Methanogen microfossils and methanogenesis in Permian lake deposits

Geology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-18
Author(s):  
Funing Sun ◽  
Wenxuan Hu ◽  
Xiaolin Wang ◽  
Jian Cao ◽  
Bin Fu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lake Sediments ◽  
Metabolic Activity ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Methanogenic Archaea ◽  
Ancient Lakes ◽  
Ecological Diversity ◽  
Significant Component ◽  
Biogenic Methane ◽  
Biological Affinity ◽  
Lake Deposits

Abstract Methanogens are methane-producing archaea (some of the most primitive organisms on Earth), which possess great phylogenetic and ecological diversity in modern ecosystems. However, cellular fossil evidence of methanogens remains extremely scarce throughout the geological record. Here, we report a new population of spheroidal microstructures composed of dolomite observed in Permian lake deposits in northwestern China. The microspheres exhibit indicators of biological affinity and are well preserved in authigenic dolomite with cellular fidelity. Based on morphological and geochemical evidence, these microspheres are interpreted as fossilized cells of methanogenic archaea, which can be divided into three size-based taxa. These microfossils are the first fossil record of spheroidal methanogens. The microfossil-bearing dolomite exhibits extremely positive δ13C values (up to +20‰ relative to Vienna Peedee belemnite) that are attributed to microbial methanogenesis. The results suggest that methanogens were a significant component of this Permian lake biosphere. As a consequence of the metabolic activity of the methanogens, a large amount of biogenic methane was produced through methanogenesis in the anoxic lake sediments. This study not only fills a gap in the fossil record of methanogenic archaea, but it also provides new insights into methane emissions from ancient lakes.

scholarly journals Uranium-series isotopes from Eemian lake deposits, Hollerup, Denmark

1998 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 173-179
Author(s):  
C. Israelson ◽  
S. Bjorck ◽  
N. Noe Nygaard ◽  
C. J. Hawkesworth
Keyword(s):  
Ground Water ◽  
Lake Sediments ◽  
Sedimentary Facies ◽  
Organic Content ◽  
Time Interval ◽  
Decay Products ◽  
Large Spread ◽  
Isotope Study ◽  
Lake Deposits ◽  
High Organic Content

We report the results of a U-series isotope study on Eemian lake sediments from Hollerup, western Denmark. The purpose is to examine the possibility of dating these, and similar, sediments with the 238U-23"h method. Two sedimentary facies were studied; carbonate-present, and virtually carbonate-free but organic-rich sediments. All carbonate-present sediments (5-95%) have (230ThP38U) values higher than unity and relatively radiogenic (23"W232Th) values between 2 and 6.5, indicating postdeposition removal of U, probably by percolation of ground water. Carbonate-free sediments, but with high organic content (40-60%) had (230Th/238U) values lower than 1 and 'model ages' between 89 and 199 ky. The large spread in ages and variation in U content for these sediment samples that were deposited over a much shorter time interval, indicate a complex postdepositional migration pattern of U, probably involving several episodes of leaching and absorption of U from ground water. Our results suggest that lake sediments, such as those found in Hollerup, are vulnerable to mobilization of U and its decay products and care should be taken when interpreting U-series disequilibrium data from such sediments. Future studies will concentrate on sediments that have been more deeply buried andor are less compacted and sealed from percolation of oxidized groundwater.

Paleoecological Archives in Lake Deposits 2: Records from Important Groups

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew S. Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Late Quaternary ◽  
Isolated Cells ◽  
New Students ◽  
Surrounding Areas ◽  
General Aspects ◽  
Insect Fossils ◽  
Lake Deposits ◽  
Source Of Information ◽  
Lacustrine Communities

