Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
T. A. Halamka, J. M. McFarlin, A. D. Younkin, J. Depoy, N. Dildar, S. H. Kopf
Summary: The study reveals that oxygen limitation triggers brGDGT production in at least one cultured species of Acidobacteria and confirms the biosynthesis of three structural varieties of brGDGTs. This discovery helps explain the difficulty in identifying brGDGT producers and provides a pathway towards uncovering the genetic basis and biological function of brGDGTs. It suggests that the effects of oxygen as a relevant and possibly dominant control in the environmental distributions of brGDGTs may be missing in current empirical calibrations for temperature and pH reconstructions based on brGDGTs.
GEOCHEMICAL PERSPECTIVES LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Suning Hou, Foteini Lamprou, Frida S. Hoem, Mohammad Rizky Nanda Hadju, Francesca Sangiorgi, Francien Peterse, Peter K. Bijl
Summary: This study reconstructs the paleotemperature evolution of the subtropical front area in the Southern Ocean using two independent proxies. The results show that the temperature in the area was high during the early Miocene, decreased in the mid-to-late Miocene, and then increased again in the Pliocene to modern times. These findings reveal the changes in temperature gradient near the Antarctic and expansion of subpolar conditions during the Neogene.
CLIMATE OF THE PAST
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Sophie Lefevre-Arbogast, Boris P. Hejblum, Catherine Helmer, Christian Klose, Claudine Manach, Dorrain Y. Low, Mireia Urpi-Sarda, Cristina Andres-Lacueva, Raul Gonzalez-Dominguez, Ludwig Aigner, Barbara Altendorfer, Paul J. Lucassen, Silvie R. Ruigrok, Chiara De Lucia, Andrea Du Preez, Cecile Proust-Lima, Sandrine Thuret, Aniko Korosi, Cecilia Samieri
Summary: This study found that a specific profile of lipids involved in membrane fluidity, myelination, and lipid rafts in the blood lipidome of non-demented older persons is associated with subsequent cognitive decline.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Marten Exterkate, Niels A. W. de Kok, Ruben L. H. Andringa, Niels H. J. Wolbert, Adriaan J. Minnaard, Arnold J. M. Driessen
Summary: A novel cardiolipin synthase was identified in the archaeon Methanospirillum hungatei, showing promiscuity in substrate selection and ability to synthesize various cardiolipin species. The enzyme can form a hybrid cardiolipin species not observed in nature before, indicating potential for bio-catalytic applications.
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Carolien M. H. van der Weijst, Koen J. van der Laan, Francien Peterse, Gert-Jan Reichart, Francesca Sangiorgi, Stefan Schouten, Tjerk J. T. Veenstra, Appy Sluijs
Summary: TEX86 is a paleothermometer that can be used to estimate sea-surface temperature. However, there is controversy regarding its sensitivity to subsurface temperature variability and its correlation with mixed-layer to subsurface temperatures. By studying a 15 Myr TEX86 record, it was found that TEX86 is also influenced by deep-sea temperature changes. These findings suggest that TEX86 can be used as a proxy for ocean temperature variability.
CLIMATE OF THE PAST
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Andre F. C. Vieira, Mark A. Xatse, Hamide Tifeki, Cedric Diot, Albertha J. M. Walhout, Carissa Perez Olsen
Summary: Researchers have discovered a new role for monomethyl branched-chain fatty acids (mmBCFAs) in the survival ability of nematodes under conditions of elevated dietary glucose. The absence of mmBCFAs during glucose stress leads to decreased survival rates, while feeding the nematodes with Bacillus subtilis, a bacteria strain rich in mmBCFAs, rescues their survival rates. Furthermore, it is suggested that mmBCFAs are involved in the PAQR-2 signaling response during glucose stress.
