordon B.; Sandberg, Philip A.; Xu, Shangcheng; Quinn, R.; Mackinnon, David I.

doi:10.1016/0016-7037(91)90101-a

Cited by 34 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Occlusion of organic matter in biominerals may be an important pathway for the preservation of labile organic compounds in biomineral-rich environments (Carter and Mitterer, 1978;Collins et al, 1991;Ingalls et al, 2003) and may be an important source of organic matter for paleoceanographic studies. While much is known about the composition of organic matter in corals, studies of organic matter diagnesis in corals have primarily focused on the use of D/L amino acid ratios as a tool for dating coral annual bands (Goodfriend et al, 1992).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preservation of organic matter in mound-forming coral skeletons

Ingalls

Lee

Druffel

2003

Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preservation of organic matter in mound-forming coral skeletons

Ingalls

Lee

Druffel

2003

Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta

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“…DeJong et al 1974;Collins et al 1991Collins et al , 1995Collins et al , 1999Schweitzer et al 1997bSchweitzer et al , 1999aGotherstrom et al 2002;Smith et al 2005 and many others). Analyses to test this possibility are beyond the scope of this paper, which simply seeks to document the occurrence of soft tissues in fossils through time.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soft tissue and cellular preservation in vertebrate skeletal elements from the Cretaceous to the present

2007

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Soft tissues and cell-like microstructures derived from skeletal elements of a well-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex (MOR 1125) were represented by four components in fragments of demineralized cortical and/or medullary bone: flexible and fibrous bone matrix; transparent, hollow and pliable blood vessels; intravascular material, including in some cases, structures morphologically reminiscent of vertebrate red blood cells; and osteocytes with intracellular contents and flexible filipodia. The present study attempts to trace the occurrence of these four components in bone from specimens spanning multiple geological time periods and varied depositional environments. At least three of the four components persist in some skeletal elements of specimens dating to the Campanian. Fibrous bone matrix is more altered over time in morphology and less likely to persist than vessels and/or osteocytes. Vessels vary greatly in preservation, even within the same specimen, with some regions retaining pliability and other regions almost crystalline. Osteocytes also vary, with some retaining long filipodia and transparency, while others present with short and stubby filipodia and deeply pigmented nuclei, or are pigmented throughout with no nucleus visible. Alternative hypotheses are considered to explain the origin/source of observed materials. Finally, a twopart mechanism, involving first cross-linking of molecular components and subsequent mineralization, is proposed to explain the surprising presence of still-soft elements in fossil bone. These results suggest that present models of fossilization processes may be incomplete and that soft tissue elements may be more commonly preserved, even in older specimens, than previously thought. Additionally, in many cases, osteocytes with defined nuclei are preserved, and may represent an important source for informative molecular data.

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“…Weiner et al 1976;Westbroek et al 1979;Armstrong et al 1983 and references therein;Lowenstein 1981Lowenstein , 1985Ostrom et al 1990;Collins et al 1991;Gurley et al 1991;Muyzer et al 1992;Stankiewicz et al 1997aStankiewicz et al ,b, 1998Schweitzer et al 1997aSchweitzer et al ,b, 1999aSchweitzer et al ,b, 2002Poinar et al 1998;Collins et al 1999). Immunological techniques have identified antigenic compounds in fossils of varying ages and from various source taxa (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Immunological techniques have identified antigenic compounds in fossils of varying ages and from various source taxa (e.g. Rowley et al 1986;Muyzer & Westbroek 1989;Baird & Rowley 1990;Collins et al 1991;Lowenstein & Scheuenstuhl 1991;Child & Pollard 1992;Nerlich et al 1993;Franc et al 1995;Borja et al 1997;Schweitzer et al 2002) including Cretaceous fossils Muyzer et al 1992;Schweitzer et al 1997bSchweitzer et al , 1999a.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular preservation in Late Cretaceous sauropod dinosaur eggshells

Schweitzer

Chiappe

Garrido³

et al. 2005

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Exceptionally preserved sauropod eggshells discovered in Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) deposits in Patagonia, Argentina, contain skeletal remains and soft tissues of embryonic Titanosaurid dinosaurs. To preserve these labile embryonic remains, the rate of mineral precipitation must have superseded postmortem degradative processes, resulting in virtually instantaneous mineralization of soft tissues. If so, mineralization may also have been rapid enough to retain fragments of original biomolecules in these specimens. To investigate preservation of biomolecular compounds in these well-preserved sauropod dinosaur eggshells, we applied multiple analytical techniques. Results demonstrate organic compounds and antigenic structures similar to those found in extant eggshells.

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Preservation of fossil biopolymeric structures: Conclusive immunological evidence

Cited by 34 publications

References 16 publications

Preservation of organic matter in mound-forming coral skeletons

Preservation of organic matter in mound-forming coral skeletons

Soft tissue and cellular preservation in vertebrate skeletal elements from the Cretaceous to the present

Molecular preservation in Late Cretaceous sauropod dinosaur eggshells

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