The lacustrine fossil record comprises a mixture of endogenic fossils, such as cladocerans, derived from lakes, and exogenic fossils, such as insects or pollen, which are carried into lakes, by wind and water from surrounding areas. Our primary emphasis here will be on the endogenic fossil record of lakes; we will only briefly consider general aspects of the taphonomy and paleoecological significance of exogenic fossils for terrestrial plant and insect fossils. Information about lake fossils varies greatly between groups. Some taxa, such as diatoms, are virtual workhorses of the field, with numerous investigators, and established methods of sampling, analysis, and interpretation. At the other extreme are organisms such as copepods, which, despite their importance in lacustrine ecosystems, are so poorly fossilized that they are unlikely to ever play a major role in paleolimnology. In between these extremes lie the majority of lacustrine organisms. Many relatively common groups have great potential for paleoecological interpretation, but, for reasons of inadequate study, a lack of researchers, or difficulties in taxonomy, have thus far been little used by paleolimnologists. Major opportunities await new students in the field who are willing to take up the challenges of studying these clades. Despite their importance in lacustrine communities, cyanobacteria remain a relatively unexploited source of information for paleolimnology. Isolated cells have poor preservation potential, and fossil cyanobacterial cells are preserved in Late Quaternary lake muds primarily by their more resistant reproductive spores (akinetes), or occasionally by filaments. Planktonic cyanobacteria are only rarely recorded in older sediments. In contrast, benthic cyanobacterial communities are well represented in ancient lake beds by their constructional deposits, lithified algal mats, stromatolites, and thrombolites. Although their body fossils have been used only rarely to solve paleolimnological problems, planktonic cyanobacteria have great potential for this purpose, given their obvious importance in many lacustrine communities. Relatively resistant akinetes might be very useful for understanding changes in plankton communities, especially in cases where better- studied siliceous microfossils (diatoms and chrysophytes) are not well preserved, for example, in very alkaline lakes. However, almost nothing is known of the taphonomic biases that control the planktonic cyanobacterial fossil record.

scholarly journals Methanogenic Archaea Can Produce Methane in Deliquescence-Driven Mars Analog Environments

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah Maus ◽  
Jacob Heinz ◽  
Janosch Schirmack ◽  
Alessandro Airo ◽  
Samuel P. Kounaves ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Metabolic Activity ◽  
Methanogenic Archaea ◽  
Dynamic Environments ◽  
Martian Surface ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Methanosarcina Mazei ◽  
Mars Analog ◽  
Recurring Slope Lineae ◽  
Martian Regolith ◽  
First Time

AbstractThe current understanding of the Martian surface indicates that briny environments at the near-surface are temporarily possible, e.g. in the case of the presumably deliquescence-driven Recurring Slope Lineae (RSL). However, whether such dynamic environments are habitable for terrestrial organisms remains poorly understood. This hypothesis was tested by developing a Closed Deliquescence System (CDS) consisting of a mixture of desiccated Martian Regolith Analog (MRA) substrate, salts, and microbial cells, which over the course of days became wetted through deliquescence. The methane produced via metabolic activity for three methanogenic archaea: Methanosarcina mazei, M. barkeri and M. soligelidi, was measured after exposing them to three different MRA substrates using either NaCl or NaClO4 as a hygroscopic salt. Our experiments showed that (1) M. soligelidi rapidly produced methane at 4 °C, (2) M. barkeri produced methane at 28 °C though not at 4 °C, (3) M. mazei was not metabolically reactivated through deliquescence, (4) none of the species produced methane in the presence of perchlorate, and (5) all species were metabolically most active in the phyllosilicate-containing MRA. These results emphasize the importance of the substrate, microbial species, salt, and temperature used in the experiments. Furthermore, we show here for the first time that water provided by deliquescence alone is sufficient to rehydrate methanogenic archaea and to reactivate their metabolism under conditions roughly analogous to the near-subsurface Martian environment.