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Yu-Hyeon Park, Boo-Keun Khim
Summary: The present study analyzed core sediments from the Hupo Trough in the Korean Peninsula to test whether brGDGT proxies can reflect terrestrial environmental conditions. The results showed distinct differences in MAAT and pH between two lithologic units, indicating changes in the terrestrial environment since the last glacial maximum. The study suggests that branched GDGTs of neritic marine sediments can improve terrestrial paleoclimatic studies on the Korean Peninsula.
OCEAN SCIENCE JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Huanye Wang, Weiguo Liu, Hongxuan Lu, Yancheng Zhang, Yu Liang, Yuxin He, Steven M. Bohaty, Paul A. Wilson, Zhonghui Liu
Summary: The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) plays a significant role in the global distribution of heat, dissolved oxygen, and carbon in the ocean. This study used microbial source indicators from the Cenozoic Northwest Atlantic Ocean to infer changes in AMOC-driven deep-ocean oxygenation. The findings suggest a close association between the inception of Antarctic glaciation and AMOC, highlighting the importance of vertical mixing and wind-driven upwelling in the Southern Ocean for establishing AMOC as a key agent of deep-ocean ventilation.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Margot J. Cramwinckel, Robin van der Ploeg, Niels A. G. M. van Helmond, Niels Waarlo, Claudia Agnini, Peter K. Bijl, Annique van der Boon, Henk Brinkhuis, Joost Frieling, Wout Krijgsman, Tamsin A. Mather, Jack J. Middelburg, Francien Peterse, Caroline P. Slomp, Appy Sluijs
Summary: This study investigates the climate change mechanisms and factors influencing the middle Eocene climatic optimum through the assessment of sedimentary and geochemical data in the northern Peri-Tethys region. The results suggest that the significant organic carbon burial in the Kuma Formation played a quantitative role in the termination of the middle Eocene climatic optimum. Furthermore, the study highlights the importance of the interplay between global climate and regional oceanic evolution.
GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA BULLETIN
(2022)
Review
Microbiology
Roger E. Summons, Paula V. Welander, David A. Gold
Summary: Fossilized lipids in sedimentary rocks provide unique insights into Earth's microbial life history, offering information on atmospheric and ocean oxygenation, ocean plankton transitions, continent greening, mass extinctions, and climate change. Advances in molecular biology have helped elucidate the origins of lipid biomarkers, leading to more robust interpretations of fossil lipids and providing vital calibration points for molecular clocks in the rock record. Exploitation of sequenced microbial genomes in accessible databases presents further opportunities for lipid biomarker studies.
NATURE REVIEWS MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Soil Science
Cyrill U. Zosso, Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Jennifer L. Soong, Emily F. Solly, Margaret S. Torn, Arnaud Huguet, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. Schmidt
Summary: The study found that the abundance of microorganisms decreased with depth in subsoils, and the response of microbial communities to warming depended on depth, with an increase in the relative abundance of Actinobacteria in warmed subsoils. These microbial responses could be explained by the observed decrease in subsoil organic carbon concentrations.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yukun Zheng, Hongyan Liu, Huan Yang, Hongya Wang, Wenjie Zhao, Zeyu Zhang, Miao Huang, Weihang Liu
Summary: Discrepancies among variations in global ice volume, cave stalagmite delta O-18, and rainfall reconstruction using cosmogenic Be-10 pose challenges to understanding the evolution of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM). In this study, a 430-ka EASM mean annual precipitation record on the Chinese Loess Plateau was obtained using a deep learning neural network, which is in agreement with cave-derived delta O-18 data but differs from Be-10 precipitation reconstruction. This suggests that branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers, along with cave delta O-18, represent variations in EASM intensity and can extend the temporal scale of the EASM record.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Alexander Bonanno, Parkson Lee-Gau Chong
Summary: The study demonstrates that not all bipolar tetraether lipids (BTL) from Sulfolobus acidocaldarius exhibit the same membrane behaviors, with the polar lipid fraction E (PLFE) showing remarkable stability compared to BTL extracted from microvesicles (Sa-MVs). The differences in membrane stability and channel activity of MthK between BLMPLFE and BLMSa-MV are attributed to their lipid structural variances, indicating the existence of lipid domain formation in hyperthermophiles.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Adlina Roslan, Nurshahira Sulaiman, Khairul Asri Mohd Ghani, Armania Nurdin
Summary: This review discusses the studies on membrane proteins as potential biomarkers for personalized medicine, describing their types and significant functions as potential biomarkers for future medicine.
