Molecular preservation of the pigment melanin in fossil melanosomes.
(2012) In Nature Communications 3(Online 08 May 2012).- Abstract
- Fossil feathers, hairs and eyes are regularly preserved as carbonized traces comprised of masses of micrometre-sized bodies that are spherical, oblate or elongate in shape. For a long time, these minute structures were regarded as the remains of biofilms of keratinophilic bacteria, but recently they have been reinterpreted as melanosomes; that is, colour-bearing organelles. Resolving this fundamental difference in interpretation is crucial: if endogenous then the fossil microbodies would represent a significant advancement in the fields of palaeontology and evolutionary biology given, for example, the possibility to reconstruct integumentary colours and plumage colour patterns. It has previously been shown that certain trace elements occur... (More)
- Fossil feathers, hairs and eyes are regularly preserved as carbonized traces comprised of masses of micrometre-sized bodies that are spherical, oblate or elongate in shape. For a long time, these minute structures were regarded as the remains of biofilms of keratinophilic bacteria, but recently they have been reinterpreted as melanosomes; that is, colour-bearing organelles. Resolving this fundamental difference in interpretation is crucial: if endogenous then the fossil microbodies would represent a significant advancement in the fields of palaeontology and evolutionary biology given, for example, the possibility to reconstruct integumentary colours and plumage colour patterns. It has previously been shown that certain trace elements occur in fossils as organometallic compounds, and hence may be used as biomarkers for melanin pigments. Here we expand this knowledge by demonstrating the presence of molecularly preserved melanin in intimate association with melanosome-like microbodies isolated from an argentinoid fish eye from the early Eocene of Denmark. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/2608998
- author
- Lindgren, Johan LU ; Uvdal, Per LU ; Sjövall, Peter ; Nilsson, Dan-E LU ; Engdahl, Anders LU ; Schultz, Bo Pagh and Thiel, Volker
- organization
- publishing date
- 2012
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Nature Communications
- volume
- 3
- issue
- Online 08 May 2012
- article number
- 824
- publisher
- Nature Publishing Group
- external identifiers
-
- wos:000304611400020
- pmid:22569368
- scopus:84864308441
- pmid:22569368
- ISSN
- 2041-1723
- DOI
- 10.1038/ncomms1819
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- The information about affiliations in this record was updated in December 2015. The record was previously connected to the following departments: Max-laboratory (011012005), Chemical Physics (S) (011001060), Functional Zoology (432112239), Lithosphere and Biosphere Science (011006002)
- id
- e477a5f0-83c2-41d1-8339-548a00f9c8be (old id 2608998)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-01 13:32:44
- date last changed
- 2024-05-09 08:36:48
@article{e477a5f0-83c2-41d1-8339-548a00f9c8be, abstract = {{Fossil feathers, hairs and eyes are regularly preserved as carbonized traces comprised of masses of micrometre-sized bodies that are spherical, oblate or elongate in shape. For a long time, these minute structures were regarded as the remains of biofilms of keratinophilic bacteria, but recently they have been reinterpreted as melanosomes; that is, colour-bearing organelles. Resolving this fundamental difference in interpretation is crucial: if endogenous then the fossil microbodies would represent a significant advancement in the fields of palaeontology and evolutionary biology given, for example, the possibility to reconstruct integumentary colours and plumage colour patterns. It has previously been shown that certain trace elements occur in fossils as organometallic compounds, and hence may be used as biomarkers for melanin pigments. Here we expand this knowledge by demonstrating the presence of molecularly preserved melanin in intimate association with melanosome-like microbodies isolated from an argentinoid fish eye from the early Eocene of Denmark.}}, author = {{Lindgren, Johan and Uvdal, Per and Sjövall, Peter and Nilsson, Dan-E and Engdahl, Anders and Schultz, Bo Pagh and Thiel, Volker}}, issn = {{2041-1723}}, language = {{eng}}, number = {{Online 08 May 2012}}, publisher = {{Nature Publishing Group}}, series = {{Nature Communications}}, title = {{Molecular preservation of the pigment melanin in fossil melanosomes.}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms1819}}, doi = {{10.1038/ncomms1819}}, volume = {{3}}, year = {{2012}}, }