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Ancient rocks in India give clues to early life
News
- Latest research found a steroid compound produced only by sponges in ancient rocks and oils from India, Oman, Siberia, which are among the earliest forms of animal life
Important Facts
- Researchers at the University of California, Riverside in the U.S. tracked molecular signs of animal life, called biomarkers, as far back as 660-635 million years ago during the Neoproterozoic era.
- Researcher identified the biomarker, a steroid compound named 26-methylstigmastane (26-mes), has a unique structure that is currently only known to be synthesised by certain species of modern sponges called demosponges.
- This is dating back at least 100 million years before the famous Cambrian explosion of animal fossils
- The “Cambrian Explosion” refers to the sudden appearance in the fossil record of complex animals with mineralised skeletal remains 541 million years ago.
- Researcher are trying to find distinctive and stable biomarkers that indicate the existence of sponges and other early animals, rather than single-celled organisms that dominated the earth for billions of years before the dawn of complex, multicellular life
