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Hassan S, Mushtaq M, Ganiee SA, Zaman M, Yaseen A, Shah AJ, Ganai BA. Microbial oases in the ice: A state-of-the-art review on cryoconite holes as diversity hotspots and their scientific connotations. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 252:118963. [PMID: 38640991 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.118963] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2023] [Revised: 04/13/2024] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 04/21/2024]
Abstract
Cryoconite holes, small meltwater pools on the surface of glaciers and ice sheets, represent extremely cold ecosystems teeming with diverse microbial life. Cryoconite holes exhibit greater susceptibility to the impacts of climate change, underlining the imperative nature of investigating microbial communities as an essential module of polar and alpine ecosystem monitoring efforts. Microbes in cryoconite holes play a critical role in nutrient cycling and can produce bioactive compounds, holding promise for industrial and pharmaceutical innovation. Understanding microbial diversity in these delicate ecosystems is essential for effective conservation strategies. Therefore, this review discusses the microbial diversity in these extreme environments, aiming to unveil the complexity of their microbial communities. The current study envisages that cryoconite holes as distinctive ecosystems encompass a multitude of taxonomically diverse and functionally adaptable microorganisms that exhibit a rich microbial diversity and possess intricate ecological functions. By investigating microbial diversity and ecological functions of cryoconite holes, this study aims to contribute valuable insights into the broader field of environmental microbiology and enhance further understanding of these ecosystems. This review seeks to provide a holistic overview regarding the formation, evolution, characterization, and molecular adaptations of cryoconite holes. Furthermore, future research directions and challenges underlining the need for long-term monitoring, and ethical considerations in preserving these pristine environments are also provided. Addressing these challenges and resolutely pursuing future research directions promises to enrich our comprehension of microbial diversity within cryoconite holes, revealing the broader ecological and biogeochemical implications. The inferences derived from the present study will provide researchers, ecologists, and policymakers with a profound understanding of the significance and utility of cryoconite holes in unveiling the microbial diversity and its potential applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahnawaz Hassan
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India.
| | - Misba Mushtaq
- Centre of Research for Development, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India
| | - Shahid Ahmad Ganiee
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India
| | - Muzafar Zaman
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India
| | - Aarif Yaseen
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India
| | - Abdul Jalil Shah
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India
| | - Bashir Ahmad Ganai
- Centre of Research for Development, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India.
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2
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Song H, An Z, Ye Q, Stüeken EE, Li J, Hu J, Algeo TJ, Tian L, Chu D, Song H, Xiao S, Tong J. Mid-latitudinal habitable environment for marine eukaryotes during the waning stage of the Marinoan snowball glaciation. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1564. [PMID: 37015913 PMCID: PMC10073137 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37172-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/06/2023] Open
Abstract
During the Marinoan Ice Age (ca. 654-635 Ma), one of the 'Snowball Earth' events in the Cryogenian Period, continental icesheets reached the tropical oceans. Oceanic refugia must have existed for aerobic marine eukaryotes to survive this event, as evidenced by benthic phototrophic macroalgae of the Songluo Biota preserved in black shales interbedded with glacial diamictites of the late Cryogenian Nantuo Formation in South China. However, the environmental conditions that allowed these organisms to thrive are poorly known. Here, we report carbon-nitrogen-iron geochemical data from the fossiliferous black shales and adjacent diamictites of the Nantuo Formation. Iron-speciation data document dysoxic-anoxic conditions in bottom waters, whereas nitrogen isotopes record aerobic nitrogen cycling perhaps in surface waters. These findings indicate that habitable open-ocean conditions were more extensive than previously thought, extending into mid-latitude coastal oceans and providing refugia for eukaryotic organisms during the waning stage of the Marinoan Ice Age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huyue Song
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China.
