Approches protéomiques en archéologie et héritage culturel : caractérisation de protéines anciennes préservées dans des coquilles de mollusques

Archaeological mollusc shell artifacts and ecofacts are valuable sources to study past cultures and provide insights on how people exploited their environments. Mollusc shells were often used as raw materials to make personal ornaments and are abundantly found in archaeological sites. However, minute, heavily worked and/or fragmented shell ornaments are rarely identified at different taxonomic levels, due to limited availability of analytical approaches to determine taxon-specific (diagnostic) features. In recent years, proteomics, which exploits the high sensitivity of modern mass spectrometry techniques, has been successfully applied to the study of a variety of bioarchaeological remains,…

The shell matrix of the european thorny oyster, Spondylus gaederopus: microstructural and molecular characterization.

17 pages; International audience; Molluscs, the largest marine phylum, display extraordinary shell diversity and sophisticated biomineral architectures. However, mineral-associated biomolecules involved in biomineralization are still poorly characterised.We report the first comprehensive structural and biomolecular study of Spondylus gaederopus, a pectinoid bivalve with a peculiar shell texture. Used since prehistoric times, this is the best-known shell of Europe’s cultural heritage. We find that Spondylus microstructure is very poor in mineral-bound organics, which are mostly intercrystalline and concentrated at the interface between structural layers.Using high-resolution liquid chromatog…

Shell palaeoproteomics: first application of peptide mass fingerprinting for the rapid identification of mollusc shells in archaeology.

10 pages; International audience; Molluscs were one of the most widely-used natural resources in the past, and their shells are abundant among archaeological findings. However, our knowledge of the variety of shells that were circulating in prehistoric times (and thus their socio-economic and cultural value) is scarce due to the difficulty of achieving taxonomic determination of fragmented and/or worked remains. This study aims to obtain molecular barcodes based on peptide mass fingerprints (PMFs) of intracrystalline proteins, in order to obtain shell identification. Palaeoproteomic applications on shells are challenging, due to low concentration of molluscan proteins and an incomplete unde…

The degradation of intracrystalline mollusc shell proteins: a proteomics study of Spondylus gaederopus.

Mollusc shells represent excellent systems for the preservation and retrieval of genuine biomolecules from archaeological or palaeontological samples. As a consequence, the post-mortem breakdown of intracrystalline mollusc shell proteins has been extensively investigated, particularly with regard to its potential use as a "molecular clock" for geochronological applications. But despite seventy years of ancient protein research, the fundamental aspects of diagenesis-induced changes to protein structures and sequences remain elusive. In this study we investigate the degradation of intracrystalline proteins by performing artificial degradation experiments on the shell of the thorny oyster, Spo…

'Palaeoshellomics' reveals the use of freshwater mother-of-pearl in prehistory

The extensive use of mollusc shell as a versatile raw material is testament to its importance in prehistoric times. The consistent choice of certain species for different purposes, including the making of ornaments, is a direct representation of how humans viewed and exploited their environment. The necessary taxonomic information, however, is often impossible to obtain from objects that are small, heavily worked or degraded. Here we propose a novel biogeochemical approach to track the biological origin of prehistoric mollusc shell. We conducted an in-depth study of archaeological ornaments using microstructural, geochemical and biomolecular analyses, including ‘palaeoshellomics’, the first…

Author response: 'Palaeoshellomics’ reveals the use of freshwater mother-of-pearl in prehistory