Howell etal 17 - XFM metal distribution feathers.pdf (2.5 MB)
The topobiology of chemical elements in seabird feathers
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-19, 04:58 authored by Howell, NR, Jennifer Lavers, Uematsu, S, D Paterson, Howard, DL, Spiers, K, de Jonge, MD, Hanley, T, Garrett, R, Banati, RBThe highly organized morphogenesis of bird feathers holds important phylo- and ontogenetic information on the evolution of birds, organogenesis, tissue regeneration, and the health status of individual animals. Altered topobiological patterns are regularly used as retrospective evidence for disturbed developmental trajectories due to the past exposure to environmental stressors. Using the most advanced high-resolution (5–70 μm) X-ray fluorescence microscopy (XFM), we describe in the feathers from three species of Procellariiformes hitherto unknown, depositions of elements (Zn, Ca, Br, Cu, Fe) that are independent of pigmentation or any underlying variation in density or polymer structure. In the case of Zn, the pattern across several species of Procellariiformes, but not other species, consisted of highly regular bands of Zn numbering 30–32, which may reflect the estimated number of days of active feather growth or the duration of the moult period. Thus, speculatively, the highly consistent Zn pattern might be the result of a so far unknown diurnal systemic regulation rather than local heterogeneity amongst the follicular stem cells.
History
Publication title
Scientific ReportsVolume
7Article number
1998Number
1998Pagination
1-9ISSN
2045-2322Department/School
Institute for Marine and Antarctic StudiesPublisher
Nature Publishing GroupPlace of publication
United KingdomRights statement
Copyright 2017 The authors. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Repository Status
- Open