| | - Zhihui An
- Wuhan Center of China Geological Survey, Wuhan, 430205, China
| | - Qin Ye
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Eva E Stüeken
- School of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, KY16 9AL, UK
| | - Jing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Jun Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Thomas J Algeo
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
- Department of Geosciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221-0013, USA
| | - Li Tian
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Daoliang Chu
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Haijun Song
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Shuhai Xiao
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Jinnan Tong
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, School of Earth Science, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
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Evans TW, Kalambokidis MJ, Jungblut AD, Millar JL, Bauersachs T, Grotheer H, Mackey TJ, Hawes I, Summons RE. Lipid Biomarkers From Microbial Mats on the McMurdo Ice Shelf, Antarctica: Signatures for Life in the Cryosphere. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:903621. [PMID: 35756013 PMCID: PMC9232131 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.903621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Persistent cold temperatures, a paucity of nutrients, freeze-thaw cycles, and the strongly seasonal light regime make Antarctica one of Earth's least hospitable surface environments for complex life. Cyanobacteria, however, are well-adapted to such conditions and are often the dominant primary producers in Antarctic inland water environments. In particular, the network of meltwater ponds on the 'dirty ice' of the McMurdo Ice Shelf is an ecosystem with extensive cyanobacteria-dominated microbial mat accumulations. This study investigated intact polar lipids (IPLs), heterocyte glycolipids (HGs), and bacteriohopanepolyols (BHPs) in combination with 16S and 18S rRNA gene diversity in microbial mats of twelve ponds in this unique polar ecosystem. To constrain the effects of nutrient availability, temperature and freeze-thaw cycles on the lipid membrane composition, lipids were compared to stromatolite-forming cyanobacterial mats from ice-covered lakes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys as well as from (sub)tropical regions and hot springs. The 16S rRNA gene compositions of the McMurdo Ice Shelf mats confirm the dominance of Cyanobacteria and Proteobacteria while the 18S rRNA gene composition indicates the presence of Ochrophyta, Chlorophyta, Ciliophora, and other microfauna. IPL analyses revealed a predominantly bacterial community in the meltwater ponds, with archaeal lipids being barely detectable. IPLs are dominated by glycolipids and phospholipids, followed by aminolipids. The high abundance of sugar-bound lipids accords with a predominance of cyanobacterial primary producers. The phosphate-limited samples from the (sub)tropical, hot spring, and Lake Vanda sites revealed a higher abundance of aminolipids compared to those of the nitrogen-limited meltwater ponds, affirming the direct affects that N and P availability have on IPL compositions. The high abundance of polyunsaturated IPLs in the Antarctic microbial mats suggests that these lipids provide an important mechanism to maintain membrane fluidity in cold environments. High abundances of HG keto-ols and HG keto-diols, produced by heterocytous cyanobacteria, further support these findings and reveal a unique distribution compared to those from warmer climates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas W Evans
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Maria J Kalambokidis
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Anne D Jungblut
- Life Sciences Department, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jasmin L Millar
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
| | - Thorsten Bauersachs
- Institute of Geosciences, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Hendrik Grotheer
- Marine Geochemistry, Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Tyler J Mackey
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Ian Hawes
- Coastal Marine Field Station, University of Waikato, Tauranga, New Zealand
| | - Roger E Summons
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
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4
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Maria Costa-Paiva E, Mello B, Santos Bezerra B, Coates CJ, Halanych KM, Brown F, de Moraes Leme J, Trindade RIF. Molecular dating of the blood pigment hemocyanin provides new insight into the origin of animals. GEOBIOLOGY 2022; 20:333-345. [PMID: 34766436 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2020] [Revised: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The Neoproterozoic included changes in oceanic redox conditions, the configuration of continents and climate, extreme ice ages (Sturtian and Marinoan), and the rise of complex life forms. A much-debated topic in geobiology concerns the influence of atmospheric oxygenation on Earth and the origin and diversification of animal lineages, with the most widely popularized hypotheses relying on causal links between oxygen levels and the rise of animals. The vast majority of extant animals use aerobic metabolism for growth and homeostasis; hence, the binding and transportation of oxygen represent a vital physiological task. Considering the blood pigment hemocyanin (Hc) is present in sponges and ctenophores, and likely to be present in the common ancestor of animals, we investigated the evolution and date of Hc emergence using bioinformatics approaches on both transcriptomic and genomic data. Bayesian molecular dating suggested that the ancestral animal Hc gene arose approximately 881 Ma during the Tonian Period (1000-720 Ma), prior to the extreme glaciation events of the Cryogenian Period (720-635 Ma). This result is corroborated by a recently discovered fossil of a putative sponge ~890 Ma and modern molecular dating for the origin of metazoans of ~1,000-650 Ma (but does contradict previous inferences regarding the origin of Hc ~700-600 Ma). Our data reveal that crown-group animals already possessed hemocyanin-like blood pigments, which may have enhanced the oxygen-carrying capacity of these animals in hypoxic environments at that time or acted in the transport of hormones, detoxification of heavy metals, and immunity pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Maria Costa-Paiva
- Zoology Department, Institute of Biosciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
- Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, Institute of Astronomy, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Beatriz Mello
- Genetics Department, Biology Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Bruno Santos Bezerra
- Zoology Department, Institute of Biosciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Christopher J Coates
- Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Swansea University, Swansea, UK
| | - Kenneth M Halanych
- Center for Marine Science, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, USA
| | - Federico Brown
- Zoology Department, Institute of Biosciences, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Ricardo I F Trindade
- Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, Institute of Astronomy, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
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5
