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The fossil record documents only a small fraction of all organisms that have ever inhabited Earth. Fossilization is a rare process, and most organisms never become fossils. Moreover, the fossil record only exhibits fossils that have been discovered. Nevertheless, sedimentary rock fossils of long-lived, abundant, hard-bodied organisms dominate the fossil record. These fossils offer valuable information, such as an organism's physical form, behavior, and age. Studying the fossil record helps...
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Cyanobacteria evolution: Insight from the fossil record.

Catherine F Demoulin1, Yannick J Lara1, Luc Cornet2

  • 1Early Life Traces & Evolution - Astrobiology, UR ASTROBIOLOGY, Geology Department, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.

Free Radical Biology & Medicine
|May 13, 2019
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Cyanobacteria fossils are hard to identify. New biosignatures and methods are needed to understand the evolution of cyanobacteria and oxygenic photosynthesis.

Keywords:
BiosignaturesCyanobacteriaEvolutionMicrofossilsMolecular clocksPrecambrian

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Area of Science:

  • * Origin of Life and Early Earth Evolution
  • * Paleobiology and Astrobiology
  • * Photosynthesis and Biogeochemical Cycles

Background:

  • * Cyanobacteria are crucial for Earth's oxygenation and as primary producers.
  • * Identifying early cyanobacteria fossils is challenging due to unreliable morphological criteria.
  • * Cyanobacteria are the ancestors of chloroplasts, fundamental to eukaryotic life.

Purpose of the Study:

  • * To review classic and novel cyanobacterial biosignatures.
  • * To assess the reliability of the fossil record and molecular approaches.
  • * To propose strategies for understanding cyanobacteria evolution and oxygenic photosynthesis.

Main Methods:

  • * Review of existing literature on cyanobacterial biosignatures.
  • * Critical evaluation of microfossil interpretation and morphological criteria.
  • * Analysis of challenges in molecular approaches for modern cyanobacteria.

Main Results:

  • * Classic morphological criteria for cyanobacteria identification are often unreliable.
  • * New biosignatures offer improved specificity for cyanobacteria detection.
  • * Molecular clock calibration requires new data points for accurate evolutionary timing.

Conclusions:

  • * Improved biosignatures are essential for reliable cyanobacteria fossil identification.
  • * Understanding cyanobacteria evolution requires integrating fossil and molecular data.
  • * New calibration points can refine models of early life and oxygenic photosynthesis.