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Hong Q, Cheng Y, Qu Y, Wei L, Liu Y, Gao J, Cai P, Chen T. Overlooked shelf sediment reductive sinks of dissolved rhenium and uranium in the modern ocean. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3966. [PMID: 38729935 PMCID: PMC11519890 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48297-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Rhenium (Re) and uranium (U) are essential proxies in reconstructing past oceanic oxygenation evolution. However, their removal in continental shelf sediments, hotspots of early diagenesis, were previously treated as quantitatively unimportant sinks in the ocean. Here we examine the sedimentary reductive removal of Re and U and their coupling with organic carbon decomposition, utilizing the 224Ra/228Th disequilibria within the East China Sea shelf. We identified positive correlations between their removal fluxes and the rates of sediment oxygen consumption or organic carbon decomposition. These correlations enable an evaluation of global shelf reductive sinks that are comparable to (for Re) or higher than (~4-fold for U) previously established suboxic/anoxic sinks. These findings suggest potential imbalances in the modern budgets of Re and U, or perhaps a substantial underestimation of their sources. Our study thus highlights shelf sedimentary reductive removal as critical yet overlooked sinks for Re and U in the modern ocean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingquan Hong
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering and Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Yilin Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China
- College of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China
| | - Yang Qu
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering and Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Lin Wei
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China
- College of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China
| | - Yumeng Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering and Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Jianfeng Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Ore Deposit Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, 550081, China
| | - Pinghe Cai
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China
- College of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China
| | - Tianyu Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering and Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, China.
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2
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Xia Z, Li S, Hu Z, Bialik O, Chen T, Weldeghebriel MF, Fan Q, Fan J, Wang X, An S, Zhang F, Xu H, Chen J, Ji Z, Shen S, Lowenstein TK, Li W. The evolution of Earth's surficial Mg cycle over the past 2 billion years. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadj5474. [PMID: 38427740 PMCID: PMC10906924 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj5474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
The surficial cycling of Mg is coupled with the global carbon cycle, a predominant control of Earth's climate. However, how Earth's surficial Mg cycle evolved with time has been elusive. Magnesium isotope signatures of seawater (δ26Mgsw) track the surficial Mg cycle, which could provide crucial information on the carbon cycle in Earth's history. Here, we present a reconstruction of δ26Mgsw evolution over the past 2 billion years using marine halite fluid inclusions and sedimentary dolostones. The data show that δ26Mgsw decreased, with fluctuations, by about 1.4‰ from the Paleoproterozoic to the present time. Mass balance calculations based on this δ26Mgsw record reveal a long-term decline in net dolostone burial (NDB) over the past 2 billion years, due to the decrease in dolomitization in the oceans and the increase in dolostone weathering on the continents. This underlines a previously underappreciated connection between the weathering-burial cycle of dolostone and the Earth's climate on geologic timescales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiguang Xia
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
- International Center for Sedimentary Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry Research, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
| | - Shilei Li
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Key Laboratory of Surficial Geochemistry, Ministry of Education, School of Earth Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Zhongya Hu
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, School of Ocean and Earth Science, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
| | - Or Bialik
- Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, University of Muenster, Corrensstr. 24, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Tianyu Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Mebrahtu F. Weldeghebriel
- Department of Earth Sciences, Binghamton University, NY 13902, USA
- Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Qishun Fan
- Key Laboratory of Comprehensive and Highly Efficient Utilization of Salt Lake Resources, Qinghai Provincial Key Laboratory of Geology and Environment of Salt Lakes, Qinghai Institute of Salt Lakes, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining 810008, China
| | - Junxuan Fan
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Xiangdong Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Shichao An
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Feifei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Haoran Xu
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Jiayang Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Zhihan Ji
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Shuzhong Shen
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | | | - Weiqiang Li
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
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3
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Belato FA, Mello B, Coates CJ, Halanych KM, Brown FD, Morandini AC, de Moraes Leme J, Trindade RIF, Costa-Paiva EM. Divergence time estimates for the hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF1α) reveal an ancient emergence of animals in low-oxygen environments. GEOBIOLOGY 2024; 22:e12577. [PMID: 37750460 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Abstract
Unveiling the tempo and mode of animal evolution is necessary to understand the links between environmental changes and biological innovation. Although the earliest unambiguous metazoan fossils date to the late Ediacaran period, molecular clock estimates agree that the last common ancestor (LCA) of all extant animals emerged ~850 Ma, in the Tonian period, before the oldest evidence for widespread ocean oxygenation at ~635-560 Ma in the Ediacaran period. Metazoans are aerobic organisms, that is, they are dependent on oxygen to survive. In low-oxygen conditions, most animals have an evolutionarily conserved pathway for maintaining oxygen homeostasis that triggers physiological changes in gene expression via the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIFa). However, here we confirm the absence of the characteristic HIFa protein domain responsible for the oxygen sensing of HIFa in sponges and ctenophores, indicating the LCA of metazoans lacked the functional protein domain as well, and so could have maintained their transcription levels unaltered under the very low-oxygen concentrations of their environments. Using Bayesian relaxed molecular clock dating, we inferred that the ancestral gene lineage responsible for HIFa arose in the Mesoproterozoic Era, ~1273 Ma (Credibility Interval 957-1621 Ma), consistent with the idea that important genetic machinery associated with animals evolved much earlier than the LCA of animals. Our data suggest at least two duplication events in the evolutionary history of HIFa, which generated three vertebrate paralogs, products of the two successive whole-genome duplications that occurred in the vertebrate LCA. Overall, our results support the hypothesis of a pre-Tonian emergence of metazoans under low-oxygen conditions, and an increase in oxygen response elements during animal evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavia A Belato