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Zhang H, Sun Y, Zeng Q, Crowe SA, Luo H. Snowball Earth, population bottleneck and Prochlorococcus evolution. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211956. [PMID: 34784770 PMCID: PMC8596011 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Prochlorococcus are the most abundant photosynthetic organisms in the modern ocean. A massive DNA loss event occurred in their early evolutionary history, leading to highly reduced genomes in nearly all lineages, as well as enhanced efficiency in both nutrient uptake and light absorption. The environmental landscape that shaped this ancient genome reduction, however, remained unknown. Through careful molecular clock analyses, we established that this Prochlorococcus genome reduction occurred during the Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth climate catastrophe. The lethally low temperature and exceedingly dim light during the Snowball Earth event would have inhibited Prochlorococcus growth and proliferation, and caused severe population bottlenecks. These bottlenecks are recorded as an excess of deleterious mutations accumulated across genomic regions and inherited by descendant lineages. Prochlorococcus adaptation to extreme environmental conditions during Snowball Earth intervals can be inferred by tracing the evolutionary paths of genes that encode key metabolic potential. Key metabolic innovation includes modified lipopolysaccharide structure, strengthened peptidoglycan biosynthesis, the replacement of a sophisticated circadian clock with an hourglass-like mechanism that resets daily for dim light adaption and the adoption of ammonia diffusion as an efficient membrane transporter-independent mode of nitrogen acquisition. In this way, the Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth event may have altered the physiological characters of Prochlorococcus, shaping their ecologically vital role as the most abundant primary producers in the modern oceans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Zhang
- Shenzhen Research Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Ying Sun
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Qinglu Zeng
- Department of Ocean Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Sean A. Crowe
- Department of Earth Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, and Swire Institute for Marine Science (SWIMS), University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Haiwei Luo
- Shenzhen Research Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
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6
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Žárský J, Žárský V, Hanáček M, Žárský V. Cryogenian Glacial Habitats as a Plant Terrestrialisation Cradle - The Origin of the Anydrophytes and Zygnematophyceae Split. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2021; 12:735020. [PMID: 35154170 PMCID: PMC8829067 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.735020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
For tens of millions of years (Ma), the terrestrial habitats of Snowball Earth during the Cryogenian period (between 720 and 635 Ma before present-Neoproterozoic Era) were possibly dominated by global snow and ice cover up to the equatorial sublimative desert. The most recent time-calibrated phylogenies calibrated not only on plants but on a comprehensive set of eukaryotes indicate that within the Streptophyta, multicellular charophytes (Phragmoplastophyta) evolved in the Mesoproterozoic to the early Neoproterozoic. At the same time, Cryogenian is the time of the likely origin of the common ancestor of Zygnematophyceae and Embryophyta and later, also of the Zygnematophyceae-Embryophyta split. This common ancestor is proposed to be called Anydrophyta; here, we use anydrophytes. Based on the combination of published phylogenomic studies and estimated diversification time comparisons, we deem it highly likely that anydrophytes evolved in response to Cryogenian cooling. Also, later in the Cryogenian, secondary simplification of multicellular anydrophytes and loss of flagella resulted in Zygnematophyceae diversification as an adaptation to the extended cold glacial environment. We propose that the Marinoan geochemically documented expansion of first terrestrial flora has been represented not only by Chlorophyta but also by Streptophyta, including the anydrophytes, and later by Zygnematophyceae, thriving on glacial surfaces until today. It is possible that multicellular early Embryophyta survived in less abundant (possibly relatively warmer) refugia, relying more on mineral substrates, allowing the retention of flagella-based sexuality. The loss of flagella and sexual reproduction by conjugation evolved in Zygnematophyceae and zygomycetous fungi during the Cryogenian in a remarkably convergent way. Thus, we support the concept that the important basal cellular adaptations to terrestrial environments were exapted in streptophyte algae for terrestrialization and propose that this was stimulated by the adaptation to glacial habitats dominating the Cryogenian Snowball Earth. Including the glacial lifestyle when considering the rise of land plants increases the parsimony of connecting different ecological, phylogenetic, and physiological puzzles of the journey from aquatic algae to terrestrial floras.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jakub Žárský
- CryoEco Research Group, Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
- *Correspondence: Jakub Žárský,
| | - Vojtěch Žárský
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Vestec, Czechia
| | - Martin Hanáček
- Polar-Geo-Lab, Department of Geography, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czechia
- Regional Museum in Jeseník, Jeseník, Czechia
| | - Viktor Žárský
- Laboratory of Cell Biology, Institute of Experimental Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
- Department of Experimental Plant Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
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7
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Brown SP, Tucker AE. Distribution and biogeography of Sanguina snow algae: Fine-scale sequence analyses reveal previously unknown population structure. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:11352-11361. [PMID: 33144969 PMCID: PMC7593155 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2020] [Revised: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 08/18/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
It has been previously suggested that snow algal species within the genus Sanguina (S. nivaloides and S. aurantia) show no population structure despite being found globally (S. nivaloides) or throughout the Northern Hemisphere (S. aurantia). However, systematic biogeographic research into global distributions is lacking due to few genetic and no genomic resources for these snow algae. Here, using all publicly available and previously unpublished Sanguina sequences of the Internal Transcribed Spacer 2 region, we investigated whether this purported lack of population structure within Sanguina species is supported by additional evidence. Using a minimum entropy decomposition (MED) approach to examine fine-scale genetic population structure, we find that these snow algae populations are largely distinct regionally and have some interesting biogeographic structuring. This is in opposition to the currently accepted idea that Sanguina species lack any observable population structure across their vast ranges and highlights the utility of fine-scale (sub-OTU) analytical tools to delineate geographic and genetic population structure. This work extends the known range of S. aurantia and emphasizes the need for development of genetic and genomic tools for additional studies on snow algae biogeography.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shawn P. Brown
- Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of MemphisMemphisTNUSA
- Center of Biodiversity ResearchUniversity of MemphisMemphisTNUSA
| | - Avery E. Tucker
- Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of MemphisMemphisTNUSA
- Center of Biodiversity ResearchUniversity of MemphisMemphisTNUSA
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8
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Liljestrand FL, Laakso TA, Macdonald FA, Schrag DP, Johnston DT. Isotopically anomalous organic carbon in the aftermath of the Marinoan snowball Earth. GEOBIOLOGY 2020; 18:476-485. [PMID: 32562514 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2019] [Revised: 01/23/2020] [Accepted: 01/23/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Throughout most of the sedimentary record, the marine carbon cycle is interpreted as being in isotopic steady state. This is most commonly inferred via isotopic reconstructions, where two export fluxes (organic carbon and carbonate) are offset by a constant isotopic fractionation of ~25 (termed εorg-carb ). Sedimentary deposits immediately overlying the Marinoan snowball Earth diamictites, however, stray from this prediction. In stratigraphic sections from the Ol Formation (Mongolia) and Sheepbed Formation (Canada), we observe a temporary excursion where the organic matter has anomalously heavy δ13 C and is grossly decoupled from the carbonate δ13 C. This signal may reflect the unique biogeochemical conditions that persisted in the aftermath of snowball Earth. For example, physical oceanographic modeling suggests that a strong density gradient caused the ocean to remain stratified for about 50,000 years after termination of the Marinoan snowball event, during which time the surface ocean and continental weathering consumed the large atmospheric CO2 reservoir. Further, we now better understand how δ13 C records of carbonate can be post-depostionally altered and thus be misleading. In an attempt to explain the observed carbon isotope record, we developed a model that tracks the fluxes and isotopic values of carbon between the surface ocean, deep ocean, and atmosphere. By comparing the model output to the sedimentary data, stratification alone cannot generate the anomalous observed isotopic signal. Reproducing the heavy δ13 C in organic matter requires the progressively diminishing contribution of an additional anomalous source of organic matter. The exact source of this organic matter is unclear.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Thomas A Laakso
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Francis A Macdonald
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Daniel P Schrag
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - David T Johnston
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
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9
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Subglacial meltwater supported aerobic marine habitats during Snowball Earth. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:25478-25483. [PMID: 31792178 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1909165116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The Earth's most severe ice ages interrupted a crucial interval in eukaryotic evolution with widespread ice coverage during the Cryogenian Period (720 to 635 Ma). Aerobic eukaryotes must have survived the "Snowball Earth" glaciations, requiring the persistence of oxygenated marine habitats, yet evidence for these environments is lacking. We examine iron formations within globally distributed Cryogenian glacial successions to reconstruct the redox state of the synglacial oceans. Iron isotope ratios and cerium anomalies from a range of glaciomarine environments reveal pervasive anoxia in the ice-covered oceans but increasing oxidation with proximity to the ice shelf grounding line. We propose that the outwash of subglacial meltwater supplied oxygen to the synglacial oceans, creating glaciomarine oxygen oases. The confluence of oxygen-rich meltwater and iron-rich seawater may have provided sufficient energy to sustain chemosynthetic communities. These processes could have supplied the requisite oxygen and organic carbon source for the survival of early animals and other eukaryotic heterotrophs through these extreme glaciations.
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10
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Hamilton TL. The trouble with oxygen: The ecophysiology of extant phototrophs and implications for the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis. Free Radic Biol Med 2019; 140:233-249. [PMID: 31078729 DOI: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2019.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2018] [Revised: 04/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The ability to harvest light to drive chemical reactions and gain energy provided microbes access to high energy electron donors which fueled primary productivity, biogeochemical cycles, and microbial evolution. Oxygenic photosynthesis is often cited as the most important microbial innovation-the emergence of oxygen-evolving photosynthesis, aided by geologic events, is credited with tipping the scale from a reducing early Earth to an oxygenated world that eventually lead to complex life. Anoxygenic photosynthesis predates oxygen-evolving photosynthesis and played a key role in developing and fine-tuning the photosystem architecture of modern oxygenic phototrophs. The release of oxygen as a by-product of metabolic activity would have caused oxidative damage to anaerobic microbiota that evolved under the anoxic, reducing conditions of early Earth. Photosynthetic machinery is particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of oxygen and reactive oxygen species and these effects are compounded by light. As a result, phototrophs employ additional detoxification mechanisms to mitigate oxidative stress and have evolved alternative oxygen-dependent enzymes for chlorophyll biosynthesis. Phylogenetic reconstruction studies and biochemical characterization suggest photosynthetic reactions centers, particularly in Cyanobacteria, evolved to both increase efficiency of electron transfer and avoid photodamage caused by chlorophyll radicals that is acute in the presence of oxygen. Here we review the oxygen and reactive oxygen species detoxification mechanisms observed in extant anoxygenic and oxygenic photosynthetic bacteria as well as the emergence of these mechanisms over evolutionary time. We examine the distribution of phototrophs in modern systems and phylogenetic reconstructions to evaluate the emergence of mechanisms to mediate oxidative damage and highlight changes in photosystems and reaction centers, chlorophyll biosynthesis, and niche space in response to oxygen production. This synthesis supports an emergence of H2S-driven anoxygenic photosynthesis in Cyanobacteria prior to the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis and underscores a role for the former metabolism in fueling fine-tuning of the oxygen evolving complex and mechanisms to repair oxidative damage. In contrast, we note the lack of elaborate mechanisms to deal with oxygen in non-cyanobacterial anoxygenic phototrophs suggesting these microbes have occupied similar niche space throughout Earth's history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Trinity L Hamilton
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, 55108, USA; Biotechnology Institute, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, 55108, USA.
