Archaeal Tetraether Lipids as Tracers for Past Marine Environmental Change
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Archaea are single‐celled microorganisms that are abundant in marine environments and play a key role in the carbon and nitrogen cycles. Archaea can biosynthesize a wide variety of isoprenoid membrane lipids, including isoprenoid glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (isoGDGTs). Experimental and empirical evidence demonstrates that the number of cyclopentane moieties in isoGDGTs is related to growth temperature, leading to the formulation and development of the TEX 86 ocean temperature proxy. The TEX 86 proxy has been widely applied to marine sediments spanning the last 190 million years and has revealed unique insights into the evolution of ocean temperatures over diverse timescales. Other indices have been developed using archaeal lipids to reconstruct ecological and biogeochemical processes that operate within the marine realm. However, several knowledge gaps (e.g., depth of export production, non‐temperature controls, application in non‐analogue climates) limit the application of archaeal lipid‐based proxies in modern and ancient marine environments. In this review, we critically assess the utility of archaeal lipids as tracers for (paleo) environmental change, with an emphasis on the TEX 86 paleotemperature proxy.
DOI: 10.1029/2025pa005373
Authors: Felix J. Elling, Gordon N. Inglis, Nina Davtian, Sarah J. Hurley, B. David A. Naafs, Lauren K. O'Connor, Richard D. Pancost, Francien Peterse, Ronnakrit Rattanasriampaipong, Addison Rice, Florence Schubotz, Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté, Lars Wörmer, Alexandra Auderset, Kevin W. Becker, Melissa A. Berke, Peter K. Bijl, Cindy De Jonge, Liang Dong, Bella J. Duncan, Tom Dunkley Jones, Pierrick Fenies, Susanne Fietz, Sze Ling Ho, Arnaud Huguet, Carme Huguet, Jérôme Kaiser, Xiao‐Lei Liu, Gesine Mollenhauer, Sebastian Naeher, Ann Pearson, Kasia K. Śliwińska, Appy Sluijs, Claudia Sosa‐Montes de Oca, Qian Tian, Jessica E. Tierney, Devika Varma, Wenjie Xiao, Yi Ge Zhang, Xiaoxiao Zhao
Institutions: Heidelberg University, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, University of Southampton, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Aix-Marseille Université, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Centre de Recherche et d’Enseignement de Géosciences de l’Environnement, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, University of Bristol, Utrecht University, University of Arizona, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, ETH Zurich, Geological Institute, University of Bremen, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, University of Notre Dame, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, GNS Science, Victoria University of Wellington, Earth Sciences New Zealand, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, University of Birmingham, National Taiwan University, Stellenbosch University, École Pratique des Hautes Études, Sorbonne Université, Milieux environnementaux, transferts et interactions dans les hydrosystèmes et les sols, IE University, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde, University of Oklahoma, Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Lincoln University, Harvard University, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Yan'an University, University of Southern Denmark, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry
Language: English
Subfield: Atmospheric Science
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Life below water
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,070
Funders: Royal Society, Marie Curie
OpenAlex ID: W4416756476