- Institute of Biosciences, Department of Zoology, University of Sao Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
| | - Beatriz Mello
- Biology Institute, Genetics Department, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, Brazil
| | - Christopher J Coates
- Zoology, Ryan Institute, School of Natural Sciences, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland
| | - Kenneth M Halanych
- Center for Marine Science, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina, USA
| | - Federico D Brown
- Institute of Biosciences, Department of Zoology, University of Sao Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
| | - André C Morandini
- Institute of Biosciences, Department of Zoology, University of Sao Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
| | | | - Ricardo I F Trindade
- Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
| | - Elisa Maria Costa-Paiva
- Institute of Biosciences, Department of Zoology, University of Sao Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
- Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Sao Paulo, São Paulo - SP, Brazil
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4
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Algeo TJ, Shen J. Theory and classification of mass extinction causation. Natl Sci Rev 2024; 11:nwad237. [PMID: 38116094 PMCID: PMC10727847 DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwad237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2023] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Theory regarding the causation of mass extinctions is in need of systematization, which is the focus of this contribution. Every mass extinction has both an ultimate cause, i.e. the trigger that leads to various climato-environmental changes, and one or more proximate cause(s), i.e. the specific climato-environmental changes that result in elevated biotic mortality. With regard to ultimate causes, strong cases can be made that bolide (i.e. meteor) impacts, large igneous province (LIP) eruptions and bioevolutionary events have each triggered one or more of the Phanerozoic Big Five mass extinctions, and that tectono-oceanic changes have triggered some second-order extinction events. Apart from bolide impacts, other astronomical triggers (e.g. solar flares, gamma bursts and supernova explosions) remain entirely in the realm of speculation. With regard to proximate mechanisms, most extinctions are related to either carbon-release or carbon-burial processes, the former being associated with climatic warming, ocean acidification, reduced marine productivity and lower carbonate δ13C values, and the latter with climatic cooling, increased marine productivity and higher carbonate δ13C values. Environmental parameters such as marine redox conditions and terrestrial weathering intensity do not show consistent relationships with carbon-cycle changes. In this context, mass extinction causation can be usefully classified using a matrix of ultimate and proximate factors. Among the Big Five mass extinctions, the end-Cretaceous biocrisis is an example of a bolide-triggered carbon-release event, the end-Permian and end-Triassic biocrises are examples of LIP-triggered carbon-release events, and the Late Ordovician and Late Devonian biocrises are examples of bioevolution-triggered carbon-burial events. Whereas the bolide-impact and LIP-eruption mechanisms appear to invariably cause carbon release, bioevolutionary triggers can result in variable carbon-cycle changes, e.g. carbon burial during the Late Ordovician and Late Devonian events, carbon release associated with modern anthropogenic climate warming, and little to no carbon-cycle impact due to certain types of ecosystem change (e.g. the advent of the first predators around the end-Ediacaran; the appearance of Paleolithic human hunters in Australasia and the Americas). Broadly speaking, studies of mass extinction causation have suffered from insufficiently critical thinking-an impartial survey of the extant evidence shows that (i) hypotheses of a common ultimate cause (e.g. bolide impacts or LIP eruptions) for all Big Five mass extinctions are suspect given manifest differences in patterns of environmental and biotic change among them; (ii) the Late Ordovician and Late Devonian events were associated with carbon burial and long-term climatic cooling, i.e. changes that are inconsistent with a bolide-impact or LIP-eruption mechanism; and (iii) claims of periodicity in Phanerozoic mass extinctions depended critically on the now-disproven idea that they shared a common extrinsic trigger (i.e. bolide impacts).
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas J Algeo
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences—Wuhan, Wuhan430074, China
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences—Wuhan, Wuhan430074, China
- Department of Geosciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH45221, USA
| | - Jun Shen
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences—Wuhan, Wuhan430074, China
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5
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Zheng W, Zhou A, Sahoo SK, Nolan MR, Ostrander CM, Sun R, Anbar AD, Xiao S, Chen J. Recurrent photic zone euxinia limited ocean oxygenation and animal evolution during the Ediacaran. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3920. [PMID: 37400445 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39427-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The Ediacaran Period (~635-539 Ma) is marked by the emergence and diversification of complex metazoans linked to ocean redox changes, but the processes and mechanism of the redox evolution in the Ediacaran ocean are intensely debated. Here we use mercury isotope compositions from multiple black shale sections of the Doushantuo Formation in South China to reconstruct Ediacaran oceanic redox conditions. Mercury isotopes show compelling evidence for recurrent and spatially dynamic photic zone euxinia (PZE) on the continental margin of South China during time intervals coincident with previously identified ocean oxygenation events. We suggest that PZE was driven by increased availability of sulfate and nutrients from a transiently oxygenated ocean, but PZE may have also initiated negative feedbacks that inhibited oxygen production by promoting anoxygenic photosynthesis and limiting the habitable space for eukaryotes, hence abating the long-term rise of oxygen and restricting the Ediacaran expansion of macroscopic oxygen-demanding animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wang Zheng
- School of Earth System Science, Institute of Surface-Earth System Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China
| | - Anwen Zhou
- School of Earth System Science, Institute of Surface-Earth System Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China
- Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science and National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, 32306, USA
| | | | - Morrison R Nolan
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Chadlin M Ostrander
- Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, 02543, USA
- Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Ruoyu Sun
- School of Earth System Science, Institute of Surface-Earth System Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China
| | - Ariel D Anbar
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
- School of Molecular Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Shuhai Xiao
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Jiubin Chen
- School of Earth System Science, Institute of Surface-Earth System Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China.
