Cellular and Molecular Biological Approaches to Interpreting Ancient Biomarkers

Our ability to read the molecular fossil record has advanced significantly in the past decade. Improvements in biomarker sampling and quantification methods, expansion of molecular sequence databases, and the application of genetic and cellular biological tools to problems in biomarker research have...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of earth and planetary sciences Vol. 44; no. 1; pp. 493 - 522
Main Authors: Newman, Dianne K, Neubauer, Cajetan, Ricci, Jessica N, Wu, Chia-Hung, Pearson, Ann
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Palo Alto Annual Reviews 01-01-2016
Annual Reviews, Inc
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Summary:Our ability to read the molecular fossil record has advanced significantly in the past decade. Improvements in biomarker sampling and quantification methods, expansion of molecular sequence databases, and the application of genetic and cellular biological tools to problems in biomarker research have enabled much of this progress. By way of example, we review how attempts to understand the biological function of 2-methylhopanoids in modern bacteria have changed our interpretation of what their molecular fossils tell us about the early history of life. They were once thought to be biomarkers of cyanobacteria and hence the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis, but we now believe that 2-methylhopanoid biosynthetic capacity originated in the Alphaproteobacteria, that 2-methylhopanoids are regulated in response to stress, and that hopanoid 2-methylation enhances membrane rigidity. We present a new interpretation of 2-methylhopanes that bridges the gap between studies of the functions of 2-methylhopanoids and their patterns of occurrence in the rock record.
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ISSN:0084-6597
1545-4495
DOI:10.1146/annurev-earth-050212-123958