Methanotrophs and Methanogens in Masonry

1998 ◽  
Vol 64 (11) ◽  
pp. 4530-4532 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Kussmaul ◽  
Markus Wilimzig ◽  
Eberhard Bock
Keyword(s):  
Methane Production ◽  
Methanogenic Archaea ◽  
Cell Number ◽  
Type Ii ◽  
Historical Buildings ◽  
Average Cell ◽  
Biogenic Methane ◽  
Methane Oxidizing Bacteria ◽  
Low Concentrations ◽  
Growth Substrates

ABSTRACT Methanotrophs were present in 48 of 225 stone samples which were removed from 19 historical buildings in Germany and Italy. The average cell number of methanotrophs was 20 CFU per g of stone, and their activities ranged between 11 and 42 pmol of CH4 g of stone−1 day−1. Twelve strains of methane-oxidizing bacteria were isolated. They belonged to the type II methanotrophs of the genera Methylocystis,Methylosinus, and Methylobacterium. In masonry, growth substrates like methane or methanol are available in very low concentrations. To determine if methane could be produced by the stone at rates sufficient to support growth of methanotrophs, methane production by stone samples under nonoxic conditions was examined. Methane production of 0.07 to 215 nmol of CH4 g of stone−1 day−1 was detected in 23 of 47 stone samples examined. This indicated the presence of the so-called “mini-methane”-producing bacteria and/or methanogenic archaea. Methanotrophs occurred in nearly all samples which showed methane production. This finding indicated that methanotrophs depend on biogenic methane production in or on stone surfaces of historical buildings.

Comparative physiology of suspension-feeding in living brachiopods and bivalves: evolutionary implications

Paleobiology ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 322-334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Clark Rhodes ◽  
R. J. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Fossil Record ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Suspension Feeding ◽  
Metabolic Rates ◽  
Comparative Physiology ◽  
Feeding Rates ◽  
Bivalve Molluscs ◽  
Significant Component ◽  
Experimental Conditions

This paper presents scaling equations relating suspension-feeding rates to body size for articulate brachiopods and bivalve molluscs, two classes which represent a significant component of the fossil record of marine benthic communities. Clearance (feeding) rates of five species of living articulate brachiopods and three species of epifaunal suspension-feeding bivalve molluscs collected from mid-latitude fjords of Newfoundland and New Zealand were measured in similar experimental conditions. In comparisons within and between the two classes, we found that both plectolophous and spirolophous brachiopods had significantly lower feeding rates than mytilids, which are filibranchs, but that a sympatric primitive eulamellibranch veneroid bivalve had rates comparable to the brachiopods. Articulate brachiopods do not appear to feed effectively at the high algal concentrations which bivalves can exploit. The data on comparative suspension-feeding rates support the hypothesis that past changes in diversity and distribution of bivalves and brachiopods may be related to an overall increase in energy flux and escalation of metabolic rates during the Phanerozoic.

Urban contamination sources reflected in inorganic pollution in urban lake deposits, Bergen, Norway

2015 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 854-867 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malin Andersson ◽  
Ola Anfin Eggen
Keyword(s):  
Lake Sediments ◽  
Urban Lake ◽  
Chemical Changes ◽  
Modern City ◽  
Contamination Sources ◽  
Pristine Environment ◽  
Lake Deposits

The 7000 years transition from a pristine environment towards a modern city has brought a number of chemical changes and effects to urban lake sediments in Bergen.

scholarly journals Lake Sediments from the Kashmir Himalayas: Inverted 14C Chronology and Its Implications

Radiocarbon ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 561-565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheela Kusumgar ◽  
D. P. Agrawal ◽  
Narendra Bhandari ◽  
R. D. Deshpande ◽  
Alok Raina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Susceptibility ◽  
Lake Sediments ◽  
Sedimentation Rate ◽  
Catchment Area ◽  
Inversion Layer ◽  
The Core ◽  
Manasbal Lake ◽  
Mineral Magnetic ◽  
Lake Deposits

We have measured 14C, 210Pb and 137Cs profiles in two representative cores from Manasbal Lake, Kashmir, India. The sedimentation rate derived from 210Pb and 137Cs in the upper part of the core is in the range of 3.4 to 5.5 mm yr−1. In contrast, 14C ages show an inversion at depths >20 cm. These results are attributed to the erosion of the ubiquitous 10–20-m-thick loess mantle, based on the similarity of 14C ages of the inversion layer in the sediments and the paleosols present in the catchment area. Frequency-dependent mineral magnetic susceptibility (χfd), carbon to nitrogen ratios and pigment concentrations in the profile show a significant amount of allochthonous component in the lake deposits and support the conclusion that the 14C dates do not reflect the chronology of the in-situ lake sedimentation but episodic deposition of the surrounding loess. Thus, 14C serves as a useful tracer to understand source components of the sediments.