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6
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Dodd MS, Shi W, Li C, Zhang Z, Cheng M, Gu H, Hardisty DS, Loyd SJ, Wallace MW, vS Hood A, Lamothe K, Mills BJW, Poulton SW, Lyons TW. Uncovering the Ediacaran phosphorus cycle. Nature 2023:10.1038/s41586-023-06077-6. [PMID: 37258677 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06077-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Phosphorus is a limiting nutrient that is thought to control oceanic oxygen levels to a large extent1-3. A possible increase in marine phosphorus concentrations during the Ediacaran Period (about 635-539 million years ago) has been proposed as a driver for increasing oxygen levels4-6. However, little is known about the nature and evolution of phosphorus cycling during this time4. Here we use carbonate-associated phosphate (CAP) from six globally distributed sections to reconstruct oceanic phosphorus concentrations during a large negative carbon-isotope excursion-the Shuram excursion (SE)-which co-occurred with global oceanic oxygenation7-9. Our data suggest pulsed increases in oceanic phosphorus concentrations during the falling and rising limbs of the SE. Using a quantitative biogeochemical model, we propose that this observation could be explained by carbon dioxide and phosphorus release from marine organic-matter oxidation primarily by sulfate, with further phosphorus release from carbon-dioxide-driven weathering on land. Collectively, this may have resulted in elevated organic-pyrite burial and ocean oxygenation. Our CAP data also seem to suggest equivalent oceanic phosphorus concentrations under maximum and minimum extents of ocean anoxia across the SE. This observation may reflect decoupled phosphorus and ocean anoxia cycles, as opposed to their coupled nature in the modern ocean. Our findings point to external stimuli such as sulfate weathering rather than internal oceanic phosphorus-oxygen cycling alone as a possible control on oceanic oxygenation in the Ediacaran. In turn, this may help explain the prolonged rise of atmospheric oxygen levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew S Dodd
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
- International Center for Sedimentary Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry Research, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- School of Earth Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
- Forrest Research Foundation, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Wei Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- International Center for Sedimentary Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry Research, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Chao Li
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China.
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China.
- International Center for Sedimentary Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry Research, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China.
| | - Zihu Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- International Center for Sedimentary Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry Research, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Meng Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- International Center for Sedimentary Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry Research, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Haodong Gu
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Dalton S Hardisty
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
| | - Sean J Loyd
- Department of Geological Sciences, California State University, Fullerton, CA, USA
| | - Malcolm W Wallace
- School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Ashleigh vS Hood
- School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Kelsey Lamothe
- School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Simon W Poulton
- School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Timothy W Lyons
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
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Kang J, Gill B, Reid R, Zhang F, Xiao S. Nitrate limitation in early Neoproterozoic oceans delayed the ecological rise of eukaryotes. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eade9647. [PMID: 36947611 PMCID: PMC10032604 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ade9647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 02/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The early Neoproterozoic Era witnessed the initial ecological rise of eukaryotes at ca. 800 Ma. To assess whether nitrate availability played an important role in this evolutionary event, we measured nitrogen isotope compositions (δ15N) of marine carbonates from the early Tonian (ca. 1000 Ma to ca. 800 Ma) Huaibei Group in North China. The data reported here fill a critical gap in the δ15N record and indicate nitrate limitation in early Neoproterozoic oceans. A compilation of Proterozoic sedimentary δ15N data reveals a stepwise increase in δ15N values at ~800 Ma. Box model simulations indicate that this stepwise increase likely represents a ~50% increase in marine nitrate availability. Limited nitrate availability in early Neoproterozoic oceans may have delayed the ecological rise of eukaryotes until ~800 Ma when increased nitrate supply, together with other environmental and ecological factors, may have contributed to the transition from prokaryote-dominant to eukaryote-dominant marine ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junyao Kang
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Global Change Center, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Benjamin Gill
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Global Change Center, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Rachel Reid
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Global Change Center, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Feifei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, and Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Shuhai Xiao
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Global Change Center, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
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8