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11
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Zawierucha K, Shain DH. Disappearing Kilimanjaro snow-Are we the last generation to explore equatorial glacier biodiversity? Ecol Evol 2019; 9:8911-8918. [PMID: 31410289 PMCID: PMC6686285 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2019] [Revised: 05/11/2019] [Accepted: 05/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Glaciation accompanied our human ancestors in Africa throughout the Pleistocene. Regrettably, equatorial glaciers and snow are disappearing rapidly, and we are likely the last generation who will get to know these peculiar places. Despite the permanently harsh conditions of glacier/snow habitats, they support a remarkable diversity of life ranging from bacteria to animals. Numerous papers have been devoted to microbial communities and unique animals on polar glaciers and high mountains, but only two reports relate to glacial biodiversity in equatorial regions, which are destined to melt completely within the next few decades. Equatorial glaciers constitute "cold islands" in tropics, and discovering their diversity might shed light on the biogeography, dispersal, and history of psychrophiles. Thus, an opportunity to protect biota of equatorial glaciers hinges on ex situ conservation. It is timely and crucial that we should investigate the glacial biodiversity of the few remaining equatorial glaciers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krzysztof Zawierucha
- Department of Animal Taxonomy and Ecology, Faculty of BiologyAdam Mickiewicz UniversityPoznańPoland
| | - Daniel H. Shain
- Biology DepartmentRutgers, The State University of New JerseyCamdenNew Jersey
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12
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Predominantly Ferruginous Conditions in South China during the Marinoan Glaciation: Insight from REE Geochemistry of the Syn-glacial Dolostone from the Nantuo Formation in Guizhou Province, China. MINERALS 2019. [DOI: 10.3390/min9060348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The Neoproterozoic Era witnessed two low-latitude glaciations, which exerted a fundamental influence on ocean–atmosphere redox conditions and biogeochemical cycling. Climate models and palaeobiological evidence support the belief that open waters provided oases for life that survived snowball Earth glaciations, yet independent geochemical evidence for marine redox conditions during the Marinoan glaciation remains scarce owing to the apparent lack of primary marine precipitates. In this study, we explore variability in rare earth elements (REEs) and trace metal concentrations in dolostone samples of the Cryogenian Nantuo Formation taken from a drill core in South China. Petrological evidence suggests that the dolostone in the Nantuo Formation was formed in near-shore waters. All the examined dolostone samples featured significant enrichment of manganese (345–10,890 ppm, average 3488 ppm) and middle rare earth elements (MREEs) (Bell Shape Index: 1.43–2.16, average 1.76) after being normalized to Post-Archean Australian Shale (PAAS). Most dolostone samples showed slight to no negative Ce anomalies (Ce*/Ce 0.53–1.30, average 0.95), as well as positive Eu anomalies (Eu*/Eu 1.77–3.28, average 1.95). This finding suggests that the dolostone samples were deposited from suboxic to iron-enriched and anoxic waters. Although total REE concentrations correlated positively with Th concentrations in dolostone samples, MREE-enriched PAAS-normalized patterns preclude the conclusion that REEs were largely introduced by terrestrial contamination. Rather, we interpret the correlation between REEs and Th as an indication that the former were transported by colloids and nanoparticles in meltwaters. Taken together, we propose that anoxic and ferruginous water columns dominated in South China during the Marinoan glaciation with a thin oxic/suboxic layer restricted to coastal waters. The extreme anoxic and ferruginous conditions prevailing in the Cryogenian would have provided a baseline for subsequent transient Ediacaran ocean oxygenation and life evolution.