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Yiming Pan, Pan Liu, Shijie Li, Bowen Li, Yun Li, Lina Ma
Summary: In this study, metabolomics profiling was performed on serum samples from older adults and young controls, and it was found that the two groups could be distinguished based on metabolite profiling. Decreases in lysophospholipids and dysfunction of branched-chain amino acid metabolism were determined to be the characteristics and promising research targets for aging.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Biology
Arnaud Huguet, Sylvain Bernard, Rime El Khatib, Martina I. Gocke, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Sylvie Derenne
Summary: This study characterizes the mineralogical and chemical properties of rhizoliths in a Late Pleistocene loess-paleosol sequence, revealing that large rhizoliths are actually composed of numerous microrhizoliths formed by calcium carbonates. The precipitation of secondary carbonates occurs both around and within plant roots, leading to the selective preservation of recalcitrant root biopolymers like lignin and suberin.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Markus Egli, Guido Wiesenberg, Jens Leifeld, Holger Gartner, Jan Seibert, Claudia Roosli, Vladimir Wingate, Wasja Dollenmeier, Pascal Griffel, Jeannine Suremann, Jan Weber, Mergime Zyberaj, Alessandra Musso
Summary: The study explores the dynamics of the landscape in the Three Lakes Region of Western Switzerland, with a particular focus on the formation and degradation of mires. Over the past 2000 years, hydrodynamic and geomorphic activities have increased, leading to severe degradation of moorlands, with mean annual carbon losses of 4.9 t ha(-1) in agricultural land and 2.4 t ha(-1) in forests. Forests can limit but not completely stop the degradation of mires, suggesting that agroforestry may be a potential alternative land-use system for sensitive areas in the future.
SWISS JOURNAL OF GEOSCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Cyrill U. Zosso, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg
Summary: Microorganisms play a crucial role in organic matter and nutrient cycles in terrestrial ecosystems. Analyzing microbial membrane lipids, phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) has significantly enhanced our understanding of microbial processes in these cycles. However, variations in analytical parameters like freeze-drying vs. field moist samples, sample extraction amount, solvent mixture age, and methylation methods can impact PLFA analysis results, affecting both quantitative and qualitative outcomes. Ensuring proper consideration of these parameters is important for accurate interpretation of PLFA data and comparability between different studies.
JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGICAL METHODS
(2021)
Article
Soil Science
Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Cyrill U. Zosso, Jennifer L. Soong, Emily F. Solly, Margaret S. Torn, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. Schmidt
Summary: The study found that +4 degrees C whole-soil warming significantly impacted the quantity and quality of SOM, leading to divergent responses in different soil depths. The warming increased the accumulation of plant-derived n-alkanes in deep subsoils, but at the expense of plant- and microorganism-derived fatty acids, indicating accelerated microbial decomposition of plant-derived inputs with warming.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Emily F. Solly, Paul J. Hanson, Avni Malhotra, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. Schmidt
Summary: The study shows that rising temperatures and increasing atmospheric CO2 levels may impact carbon cycling in peatlands, but under current hydrological conditions, these factors are likely to offset each other.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Annabelle Constance, Jacqueline Oehri, Nancy Bunbury, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Frank Pennekamp, Luke A'Bear, Frauke Fleischer-Dogley, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub
Summary: Lagoonal mangrove ecosystems are vital for carbon capture, protection of coastlines, and conservation of biodiversity. This study investigates the drivers of mangrove functioning, focusing on Aldabra Atoll in Seychelles, and finds that soil nutrient content has the greatest influence on mangrove aboveground biomass variation.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Fanny Petibon, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg