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Haas E, Kim Y, Stanley D. Why can insects not biosynthesize cholesterol? ARCHIVES OF INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY 2023; 112:e21983. [PMID: 36372906 DOI: 10.1002/arch.21983] [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: 09/27/2022] [Revised: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Two aspects of insect lipid biochemistry differ from the mammalian background. In one aspect, nearly a hundred years ago scientists demonstrated that the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFAs), linoleic acid (LA; 18:2n-6) is an essential nutrient in the diets of all mammals that have been studied in that regard. An unknown number of insect species are able to biosynthesize LA de novo. Some species take the biosynthesized LA into fatty acid elongation/desaturation pathways to produce other PUFAs, 18:3n-6, 20:3n-6 and 20:4n-6. A couple of species use the de novo produced LA to biosynthesize prostaglandins and other eicosanoids, short-lived signal moieties that mediate important physiological actions in immunity and reproduction. Insects differ from mammals, also, in their lack of genes that encode enzymes acting in biosynthesis of cholesterol. Insects require dietary cholesterol to meet their cellular, physiological, developmental, and reproductive needs. Looking at a broader view of invertebrate biochemistry, most protostomes lost all or most genes involved in cholesterol biosynthesis. The massive gene loss occurred during the Ediacaran Period, which lasted 96 million years, from the end of the Cryogenian Period (635 million years ago; MYA) to the beginning of the Cambrian Period (538.6 MYA). The key point here is that the inability to biosynthesize cholesterol is not limited to insects; it occured in most protostomes. We address the protostome need and benefits of acquiring exogenous sterols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Haas
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
| | - Yonggyun Kim
- Department of Plant Medicals, College of Life Sciences, Andong National University, Andong, Republic of Korea
| | - David Stanley
- Biological Control of Insect Research Laboratory, USDA-Agricultural Research Service, Columbia, Missouri, USA
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9
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Ding Y, Sun W, Liu S, Xie J, Tang D, Zhou X, Zhou L, Li Z, Song J, Li Z, Xu H, Tang P, Liu K, Li W, Chen D. Low oxygen levels with high redox heterogeneity in the late Ediacaran shallow ocean: Constraints from I/(Ca + Mg) and Ce/Ce* of the Dengying Formation, South China. GEOBIOLOGY 2022; 20:790-809. [PMID: 36250398 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12520] [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: 08/25/2021] [Revised: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Most previous studies focused on the redox state of the deep water, leading to an incomplete understanding of the spatiotemporal evolution of the redox-stratified ocean during the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition. In order to decode the redox condition of shallow marine environments during the late Ediacaran, this study presents I/(Ca + Mg), carbon and oxygen isotope, major, trace, and rare earth element data of subtidal to peritidal dolomite from the Dengying Formation at Yangba, South China. In combination with the reported radiometric and biostratigraphic data, the Dengying Formation and coeval successions worldwide are subdivided into a positive δ13 C excursion (up to ~6‰) in the lower part (~551-547 Ma) and a stable δ13 C plateau (generally between 0‰ and 3‰) in the middle-upper part (~547-541 Ma). The overall low I/(Ca + Mg) ratios (<0.5 μmol/mol) and slightly negative to no Ce anomalies (0.80 < [Ce/Ce*]SN < 1.25), point to low-oxygen levels in shallow marine environments at Yangba. Moreover, four pulsed negative excursions in (Ce/Ce*)SN (between 0.62 and 0.8) and the associated two positive excursions in I/(Ca + Mg) ratios (up to 2.02 μmol/mol) are observed, indicative of weak oxygenations in the shallow marine environments. The comparison with other upper Ediacaran shallow water successions worldwide reveals that the (Ce/Ce*)SN and I/(Ca + Mg) values generally fall in the Precambrian range but their temporal trends differ among these successions (e.g., Ce anomaly profiles significantly different between Yangba and the Yangtze Gorge sections), which point to low oxygen levels with high redox heterogeneity in the surface ocean. This is consistent with the widespread anoxia as revealed by low δ238 U values reported by previous studies. Thus, the atmospheric oxygen concentrations during the late Ediacaran are estimated to be very low, similar to the case during the most Mesoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi Ding
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- Key Laboratory of Deep-Time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Wei Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Shugen Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
- Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| | - Jirong Xie
- Exploration and Development Research Institute, PetroChina Southwest Oil & Gas Field Company, Chengdu, China
| | - Dongjie Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing, China
| | - Xiqiang Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Innovation Academy for Earth Science, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Limin Zhou
- National Research Center of Geoanalysis, Beijing, China
| | - Zhiwu Li
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Jinmin Song
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Zeqi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Hongyuan Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Pan Tang
- Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Kang Liu
- Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wenjun Li
- Key Laboratory of Mineral Resources, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Daizhao Chen
- Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Innovation Academy for Earth Science, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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10
