Taphonomic experiments reveal authentic molecular signals for fossil melanins and verify preservation of phaeomelanin in fossils

Tiffany S. Slater (), Shosuke Ito, Kazumasa Wakamatsu, Fucheng Zhang, Peter Sjövall, Martin Jarenmark, Johan Lindgren and Maria E. McNamara ()
Additional contact information
Tiffany S. Slater: University College Cork
Shosuke Ito: Fujita Health University
Kazumasa Wakamatsu: Fujita Health University
Fucheng Zhang: Linyi University
Peter Sjövall: RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Materials and Production
Martin Jarenmark: Lund University
Johan Lindgren: Lund University
Maria E. McNamara: University College Cork

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Abstract Melanin pigments play a critical role in physiological processes and shaping animal behaviour. Fossil melanin is a unique resource for understanding the functional evolution of melanin but the impact of fossilisation on molecular signatures for eumelanin and, especially, phaeomelanin is not fully understood. Here we present a model for the chemical taphonomy of fossil eumelanin and phaeomelanin based on thermal maturation experiments using feathers from extant birds. Our results reveal which molecular signatures are authentic signals for thermally matured eumelanin and phaeomelanin, which signatures are artefacts derived from the maturation of non-melanin molecules, and how these chemical data are impacted by sample preparation. Our model correctly predicts the molecular composition of eumelanins in diverse vertebrate fossils from the Miocene and Cretaceous and, critically, identifies direct molecular evidence for phaeomelanin in these fossils. This taphonomic framework adds to the geochemical toolbox that underpins reconstructions of melanin evolution and of melanin-based coloration in fossil vertebrates.

Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-40570-w Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:14:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-023-40570-w

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40570-w

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().