Summary: A new method for simultaneous quantification of major photosynthetic pigments in plants and characterization of more pigment derivatives has been developed, with a wide working concentration range and low detection limit. This method allows for effective monitoring of leaf pigment dynamics.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Manuela Altermatt, Fanny Petibon, Jeffrey M. Warren, Avni Malhotra, Paul J. Hanson, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg
Summary: Plant carbon allocation is an important process in terrestrial ecosystems. Climate change can affect the carbon allocation strategies of dominant plant species in peatland ecosystems, but little is known about the allocation into secondary metabolites and species variations in response to climate change.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Tatjana C. Speckert, Fanny Petibon, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg
Summary: Leaf cuticular waxes play a crucial role in reducing evapotranspiration, but it remains unclear how mature trees adjust their wax biosynthesis to changing conditions. In this study, we investigated the formation of wax constituents in sun-exposed and shaded branches of mature European beech tree during the late summer. Our results showed ongoing modifications in the composition of n-alkanes and fatty acids, indicating de-novo biosynthesis. Moreover, sun-exposed leaves had higher concentrations of n-alkanes and invested more assimilated carbon into lipids than shaded leaves.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Cyrill U. Zosso, Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Margaret S. Torn, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. I. Schmidt
Summary: Structurally complex polymeric compounds, such as pyrogenic carbon, can be rapidly lost due to decomposition at warmer temperatures, which challenges our understanding of the stability of soil carbon under global warming. In particular, the fate of complex molecular structures (polymers) remains debated.
Article
Geography, Physical
Joana F. Cruz, Ioanna Bouloubassi, Arnaud Huguet, Alice M. S. Rodrigues, Thiago P. Santos, Igor M. Venancio, Douglas Lessa, Rodrigo L. Sobrinho, Rodrigo A. Nascimento, Marcelo C. Bernardes
Summary: This study reconstructed the upper temperature variations in the Subtropical South-western Atlantic (SSWA) using organic proxies. The results showed similar patterns in sea temperature records derived from alkenone-based UK'37 and isoprenoid glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (isoGDGTs)-based TEXH86 proxies. The study suggests that the joint use of these proxies is a promising approach to estimating paleoceanographic changes in the upper thermocline.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Minli Guo, Xiaolu Li, Yi Wang, Yunlin Zhang, Qinglong Fu, Arnaud Huguet, Guanglong Liu
Summary: This study used EEM fluorescence spectroscopy and FT-ICR MS to assess the release of DIP during POM photodegradation. The results showed that POM significantly photodegraded under light irradiation, accompanied by the production and release of DIP in the aqueous solution. Organic phosphorus participated in photo-chemical reactions, generating oxygen-enriched and saturated compounds that can be utilized by organisms. Reactive oxygen species and 3CDOM* played important roles in POM photodegradation.
Article
Geography, Physical
Louis Rouyer-Denimal, Aline Govin, Ioanna Bouloubassi, Thanh Thuy Nguyen Tu, Ana Luiza Spadano Albuquerque, Christelle Anquetil, Arnaud Huguet
Summary: The role of cross-equatorial currents in the northward spreading of warm and salty waters during glacial terminations is essential. This study presents temperature records based on organic proxies from a marine sediment core covering the last 305 thousand years before present. The results suggest that the strong warming of the tropical western Atlantic during glacial terminations can be explained by the combined influences of the thermal bipolar seesaw and the Agulhas Leakage. Additionally, an enhanced cross-equatorial gyre may explain the synchronous deglacial warming of the western and eastern sides of the tropical Atlantic.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Cyrill U. Zosso, Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Jennifer L. Soong, Emily F. Solly, Margaret S. Torn, Arnaud Huguet, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. Schmidt
Summary: The study found that the abundance of microorganisms decreased with depth in subsoils, and the response of microbial communities to warming depended on depth, with an increase in the relative abundance of Actinobacteria in warmed subsoils. These microbial responses could be explained by the observed decrease in subsoil organic carbon concentrations.
