Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

High Temperature as a Mechanism for Plant Cytoplasm Preservation in Fossils

High Temperature as a Mechanism for Plant Cytoplasm Preservation in Fossils Abstract: Because the cytoplasm of a plant normally degrades after the death of the plant, finding cytoplasm in a plant body after a prolonged period of time, especially in fossil plants, is unexpected. Recent work on several 100‐Myr‐old plant fossils from Kansas, USA indicates, however, that cells and their contents can be preserved. Most of the cells in these fossil plants appear to be in a state of plasmolysis, and these fossil cells bear a strong resemblance to laboratory‐baked cells of extant plant tissues. Based on a comparison with extant material plus biophysical and biochemical analyses of the cytoplasm degrading process, a new hypothesis for cytoplasm preservation in nature is proposed: high temperature, a concomitant of commonly seen wildfires, may preserve cytoplasm in fossil plants. This hypothesis implies that fossilized cytoplasm should be rather common and an appropriate substance for research, unlike previously thought. Research on fossil cytoplasm closely integrates paleobotany with biochemistry, biophysics, as well as fire ecology, and invites inputs from these fields to paleobotany to interpret these provocative findings. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Acta Geologica Sinica (English Edition) Wiley

High Temperature as a Mechanism for Plant Cytoplasm Preservation in Fossils

Acta Geologica Sinica (English Edition) , Volume 81 (2) – Apr 1, 2007

Loading next page...
 
/lp/wiley/high-temperature-as-a-mechanism-for-plant-cytoplasm-preservation-in-UlS2y0OOmM

References (68)

Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
2007 Geological Society of China
ISSN
1000-9515
eISSN
1755-6724
DOI
10.1111/j.1755-6724.2007.tb00943.x
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Abstract: Because the cytoplasm of a plant normally degrades after the death of the plant, finding cytoplasm in a plant body after a prolonged period of time, especially in fossil plants, is unexpected. Recent work on several 100‐Myr‐old plant fossils from Kansas, USA indicates, however, that cells and their contents can be preserved. Most of the cells in these fossil plants appear to be in a state of plasmolysis, and these fossil cells bear a strong resemblance to laboratory‐baked cells of extant plant tissues. Based on a comparison with extant material plus biophysical and biochemical analyses of the cytoplasm degrading process, a new hypothesis for cytoplasm preservation in nature is proposed: high temperature, a concomitant of commonly seen wildfires, may preserve cytoplasm in fossil plants. This hypothesis implies that fossilized cytoplasm should be rather common and an appropriate substance for research, unlike previously thought. Research on fossil cytoplasm closely integrates paleobotany with biochemistry, biophysics, as well as fire ecology, and invites inputs from these fields to paleobotany to interpret these provocative findings.

Journal

Acta Geologica Sinica (English Edition)Wiley

Published: Apr 1, 2007

There are no references for this article.