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Donardelli Bellon U, Williams W, Trindade RIF, Maldanis L, Galante D. Primordial magnetotaxis in putative giant paleoproterozoic magnetofossils. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2319148121. [PMID: 38805285 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2319148121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2024] [Indexed: 05/30/2024] Open
Abstract
Magnetotactic bacteria produce chains of nanoscopic iron minerals used for navigation, which can be preserved over geological timescales in the form of magnetofossils. Micrometer-sized magnetite crystals with unusual shapes suggesting a biologically controlled mineralization have been found in the geological record and termed giant magnetofossils. The biological origin and function of giant magnetofossils remains unclear, due to the lack of modern analogues to giant magnetofossils. Using distinctive Ptychographic nanotomography data of Precambrian (1.88 Ga) rocks, we recovered the morphology of micrometric cuboid grains of iron oxides embedded in an organic filamentous fossil to construct synthetic magnetosomes. Their morphology is different from that of previously found giant magnetofossils, but their occurrence in filamentous microfossils and micromagnetic simulations support the hypothesis that they could have functioned as a navigation aid, akin to modern magnetosomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ualisson Donardelli Bellon
- Department of Geophysics, Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 05360020, Brazil
- Department of Geophysics, School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FE, Scotland
| | - Wyn Williams
- Department of Geophysics, School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FE, Scotland
| | - Ricardo Ivan Ferreira Trindade
- Department of Geophysics, Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 05360020, Brazil
| | - Lara Maldanis
- Earth Science Department, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1081 HV, the Netherlands
| | - Douglas Galante
- Department of Sedimentary and Environmental Geology, Institute of Geosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 05508080, Brazil
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Broers FT, Verslype I, Bossers KW, Vanmeert F, Gonzalez V, Garrevoet J, van Loon A, van Duijn E, Krekeler A, De Keyser N, Steeman I, Noble P, Janssens K, Meirer F, Keune K. Correlated x-ray fluorescence and ptychographic nano-tomography on Rembrandt's The Night Watch reveals unknown lead "layer". SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadj9394. [PMID: 38100587 PMCID: PMC10848709 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj9394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 11/16/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
The Night Watch, one of the most famous masterpieces by Rembrandt, is the subject of a large research and conservation project. For the conservation treatment, it is of great importance to understand its current condition. Correlated nano-tomography using x-ray fluorescence and ptychography revealed a-so far unknown-lead-containing "layer", which likely acts as a protective impregnation layer applied on the canvas before the quartz-clay ground was applied. This layer might explain the presence of lead soap protrusions in areas where no other lead components are present. In addition to the three-dimensional elemental mapping, ptychography visualizes and quantifies components not detectable by hard x-ray fluorescence such as the organic fraction and quartz. The first-time use of this combination of synchrotron-based techniques on a historic paint micro-sample shows it to be an important tool to better interpret the results of noninvasive imaging techniques operating on the macroscale.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fréderique T.H. Broers
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Van ’t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1090 GD, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science and Institute for Sustainable and Circular Chemistry, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht, Netherlands
- Antwerp X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy laboratory, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Ige Verslype
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Koen W. Bossers
- Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science and Institute for Sustainable and Circular Chemistry, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Frederik Vanmeert
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Antwerp X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy laboratory, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
- Paintings Laboratory, Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage (KIK-IRPA), Jubelpark 1, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Victor Gonzalez
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Jan Garrevoet
- Photon Science at Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY, Hamburg 22607, Germany
| | - Annelies van Loon
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Esther van Duijn
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Anna Krekeler
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Nouchka De Keyser
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Van ’t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1090 GD, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Antwerp X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy laboratory, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Ilse Steeman
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Petria Noble
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Koen Janssens
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Antwerp X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy laboratory, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Florian Meirer
- Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis, Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science and Institute for Sustainable and Circular Chemistry, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Katrien Keune