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The transition from a cyanobacterial to algal world and the emergence of animals. Emerg Top Life Sci 2018; 2:181-190. [PMID: 32412625 DOI: 10.1042/etls20180039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2018] [Revised: 05/24/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The Neoproterozoic, 1000-541 million years (Myr) ago, saw the transition from a largely bacterial world to the emergence of multicellular grazers, suspension feeders and predators. This article explores the hypothesis that the first appearance of large, multicellular heterotrophs was fueled by an elevated supply of nutrients and carbon from the bottom of the food chain to higher trophic levels. A refined record of molecular fossils of algal sterols reveals that the transition from dominantly bacterial to eukaryotic primary production in open marine habitat occurred between 659 and 645 Myr ago, in the hot interlude between two Snowball Earth glaciations. This bacterial-eukaryotic transition reveals three characteristics: it was rapid on geological timescales, it followed an extreme environmental catastrophe and it was permanent - hallmarks of an ecological hysteresis that shifted Earth's oceans between two self-stabilizing steady states. More than 50 million years of Snowball glaciations and their hot aftermath may have purged old-world bacterial phytoplankton, providing empty but nutrient-rich ecospace for recolonization by larger algae and transforming the base of the food web. Elevated average and maximum particle sizes at the base of the food chain may have provided more efficient energy and nutrient transfer to higher trophic levels, fueling an arms race toward larger grazers, predators and prey, and the development of increasingly complex feeding and defense strategies.
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Benoiston AS, Ibarbalz FM, Bittner L, Guidi L, Jahn O, Dutkiewicz S, Bowler C. The evolution of diatoms and their biogeochemical functions. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 372:rstb.2016.0397. [PMID: 28717023 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/24/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In contemporary oceans diatoms are an important group of eukaryotic phytoplankton that typically dominate in upwelling regions and at high latitudes. They also make significant contributions to sporadic blooms that often occur in springtime. Recent surveys have revealed global information about their abundance and diversity, as well as their contributions to biogeochemical cycles, both as primary producers of organic material and as conduits facilitating the export of carbon and silicon to the ocean interior. Sequencing of diatom genomes is revealing the evolutionary underpinnings of their ecological success by examination of their gene repertoires and the mechanisms they use to adapt to environmental changes. The rise of the diatoms over the last hundred million years is similarly being explored through analysis of microfossils and biomarkers that can be traced through geological time, as well as their contributions to seafloor sediments and fossil fuel reserves. The current review aims to synthesize current information about the evolution and biogeochemical functions of diatoms as they rose to prominence in the global ocean.This article is part of the themed issue 'The peculiar carbon metabolism in diatoms'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne-Sophie Benoiston
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ. Paris 06, Univ. Antilles, Univ. Nice Sophia Antipolis, CNRS, Evolution Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (EPS - IBPS), 75005 Paris, France
| | - Federico M Ibarbalz
- Ecole Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, Institut de Biologie de l'Ecole Normale Supérieure (IBENS), CNRS UMR8197, INSERM U1024, 46 rue d'Ulm, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Lucie Bittner
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ. Paris 06, Univ. Antilles, Univ. Nice Sophia Antipolis, CNRS, Evolution Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (EPS - IBPS), 75005 Paris, France
| | - Lionel Guidi
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ. Paris 06, CNRS, Laboratoire d'Océanographie de Villefranche (LOV) UMR7093, Observatoire Océanologique, 06230 Villefranche-sur-Mer, France.,Department of Oceanography, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
| | - Oliver Jahn
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 54-1514 MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Stephanie Dutkiewicz
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 54-1514 MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Chris Bowler
- Ecole Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, Institut de Biologie de l'Ecole Normale Supérieure (IBENS), CNRS UMR8197, INSERM U1024, 46 rue d'Ulm, 75005 Paris, France
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15
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Johnson BW, Poulton SW, Goldblatt C. Marine oxygen production and open water supported an active nitrogen cycle during the Marinoan Snowball Earth. Nat Commun 2017; 8:1316. [PMID: 29105659 PMCID: PMC5673069 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01453-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2016] [Accepted: 09/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The Neoproterozoic Earth was punctuated by two low-latitude Snowball Earth glaciations. Models permit oceans with either total ice cover or substantial areas of open water. Total ice cover would make an anoxic ocean likely, and would be a formidable barrier to biologic survival. However, there are no direct data constraining either the redox state of the ocean or marine biological productivity during the glacials. Here we present iron-speciation, redox-sensitive trace element, and nitrogen isotope data from a Neoproterozoic (Marinoan) glacial episode. Iron-speciation indicates deeper waters were anoxic and Fe-rich, while trace element concentrations indicate surface waters were in contact with an oxygenated atmosphere. Furthermore, synglacial sedimentary nitrogen is isotopically heavier than the modern atmosphere, requiring a biologic cycle with nitrogen fixation, nitrification and denitrification. Our results indicate significant regions of open marine water and active biologic productivity throughout one of the harshest glaciations in Earth history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin W Johnson
- School of Earth and Ocean Sciences Bob Wright Centre A405, University of Victoria, PO Box 1700 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, Canada, V8W 2Y2.
