Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior
Vertebrate fossils embedded in amber represent a particularly valuable paleobiological record as amber is supposed to be a barrier to the environment, precluding significant alteration of the animals’ body over geological time. The mode and processes of amber preservation are still under debate, and...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
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PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE
2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DE190101307 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/90057 |
| _version_ | 1848765321716957184 |
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| author | Jonas Barthel, H. Fougerouse, Denis Geisler, T. Rust, J. |
| author_facet | Jonas Barthel, H. Fougerouse, Denis Geisler, T. Rust, J. |
| author_sort | Jonas Barthel, H. |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Vertebrate fossils embedded in amber represent a particularly valuable paleobiological record as amber is supposed to be a barrier to the environment, precluding significant alteration of the animals’ body over geological time. The mode and processes of amber preservation are still under debate, and it is questionable to what extent original material may be preserved. Due to their high value, vertebrates in amber have never been examined with analytical methods, which means that the composition of bone tissue in amber is unknown. Here, we report our results of a study on a left forelimb from a fossil Anolis sp. indet. (Squamata) that was fully embedded in Miocene Dominican amber. Our results show a transformation of the bioapatite to fluorapatite associated with a severe alteration of the collagen phase and the formation of an unidentified carbonate. These findings argue for a poor survival potential of macromolecules in Dominican amber fossils. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:33:24Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-90057 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:33:24Z |
| publishDate | 2020 |
| publisher | PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-900572023-02-08T06:52:08Z Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior Jonas Barthel, H. Fougerouse, Denis Geisler, T. Rust, J. Science & Technology Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics RAMAN-SPECTROSCOPY BALTIC AMBER COLLAGEN WATER PRESERVATION DIAGENESIS EVOLUTION PHOSPHATE SPECTRUM INSECTS Vertebrate fossils embedded in amber represent a particularly valuable paleobiological record as amber is supposed to be a barrier to the environment, precluding significant alteration of the animals’ body over geological time. The mode and processes of amber preservation are still under debate, and it is questionable to what extent original material may be preserved. Due to their high value, vertebrates in amber have never been examined with analytical methods, which means that the composition of bone tissue in amber is unknown. Here, we report our results of a study on a left forelimb from a fossil Anolis sp. indet. (Squamata) that was fully embedded in Miocene Dominican amber. Our results show a transformation of the bioapatite to fluorapatite associated with a severe alteration of the collagen phase and the formation of an unidentified carbonate. These findings argue for a poor survival potential of macromolecules in Dominican amber fossils. 2020 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/90057 10.1371/journal.pone.0228843 English http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DE190101307 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Science & Technology Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics RAMAN-SPECTROSCOPY BALTIC AMBER COLLAGEN WATER PRESERVATION DIAGENESIS EVOLUTION PHOSPHATE SPECTRUM INSECTS Jonas Barthel, H. Fougerouse, Denis Geisler, T. Rust, J. Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| title | Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| title_full | Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| title_fullStr | Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| title_short | Fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in Dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| title_sort | fluoridation of a lizard bone embedded in dominican amber suggests open-system behavior |
| topic | Science & Technology Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics RAMAN-SPECTROSCOPY BALTIC AMBER COLLAGEN WATER PRESERVATION DIAGENESIS EVOLUTION PHOSPHATE SPECTRUM INSECTS |
| url | http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DE190101307 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/90057 |