- Science Department, Conservation & Science, Scientific Research, Rijksmuseum, Hobbemastraat 22, 1071 ZC, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Van ’t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1090 GD, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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Hickman-Lewis K, Moore KR, Hollis JJR, Tuite ML, Beegle LW, Bhartia R, Grotzinger JP, Brown AJ, Shkolyar S, Cavalazzi B, Smith CL. In Situ Identification of Paleoarchean Biosignatures Using Colocated Perseverance Rover Analyses: Perspectives for In Situ Mars Science and Sample Return. ASTROBIOLOGY 2022; 22:1143-1163. [PMID: 35862422 PMCID: PMC9508457 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2022.0018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The NASA Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is currently exploring Jezero crater, a Noachian-Hesperian locality that once hosted a delta-lake system with high habitability and biosignature preservation potential. Perseverance conducts detailed appraisals of rock targets using a synergistic payload capable of geological characterization from kilometer to micron scales. The highest-resolution textural and chemical information will be provided by correlated WATSON (imaging), SHERLOC (deep-UV Raman and fluorescence spectroscopy), and PIXL (X-ray lithochemistry) analyses, enabling the distributions of organic and mineral phases within rock targets to be comprehensively established. Herein, we analyze Paleoarchean microbial mats from the ∼3.42 Ga Buck Reef Chert (Barberton greenstone belt, South Africa)-considered astrobiological analogues for a putative ancient martian biosphere-following a WATSON-SHERLOC-PIXL protocol identical to that conducted by Perseverance on Mars during all sampling activities. Correlating deep-UV Raman and fluorescence spectroscopic mapping with X-ray elemental mapping, we show that the Perseverance payload has the capability to detect thermally and texturally mature organic materials of biogenic origin and can highlight organic-mineral interrelationships and elemental colocation at fine spatial scales. We also show that the Perseverance protocol obtains very similar results to high-performance laboratory imaging, Raman spectroscopy, and μXRF instruments. This is encouraging for the prospect of detecting microscale organic-bearing textural biosignatures on Mars using the correlative micro-analytical approach enabled by WATSON, SHERLOC, and PIXL; indeed, laminated, organic-bearing samples such as those studied herein are considered plausible analogues of biosignatures from a potential Noachian-Hesperian biosphere. Were similar materials discovered at Jezero crater, they would offer opportunities to reconstruct aspects of the early martian carbon cycle and search for potential fossilized traces of life in ancient paleoenvironments. Such samples should be prioritized for caching and eventual return to Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keyron Hickman-Lewis
- Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Kelsey R. Moore
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, USA
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - John P. Grotzinger
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
| | | | - Svetlana Shkolyar
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
- Planetary Geology, Geophysics and Geochemistry Lab, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA
| | - Barbara Cavalazzi
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Caroline L. Smith
- Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom
- School of Geographical and Earth Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
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Bertrand L, Thoury M, Gueriau P, Anheim É, Cohen S. Deciphering the Chemistry of Cultural Heritage: Targeting Material Properties by Coupling Spectral Imaging with Image Analysis. Acc Chem Res 2021; 54:2823-2832. [PMID: 34143613 DOI: 10.1021/acs.accounts.1c00063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
The chemical study of materials from natural history and cultural heritage, which provide information for art history, archeology, or paleontology, presents a series of specific challenges. The complexity of these ancient and historical materials, which are chemically heterogeneous, the product of alteration processes, and inherently not reproducible, is a major obstacle to a thorough understanding of their making and long-term behavior (e.g., fossilization). These challenges required the development of methodologies and instruments coupling imaging and data processing approaches that are optimized for the specific properties of the materials. This Account discusses how these characteristics not only constrain their study but also open up specific innovative avenues for providing key historical information. Synchrotron methods have extensively been used since the late 1990s to study heritage objects, in particular for their potential to provide speciation information from excitation spectroscopies and to image complex heritage objects and samples in two and three dimensions at high resolution. We examine in practice how the identification of key intrinsic chemical specificities has offered fertile ground for the development of novel synchrotron approaches allowing a better stochastic description of the properties of ancient and historical materials. These developments encompass three main aspects: (1) The multiscale heterogeneity of these materials can provide an essential source of information in the development of probes targeting their multiple scales of homogeneity. (2) Chemical alteration can be described in many ways, e.g., by segmenting datasets in a semiquantitative way to jointly inform morphological and chemical transformation pathways. (3) The intrinsic individuality of chemical signatures in artifacts triggers the development of specific strategies, such as those focusing on weak signal detection. We propose a rereading of the advent of these new methodologies for analysis and characterization and examine how they have led to innovative strategies combining materials science, instrument development, history, and data science. In particular, we show that spectral imaging and the search for correlations in image datasets have provided a powerful way to address what archeologists have called the uncertainty and ambiguity of the material record. This approach has implications beyond synchrotron techniques and extends in particular to a series of rapidly developing approaches that couple spectral and spatial information, as in hyperspectral imaging and spatially resolved mass spectrometry. The preeminence of correlations holds promise for the future development of machine learning methods for processing data on historical objects. Beyond heritage, these developments are an original source of inspiration for the study of materials in many related fields, such as environmental, geochemical, or life sciences, which deal with systems whose alteration and heterogeneity cannot be neglected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loïc Bertrand
- Université Paris-Saclay, ENS Paris-Saclay, CNRS, PPSM, F-91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Mathieu Thoury
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, ministère de la culture, UVSQ, MNHN, IPANEMA, F-91192 Saint-Aubin, France
| | - Pierre Gueriau
- Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Lausanne, Geopolis, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Étienne Anheim
- Centre de recherches historiques, EHESS, CNRS, F-75006 Paris, France
| | - Serge Cohen
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, ministère de la culture, UVSQ, MNHN, IPANEMA, F-91192 Saint-Aubin, France
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