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Dong LH, Wei W, Yu CL, Hou ZH, Zeng Z, Chen T, Huang F. Determination of Vanadium Isotope Compositions in Carbonates Using an Fe Coprecipitation Method and MC-ICP-MS. Anal Chem 2021; 93:7172-7179. [PMID: 33961391 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04800] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Vanadium isotope compositions (δ(51V)) in marine carbonates are a potential proxy to trace global redox states of ancient oceans. Although high-precision δ(51V) analyses are available for many geological materials, carbonate-hosted δ(51V) data have not been reported yet due to extremely high matrix elements and low V contents (generally below 10 μg g-1). In this study, we developed an Fe coprecipitation method combined with an Fe column to preconcentrate V from the major matrix elements and subsequent four-step chromatographic procedures to further purify V in carbonates. The δ(51V) values were measured using a sample-standard bracketing method by MC-ICP-MS. The robustness of this method was assessed by analyzing element-doped and matrix-spiked synthetic carbonate solutions containing an in-house δ(51V) standard, USTC-V. The mean δ(51V) value of the synthetic carbonate solutions (0.06 ± 0.08‰; 2SD, n = 33) is in good agreement with the recommended value of the USTC-V relative to the Oxford AA solution (0.07 ± 0.08‰; 2SD, n = 347). In addition, the consistency in the δ(51V) value of the igneous carbonatite standard, COQ-1, which was processed in parallel with the whole purification (-0.48 ± 0.04‰; 2SD, n = 3) and a four-step chromatographic procedure (-0.43 ± 0.08‰; 2SD, n = 3), further validates the robustness of our method. For the first time, we obtained δ(51V) values of four carbonate reference materials: JDo-1, -0.56 ± 0.09‰ (2SD, n = 27); JLs-1, -0.61 ± 0.14‰ (2SD, n = 33); GBW07217a, -0.79 ± 0.09‰ (2SD, n = 6); GBW07214a, -0.51 ± 0.13‰ (2SD, n = 48). The long-term external precision of carbonate-hosted δ(51V) analyses is better than ±0.14‰ (2SD). Our method can be applied to measure carbonate-hosted δ(51V) to trace the evolution in global marine redox states throughout the Earth's history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lin-Hui Dong
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mantel Materials and Environments, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Wei Wei
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mantel Materials and Environments, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Cheng-Long Yu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mantel Materials and Environments, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhen-Hui Hou
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mantel Materials and Environments, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhen Zeng
- State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Tianyu Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Science and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China
| | - Fang Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mantel Materials and Environments, School of Earth and Space Science, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, Anhui, People's Republic of China
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11
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Gibson BM, Furbish DJ, Rahman IA, Schmeeckle MW, Laflamme M, Darroch SAF. Ancient life and moving fluids. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2020; 96:129-152. [PMID: 32959981 PMCID: PMC7821342 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2020] [Revised: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Over 3.7 billion years of Earth history, life has evolved complex adaptations to help navigate and interact with the fluid environment. Consequently, fluid dynamics has become a powerful tool for studying ancient fossils, providing insights into the palaeobiology and palaeoecology of extinct organisms from across the tree of life. In recent years, this approach has been extended to the Ediacara biota, an enigmatic assemblage of Neoproterozoic soft‐bodied organisms that represent the first major radiation of macroscopic eukaryotes. Reconstructing the ways in which Ediacaran organisms interacted with the fluids provides new insights into how these organisms fed, moved, and interacted within communities. Here, we provide an in‐depth review of fluid physics aimed at palaeobiologists, in which we dispel misconceptions related to the Reynolds number and associated flow conditions, and specify the governing equations of fluid dynamics. We then review recent advances in Ediacaran palaeobiology resulting from the application of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). We provide a worked example and account of best practice in CFD analyses of fossils, including the first large eddy simulation (LES) experiment performed on extinct organisms. Lastly, we identify key questions, barriers, and emerging techniques in fluid dynamics, which will not only allow us to understand the earliest animal ecosystems better, but will also help to develop new palaeobiological tools for studying ancient life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandt M Gibson
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, PMB 351805, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN, 37235-1805, U.S.A
| | - David J Furbish
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, PMB 351805, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN, 37235-1805, U.S.A
| | - Imran A Rahman
- Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PW, U.K
| | - Mark W Schmeeckle
- School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85281, U.S.A
| | - Marc Laflamme
- Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3356 Mississauga Rd North, Mississauga, Ontario, L5L 1C6, Canada
| | - Simon A F Darroch
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, PMB 351805, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN, 37235-1805, U.S.A
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12
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Tostevin R, Mills BJW. Reconciling proxy records and models of Earth's oxygenation during the Neoproterozoic and Palaeozoic. Interface Focus 2020; 10:20190137. [PMID: 32642053 PMCID: PMC7333907 DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2019.0137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
A hypothesized rise in oxygen levels in the Neoproterozoic, dubbed the Neoproterozoic Oxygenation Event, has been repeatedly linked to the origin and rise of animal life. However, a new body of work has emerged over the past decade that questions this narrative. We explore available proxy records of atmospheric and marine oxygenation and, considering the unique systematics of each geochemical system, attempt to reconcile the data. We also present new results from a comprehensive COPSE biogeochemical model that combines several recent additions, to create a continuous model record from 850 to 250 Ma. We conclude that oxygen levels were intermediate across the Ediacaran and early Palaeozoic, and highly dynamic. Stable, modern-like conditions were not reached until the Late Palaeozoic. We therefore propose that the terms Neoproterozoic Oxygenation Window and Palaeozoic Oxygenation Event are more appropriate descriptors of the rise of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere and oceans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosalie Tostevin
- Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, Cape Town, South Africa
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13
