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Science 17 September 1999:
Vol. 285. no. 5435, pp. 1889 - 1892
DOI: 10.1126/science.285.5435.1889
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Reports

Iron Isotope Biosignatures

Brian L. Beard, 1* Clark M. Johnson, 1 Lea Cox, 2 Henry Sun, 2 Kenneth H. Nealson, 2 Carmen Aguilar 3

The 56Fe/54Fe of Fe-bearing phases precipitated in sedimentary environments varies by 2.5 per mil (delta 56Fe values of +0.9 to -1.6 per mil). In contrast, the 56Fe/54Fe of Fe-bearing phases in igneous rocks from Earth and the moon does not vary measurably (delta 56Fe = 0.0 ± 0.3 per mil). Experiments with dissimilatory Fe-reducing bacteria of the genus Shewanella algae grown on a ferrihydrite substrate indicate that the delta 56Fe of ferrous Fe in solution is isotopically lighter than the ferrihydrite substrate by 1.3 per mil. Therefore, the range in delta 56Fe values of sedimentary rocks may reflect biogenic fractionation, and the isotopic composition of Fe may be used to trace the distribution of microorganisms in modern and ancient Earth.

1 Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1215 West Dayton Street, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
2 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, MS 183-301, 4800 Oak Grove Road, Pasadena, CA 91109-8009, USA.
3 Institute for Great Lakes Study, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 600 East Greenfield Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53204, USA.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: beardb{at}geology.wisc.edu

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