GENETIC INFORMATION FROM FOSSILS: NEW FRONTIERS

The early work of Abelson and Hoering suggested the survival of biomolecules in fossils. As will be discussed here, since that time, we have taken large steps in extracting genetically informative material from ancient remains. DNA survival in bone may extend to 100 Ka and interpretation of its sequence has changed our perspective on evolutionary biology and paleogeography. Recently, protein and DNA sequences have been obtained from >53 Ka bones and DNA sequences have been derived from 300 to 400 Ka permafrost samples. Although protein sequencing by mass spectrometric methods is in its infancy, we hope that the two sequencing approaches will be able to further extend our paleobiological information base. To this end, we present tantalizing results from >100 ka fossils. Importantly, in an effort to preserve a finite resource, our objective is to develop methods to identify poorly from well preserved fossils through comparison of organic and inorganic characteristics of fossils.