- University of Colorado, Department of Geological Sciences UCB 399, Boulder, CO, 80309-0399, USA.
| | - Simon W Poulton
- School of Earth and Environment Maths/Earth and Environment Building, The University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
| | - Colin Goldblatt
- School of Earth and Ocean Sciences Bob Wright Centre A405, University of Victoria, PO Box 1700 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, Canada, V8W 2Y2
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Hoffman PF, Abbot DS, Ashkenazy Y, Benn DI, Brocks JJ, Cohen PA, Cox GM, Creveling JR, Donnadieu Y, Erwin DH, Fairchild IJ, Ferreira D, Goodman JC, Halverson GP, Jansen MF, Le Hir G, Love GD, Macdonald FA, Maloof AC, Partin CA, Ramstein G, Rose BEJ, Rose CV, Sadler PM, Tziperman E, Voigt A, Warren SG. Snowball Earth climate dynamics and Cryogenian geology-geobiology. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2017; 3:e1600983. [PMID: 29134193 PMCID: PMC5677351 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1600983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2016] [Accepted: 09/21/2017] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
Geological evidence indicates that grounded ice sheets reached sea level at all latitudes during two long-lived Cryogenian (58 and ≥5 My) glaciations. Combined uranium-lead and rhenium-osmium dating suggests that the older (Sturtian) glacial onset and both terminations were globally synchronous. Geochemical data imply that CO2 was 102 PAL (present atmospheric level) at the younger termination, consistent with a global ice cover. Sturtian glaciation followed breakup of a tropical supercontinent, and its onset coincided with the equatorial emplacement of a large igneous province. Modeling shows that the small thermal inertia of a globally frozen surface reverses the annual mean tropical atmospheric circulation, producing an equatorial desert and net snow and frost accumulation elsewhere. Oceanic ice thickens, forming a sea glacier that flows gravitationally toward the equator, sustained by the hydrologic cycle and by basal freezing and melting. Tropical ice sheets flow faster as CO2 rises but lose mass and become sensitive to orbital changes. Equatorial dust accumulation engenders supraglacial oligotrophic meltwater ecosystems, favorable for cyanobacteria and certain eukaryotes. Meltwater flushing through cracks enables organic burial and submarine deposition of airborne volcanic ash. The subglacial ocean is turbulent and well mixed, in response to geothermal heating and heat loss through the ice cover, increasing with latitude. Terminal carbonate deposits, unique to Cryogenian glaciations, are products of intense weathering and ocean stratification. Whole-ocean warming and collapsing peripheral bulges allow marine coastal flooding to continue long after ice-sheet disappearance. The evolutionary legacy of Snowball Earth is perceptible in fossils and living organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul F. Hoffman
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
- School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 5C2, Canada
| | - Dorian S. Abbot
- Department of Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Yosef Ashkenazy
- Department of Solar Energy and Environmental Physics, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, 84990, Israel
| | - Douglas I. Benn
- School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 8YA, UK
| | - Jochen J. Brocks
- Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2601, Australia
| | | | - Grant M. Cox
- Centre for Tectonics, Resources and Exploration (TRaX), Department of Earth Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia
- Department of Applied Geology, Curtin University, Bentley, Western Australia 6845, Australia
| | - Jessica R. Creveling
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331–5503, USA
| | - Yannick Donnadieu
- Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l’Environnement (LSCE), Institut Pierre Simon Laplace (IPSL), CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, L’Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD), Centre Européen de Recherche et D’enseignement de Géosciences de L’environnement (CEREGE), 13545 Aix-en-Provence, France
| | - Douglas H. Erwin
- Department of Paleobiology, Smithsonian Institution, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 121, Washington, DC 20013–7012, USA
- Santa Fe Institute, 1399 Hyde Park Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA
| | - Ian J. Fairchild
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| | - David Ferreira
- Department of Meteorology, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6BB, UK
| | - Jason C. Goodman
- Department of Environmental Science, Wheaton College, Norton, MA 02766, USA
| | - Galen P. Halverson
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montréal, Québec H3A 0E8, Canada
| | - Malte F. Jansen
- Department of Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Guillaume Le Hir
- Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, 1, rue Jussieu, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Gordon D. Love
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Francis A. Macdonald
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Adam C. Maloof
- Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Camille A. Partin
- Department of Geological Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5E2, Canada
| | - Gilles Ramstein
- Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l’Environnement (LSCE), Institut Pierre Simon Laplace (IPSL), CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Brian E. J. Rose
- Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, University at Albany, Albany, NY 12222, USA
| | | | - Peter M. Sadler
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Eli Tziperman
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Aiko Voigt
- Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Department of Troposphere Research, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, P.O. Box 1000, Palisades, NY 10964–1000, USA
| | - Stephen G. Warren
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195–1640, USA