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Khlebodarova TM, Likhoshvai VA. Causes of global extinctions in the history of life: facts and hypotheses. Vavilovskii Zhurnal Genet Selektsii 2020; 24:407-419. [PMID: 33659824 PMCID: PMC7716527 DOI: 10.18699/vj20.633] [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] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Paleontologists define global extinctions on Earth as a loss of about three-quarters of plant and animal species over a relatively short period of time. At least five global extinctions are documented in the Phanerozoic fossil record (~500-million-year period): ~65, 200, 260, 380, and 440 million years ago. In addition, there is evidence of global extinctions in earlier periods of life on Earth - during the Late Cambrian (~500 million years ago) and Ediacaran periods (more than 540 million years ago). There is still no common opinion on the causes of their occurrence. The current study is a systematized review of the data on recorded extinctions of complex life forms on Earth from the moment of their occurrence during the Ediacaran period to the modern period. The review discusses possible causes for mass extinctions in the light of the influence of abiogenic factors, planetary or astronomical, and the consequences of their actions. We evaluate the pros and cons of the hypothesis on the presence of periodicity in the extinction of Phanerozoic marine biota. Strong evidence that allows us to hypothesize that additional mechanisms associated with various internal biotic factors are responsible for the emergence of extinctions in the evolution of complex life forms is discussed. Developing the idea of the internal causes of periodicity and discontinuity in evolution, we propose our own original hypothesis, according to which the bistability phenomenon underlies the complex dynamics of the biota development, which is manifested in the form of global extinctions. The bistability phenomenon arises only in ecosystems with predominant sexual reproduction. Our hypothesis suggests that even in the absence of global abiotic catastrophes, extinctions of biota would occur anyway. However, our hypothesis does not exclude the possibility that in different periods of the Earth's history the biota was subjected to powerful external influences that had a significant impact on its further development, which is reflected in the Earth's fossil record.
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Affiliation(s)
- T M Khlebodarova
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - V A Likhoshvai
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
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14
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Cole DB, Mills DB, Erwin DH, Sperling EA, Porter SM, Reinhard CT, Planavsky NJ. On the co-evolution of surface oxygen levels and animals. GEOBIOLOGY 2020; 18:260-281. [PMID: 32175670 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2019] [Revised: 01/04/2020] [Accepted: 01/22/2020] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Few topics in geobiology have been as extensively debated as the role of Earth's oxygenation in controlling when and why animals emerged and diversified. All currently described animals require oxygen for at least a portion of their life cycle. Therefore, the transition to an oxygenated planet was a prerequisite for the emergence of animals. Yet, our understanding of Earth's oxygenation and the environmental requirements of animal habitability and ecological success is currently limited; estimates for the timing of the appearance of environments sufficiently oxygenated to support ecologically stable populations of animals span a wide range, from billions of years to only a few million years before animals appear in the fossil record. In this light, the extent to which oxygen played an important role in controlling when animals appeared remains a topic of debate. When animals originated and when they diversified are separate questions, meaning either one or both of these phenomena could have been decoupled from oxygenation. Here, we present views from across this interpretive spectrum-in a point-counterpoint format-regarding crucial aspects of the potential links between animals and surface oxygen levels. We highlight areas where the standard discourse on this topic requires a change of course and note that several traditional arguments in this "life versus environment" debate are poorly founded. We also identify a clear need for basic research across a range of fields to disentangle the relationships between oxygen availability and emergence and diversification of animal life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Devon B Cole
- School of Earth and Atmospheric Science, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Daniel B Mills
- Department of Geological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California
| | - Douglas H Erwin
- Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, New Mexico
| | - Erik A Sperling
- Department of Geological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California
| | - Susannah M Porter
- Department of Earth Science, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
| | - Christopher T Reinhard
- School of Earth and Atmospheric Science, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Noah J Planavsky
- Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
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15
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Bowyer FT, Shore AJ, Wood RA, Alcott LJ, Thomas AL, Butler IB, Curtis A, Hainanan S, Curtis-Walcott S, Penny AM, Poulton SW. Regional nutrient decrease drove redox stabilisation and metazoan diversification in the late Ediacaran Nama Group, Namibia. Sci Rep 2020; 10:2240. [PMID: 32042140 PMCID: PMC7010733 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-59335-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2019] [Accepted: 12/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The late Ediacaran witnessed an increase in metazoan diversity and ecological complexity, marking the inception of the Cambrian Explosion. To constrain the drivers of this diversification, we combine redox and nutrient data for two shelf transects, with an inventory of biotic diversity and distribution from the Nama Group, Namibia (~550 to ~538 Million years ago; Ma). Unstable marine redox conditions characterised all water depths in inner to outer ramp settings from ~550 to 547 Ma, when the first skeletal metazoans appeared. However, a marked deepening of the redoxcline and a reduced frequency of anoxic incursions onto the inner to mid-ramp is recorded from ~547 Ma onwards, with full ventilation of the outer ramp by ~542 Ma. Phosphorus speciation data show that, whilst anoxic ferruginous conditions were initially conducive to the drawdown of bioavailable phosphorus, they also permitted a limited degree of phosphorus recycling back to the water column. A long-term decrease in nutrient delivery from continental weathering, coupled with a possible decrease in upwelling, led to the gradual ventilation of the Nama Group basins. This, in turn, further decreased anoxic recycling of bioavailable phosphorus to the water column, promoting the development of stable oxic conditions and the radiation of new mobile taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- F T Bowyer