CARBONATE MINERALOGY OF LAKE SEDIMENTS AND SURROUNDING SOILS 1. BLACKSTRAP LAKE

1983 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. GHEBRE-EGZIABHIER ◽  
R. J. ST. ARNAUD
Keyword(s):  
Lake Sediments ◽  
Lake Water ◽  
Ionic Concentration ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
Sediment Composition ◽  
Sand Fraction ◽  
Reservoir Sediment ◽  
Lake Deposits ◽  
Secondary Magnesium ◽  
Drainage Waters

The carbonate mineralogy of the Blackstrap Lake sediments in central Saskatchewan indicates that the lake deposits are composed of carbonatic minerals similar to those found in surrounding soils and glacial deposits. Textural differences reflect the transport of finer materials (silts and clay) from the adjacent eroding landscapes. In particular the persistence of dolomite in the silt fractions of the lake sediment is a good indication that part of the calcite together with the dolomite are derived from surrounding soils. The sediment sand fraction contains appreciable Mg-bearing calcite and mollusk shells of pure calcite. Changes in the ionic concentrations of the lake water indicate that dissolution-precipitation processes have affected sediment composition. The increased calcium carbonate equivalent percentages and the presence of secondary magnesium-bearing calcites in the lake sediments suggest that this is so, particularly since erosional processes could not account entirely for the differences observed between the sediments and surrounding soils. The presence of gypsum and the nature of the secondary calcites in the Blackstrap Reservoir sediment tie in well with the known historical background of the Reservoir. The increased ionic concentration of the lake water over the last 15 yr or so since the original inception of the Reservoir is attributed to the influx of drainage waters, evaporation and possibly the effects of groundwater entry from below. Key words: Mg-bearing calcite, dolomite, IAP, erosion

scholarly journals The first tetrapod from the mid-Miocene Clarkia lagerstätte (Idaho, USA)

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4880
Author(s):  
Jonathan J. M. Calede ◽  
John D. Orcutt ◽  
Winifred A. Kehl ◽  
Bill D. Richards
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
New Taxon ◽  
Ecological Diversity ◽  
Anoxic Zone ◽  
Large Specimen ◽  
Skeletal Morphology ◽  
Lower Incisor ◽  
Plant Fossils ◽  
First Occurrence ◽  
Preservation Conditions

The Clarkia lagerstätte (Latah Formation) of Idaho is well known for its beautifully preserved plant fossils as well as a fauna of insects and fish. Here we present the first known tetrapod fossil from these deposits. This specimen, recovered from the lower anoxic zone of the beds, is preserved as a carbonaceous film of a partial skeleton associated with a partial lower incisor and some tooth fragments. The morphology of the teeth indicates that the first tetrapod reported from Clarkia is a rodent. Its skeletal morphology as well as its bunodont and brachydont dentition suggests that it is a member of the squirrel family (Sciuridae). It is a large specimen that cannot be assigned to a known genus. Instead, it appears to represent the first occurrence of a new taxon with particularly gracile postcranial morphology likely indicative of an arboreal ecology. This new specimen is a rare glimpse into the poorly known arboreal mammal fossil record of the Neogene. It supports a greater taxonomic and ecological diversity of Miocene Sciuridae than previously recognized and offers new lines of inquiry in the paleoecological research enabled by the unique preservation conditions of the Clarkia biota.

Taxonomic, Phylogenetic, and Ecological Diversity of Methanogenic Archaea

Anaerobe ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 205-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Louis Garcia ◽  
Bharat K.C Patel ◽  
Bernard Ollivier
Keyword(s):  
Methanogenic Archaea ◽  
Ecological Diversity
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