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Hoshino Y, Poshibaeva A, Meredith W, Snape C, Poshibaev V, Versteegh GJM, Kuznetsov N, Leider A, van Maldegem L, Neumann M, Naeher S, Moczydłowska M, Brocks JJ, Jarrett AJM, Tang Q, Xiao S, McKirdy D, Das SK, Alvaro JJ, Sansjofre P, Hallmann C. Cryogenian evolution of stigmasteroid biosynthesis. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2017; 3:e1700887. [PMID: 28948220 PMCID: PMC5606710 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1700887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2017] [Accepted: 08/30/2017] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Sedimentary hydrocarbon remnants of eukaryotic C26-C30 sterols can be used to reconstruct early algal evolution. Enhanced C29 sterol abundances provide algal cell membranes a density advantage in large temperature fluctuations. Here, we combined a literature review with new analyses to generate a comprehensive inventory of unambiguously syngenetic steranes in Neoproterozoic rocks. Our results show that the capacity for C29 24-ethyl-sterol biosynthesis emerged in the Cryogenian, that is, between 720 and 635 million years ago during the Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth glaciations, which were an evolutionary stimulant, not a bottleneck. This biochemical innovation heralded the rise of green algae to global dominance of marine ecosystems and highlights the environmental drivers for the evolution of sterol biosynthesis. The Cryogenian emergence of C29 sterol biosynthesis places a benchmark for verifying older sterane signatures and sets a new framework for our understanding of early algal evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yosuke Hoshino
- Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Hans-Knoell-Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
| | - Aleksandra Poshibaeva
- Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas, Leninsky Prospekt 65, Moscow, Russia
| | - William Meredith
- Faculty of Engineering, University of Nottingham, Energy Technologies Building, Triumph Road, Nottingham NG7 2TU, UK
| | - Colin Snape
- Faculty of Engineering, University of Nottingham, Energy Technologies Building, Triumph Road, Nottingham NG7 2TU, UK
| | - Vladimir Poshibaev
- Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas, Leninsky Prospekt 65, Moscow, Russia
| | - Gerard J. M. Versteegh
- MARUM–Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Leobener Strasse 8, 28359 Bremen, Germany
- Alfred Wegener Institut, Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany
| | - Nikolay Kuznetsov
- Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas, Leninsky Prospekt 65, Moscow, Russia
- Geological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pygevsky 7, Moscow, Russia
| | - Arne Leider
- Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Hans-Knoell-Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
| | - Lennart van Maldegem
- Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Hans-Knoell-Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
- MARUM–Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Leobener Strasse 8, 28359 Bremen, Germany
| | - Mareike Neumann
- Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Hans-Knoell-Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
| | - Sebastian Naeher
- Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Hans-Knoell-Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
- MARUM–Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Leobener Strasse 8, 28359 Bremen, Germany
| | | | - Jochen J. Brocks
- Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Building 142, Mills Road, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2601, Australia
| | - Amber J. M. Jarrett
- Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Building 142, Mills Road, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2601, Australia
| | - Qing Tang
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Shuhai Xiao
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - David McKirdy
- Department of Earth Science, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia
| | - Supriyo Kumar Das
- Department of Geology, Presidency University, College Street 86/1, Kolkata 700073, India
| | - José Javier Alvaro
- Instituto de Geociencias (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas–Universidad Complutense de Madrid), Novais 12, 28040 Madrid, Spain
| | - Pierre Sansjofre
- Laboratoire Géosciences Océan, UMR CNRS-6538, Université de Bretagne Occidentale, 29280 Plouzane, France
| | - Christian Hallmann
- Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Hans-Knoell-Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
- MARUM–Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Leobener Strasse 8, 28359 Bremen, Germany
- Corresponding author.
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18
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Raven JA, Beardall J, Sánchez-Baracaldo P. The possible evolution and future of CO2-concentrating mechanisms. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2017; 68:3701-3716. [PMID: 28505361 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erx110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs), based either on active transport of inorganic carbon (biophysical CCMs) or on biochemistry involving supplementary carbon fixation into C4 acids (C4 and CAM), play a major role in global primary productivity. However, the ubiquitous CO2-fixing enzyme in autotrophs, Rubisco, evolved at a time when atmospheric CO2 levels were very much higher than today and O2 was very low and, as CO2 and O2 approached (by no means monotonically), today's levels, at some time subsequently many organisms evolved a CCM that increased the supply of CO2 and decreased Rubisco oxygenase activity. Given that CO2 levels and other environmental factors have altered considerably between when autotrophs evolved and the present day, and are predicted to continue to change into the future, we here examine the drivers for, and possible timing of, evolution of CCMs. CCMs probably evolved when CO2 fell to 2-16 times the present atmospheric level, depending on Rubisco kinetics. We also assess the effects of other key environmental factors such as temperature and nutrient levels on CCM activity and examine the evidence for evolutionary changes in CCM activity and related cellular processes as well as limitations on continuity of CCMs through environmental variations.
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Affiliation(s)
- John A Raven
- Division of Plant Sciences, University of Dundee at the James Hutton Institute, Invergowrie, Dundee DD2 5DA, UK
- Functional Plant Biology and Climate Change Cluster, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - John Beardall
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Building 18, Clayton Campus, Vic 3800, Australia
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