- University of Edinburgh, School of GeoSciences, James Hutton Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FE, UK. .,University of Leeds, School of Earth and Environment, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
| | - A J Shore
- University of Edinburgh, School of GeoSciences, James Hutton Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FE, UK
| | - R A Wood
- University of Edinburgh, School of GeoSciences, James Hutton Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FE, UK
| | - L J Alcott
- University of Leeds, School of Earth and Environment, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
| | - A L Thomas
- University of Edinburgh, School of GeoSciences, James Hutton Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FE, UK
| | - I B Butler
- University of Edinburgh, School of GeoSciences, James Hutton Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FE, UK
| | - A Curtis
- University of Edinburgh, School of GeoSciences, James Hutton Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FE, UK
| | - S Hainanan
- Ministry of Mines and Energy, 6 Aviation Road, Private Bag, 13297, Windhoek, Namibia
| | | | - A M Penny
- Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Jyrängöntie 2, 00560, Helsinki, Finland
| | - S W Poulton
- University of Leeds, School of Earth and Environment, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
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16
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Zhang F, Xiao S, Romaniello SJ, Hardisty D, Li C, Melezhik V, Pokrovsky B, Cheng M, Shi W, Lenton TM, Anbar AD. Global marine redox changes drove the rise and fall of the Ediacara biota. GEOBIOLOGY 2019; 17:594-610. [PMID: 31353777 PMCID: PMC6899691 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2019] [Revised: 06/25/2019] [Accepted: 07/04/2019] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The role of O2 in the evolution of early animals, as represented by some members of the Ediacara biota, has been heavily debated because current geochemical evidence paints a conflicting picture regarding global marine O2 levels during key intervals of the rise and fall of the Ediacara biota. Fossil evidence indicates that the diversification the Ediacara biota occurred during or shortly after the Ediacaran Shuram negative C-isotope Excursion (SE), which is often interpreted to reflect ocean oxygenation. However, there is conflicting evidence regarding ocean oxygen levels during the SE and the middle Ediacaran Period. To help resolve this debate, we examined U isotope variations (δ238 U) in three carbonate sections from South China, Siberia, and USA that record the SE. The δ238 U data from all three sections are in excellent agreement and reveal the largest positive shift in δ238 U ever reported in the geologic record (from ~ -0.74‰ to ~ -0.26‰). Quantitative modeling of these data suggests that the global ocean switched from a largely anoxic state (26%-100% of the seafloor overlain by anoxic waters) to near-modern levels of ocean oxygenation during the SE. This episode of ocean oxygenation is broadly coincident with the rise of the Ediacara biota. Following this initial radiation, the Ediacara biota persisted until the terminal Ediacaran period, when recently published U isotope data indicate a return to more widespread ocean anoxia. Taken together, it appears that global marine redox changes drove the rise and fall of the Ediacara biota.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feifei Zhang
- School of Earth Sciences and EngineeringNanjing UniversityNanjingChina
- Department of Geology and GeophysicsYale UniversityNew HavenCTUSA
- The Globe InstituteUniversity of CopenhagenCopenhagen KDenmark
- School of Earth and Space ExplorationArizona State UniversityTempeAZUSA
| | - Shuhai Xiao
- Department of GeosciencesVirginia TechBlacksburgVAUSA
| | | | - Dalton Hardisty
- Department of Earth and Environmental ScienceMichigan State UniversityEast LansingMIUSA
| | - Chao Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental GeologyChina University of GeosciencesWuhanChina
| | | | | | - Meng Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental GeologyChina University of GeosciencesWuhanChina
| | - Wei Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental GeologyChina University of GeosciencesWuhanChina
| | | | - Ariel D. Anbar
- School of Earth and Space ExplorationArizona State UniversityTempeAZUSA
- School of Molecular ScienceArizona State UniversityTempeAZUSA
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17
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Early animal evolution and highly oxygenated seafloor niches hosted by microbial mats. Sci Rep 2019; 9:13628. [PMID: 31541156 PMCID: PMC6754419 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-49993-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The earliest unambiguous evidence for animals is represented by various trace fossils in the latest Ediacaran Period (550-541 Ma), suggesting that the earliest animals lived on or even penetrated into the seafloor. Yet, the O2 fugacity at the sediment-water interface (SWI) for the earliest animal proliferation is poorly defined. The preferential colonization of seafloor as a first step in animal evolution is also unusual. In order to understand the environmental background, we employed a new proxy, carbonate associated ferrous iron (Fecarb), to quantify the seafloor oxygenation. Fecarb of the latest Ediacaran Shibantan limestone in South China, which yields abundant animal traces, ranges from 2.27 to 85.43 ppm, corresponding to the seafloor O2 fugacity of 162 μmol/L to 297 μmol/L. These values are significantly higher than the oxygen saturation in seawater at the contemporary atmospheric pO2 levels. The highly oxygenated seafloor might be attributed to O2 production of the microbial mats. Despite the moderate atmospheric pO2 level, microbial mats possibly provided highly oxygenated niches for the evolution of benthic metazoans. Our model suggests that the O2 barrier could be locally overcome in the mat ground, questioning the long-held belief that atmospheric oxygenation was the key control of animal evolution.
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18
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Cribb AT, Kenchington CG, Koester B, Gibson BM, Boag TH, Racicot RA, Mocke H, Laflamme M, Darroch SAF. Increase in metazoan ecosystem engineering prior to the Ediacaran-Cambrian boundary in the Nama Group, Namibia. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2019; 6:190548. [PMID: 31598294 PMCID: PMC6774933 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.190548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2019] [Accepted: 08/23/2019] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
The disappearance of the soft-bodied Ediacara biota at the Ediacaran-Cambrian boundary potentially represents the earliest mass extinction of complex life, although the precise driver(s) of this extinction remain unresolved. The 'biotic replacement' model proposes that an evolutionary radiation of metazoan ecosystem engineers in the latest Ediacaran profoundly altered marine palaeoenvironments, resulting in the extinction of Ediacara biota and setting the stage for the subsequent Cambrian Explosion. However, metazoan ecosystem engineering across the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition has yet to be quantified. Here, we test this key tenet of the biotic replacement model by characterizing the intensity of metazoan bioturbation and ecosystem engineering in trace fossil assemblages throughout the latest Ediacaran Nama Group in southern Namibia. The results illustrate a dramatic increase in both bioturbation and ecosystem engineering intensity in the latest Ediacaran, prior to the Cambrian boundary. Moreover, our analyses demonstrate that the highest-impact ecosystem engineering behaviours were present well before the onset of the Cambrian. These data provide the first support for a fundamental prediction of the biotic replacement model, and evidence for a direct link between the early evolution of ecosystem engineering and the extinction of the Ediacara biota.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison T. Cribb
- Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1805, USA
- Earth Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0740, USA
| | | | - Bryce Koester
- Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1805, USA
- Department of Biodiversity, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Brandt M. Gibson
- Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1805, USA
| | - Thomas H. Boag
- Geological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94304, USA
| | - Rachel A. Racicot
- Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1805, USA
| | - Helke Mocke
- Geological Survey of Namibia, Ministry of Mines and Energy, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Marc Laflamme
- Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario, CanadaL5L 1C6
| | - Simon A. F. Darroch
- Earth and Environmental Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235-1805, USA
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Cui H, Xiao S, Cai Y, Peek S, Plummer RE, Kaufman AJ. Sedimentology and chemostratigraphy of the terminal Ediacaran Dengying Formation at the Gaojiashan section, South China. GEOLOGICAL MAGAZINE 2019; n/a:10.1017/S0016756819000293. [PMID: 31631899 PMCID: PMC6800678 DOI: 10.1017/s0016756819000293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
The late Ediacaran Dengying Formation (ca. 551.1-538.8 Ma) in South China is one of two successions where Ediacara-type macrofossils are preserved in carbonate facies along with skeletal fossils and bilaterian animal traces. Given the remarkable thickness of carbonate-bearing strata deposited in less than 12.3 million years, the Dengying Formation holds the potential for a relatively continuous chemostratigraphic profile for the terminal Ediacaran stage. In this study, a detailed sedimentological and chemostratigraphic (δ13Ccarb, δ18Ocarb, δ13Corg, δ34Spyrite, and 87Sr/86Sr) investigation was conducted on the Dengying Formation at the Gaojiashan section, Ningqiang County of the southern Shaanxi Province, South China. Sedimentological results reveal an overall shallow marine depositional environment. Carbonate breccia, void-filling botryoidal precipitates, and aragonite crystal fans are common in the Algal Dolomite Member of the Dengying Formation, suggesting that peritidal facies were repeatedly karstified. The timing of karstification was likely early, probably soon after the deposition of the dolomite sediments. The presence of authigenic aragonite cements suggests high alkalinity in the terminal Ediacaran ocean. Geochemical analysis of micro-drilled samples shows that distinct compositions are registered in different carbonate phases, which should be considered when constructing chemostratigraphic profiles representative of true temporal variations in seawater chemistry. Integrated chemostratigraphic data suggest enhanced burial of organic carbon and pyrite, and the occurrence of extensive marine anoxia (at least in the Gaojiashan Member). Rapid basinal subsidence and carbonate accumulation during a time of elevated seawater alkalinity and increased rates of pyrite burial may have facilitated the evolutionary innovation of early biomineralizing metazoans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Cui
- Research Group of Analytical, Environmental and Geo- Chemistry (AMGC), Division of Earth System Science, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Brussels 1050, Belgium
- ET-HOME (Evolution and Tracers of the Habitability of Mars and Earth) Astrobiology Research Consortium, Belgium
- NASA Astrobiology Institute, Department of Geoscience, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA
- Department of Geology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
- Author for correspondence: (H. Cui) or (H. Cui), Present address: Research Group of AMGC, Free University of Brussels (VUB), Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Shuhai Xiao
- Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Yaoping Cai
- State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Early Life and Environment, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Xi’an 710069, China
| | - Sara Peek
- Department of Geology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
- United States Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA
| | - Rebecca E. Plummer
- Department of Geology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
- Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, US Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705 USA
| | - Alan J. Kaufman
- Department of Geology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
- Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
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Integrated records of environmental change and evolution challenge the Cambrian Explosion. Nat Ecol Evol 2019; 3:528-538. [DOI: 10.1038/s41559-019-0821-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2018] [Accepted: 01/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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