"Save Private Pinna !" The Mediterranean fan mussel, a patrimonial bivalve, is in serious danger of extinction.

Pinna nobilis is the largest bivalve in the Mediterranean Sea. This endemic species lives in the Posidonia meadows,in the form of small sparse populations. It is a heritage species: its byssus has long been collected to be wovenand used to make gloves, hats or stoles. Protected by a European Directive (1992), P. nobilis is closely monitored,nationally and internationally. But since the end of 2016, an epidemic, which origin seems to be a protozoan parasite,decimates populations (up to 100% mortality). This event began on the Spanish coast and spreads now all around theMediterranean. Although conservation measures have been taken, the next few years could see the extinction of thisemblematic…

L'imaginaire dans la communication scientifique.

9 pages; National audience; L'étude de publications scientifiques en paléontologie montre l'existence d'une nette dichotomie entre les revues spécialisées d'un côté et certaines revues à haute valeur scientifique et les revues de vulgarisation de l'autre. L'imaginaire portant sur l'origine de l'homme, les dinosaures et les oiseaux semble favoriser leur grande diffusion auprès d'un large public. Nous proposons une hypothèse générale expliquant la mise en place d'un état d'engouement portant sur trois facteurs : le capital imaginaire, l'état de latence et les événements déclencheurs.

La conservation des spécimens paléontologiques : une muséographie d’origine.

4 pages; National audience

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…

Pearl grafting: tracking the biological origin of nuclei by straightforward immunological methods.

9 pages; International audience; French Polynesia is renowned for the production of Tahitian black pearl. These gems are obtained by grafting a nucleus into the gonad of a receiving oyster together with a graft, i.e. a small section of mantle tissue of a donor oyster. This procedure initiates the formation of a pearl sack around the nucleus, and subsequently, the deposition of concentric layers of nacre. The nucleus plays a key-role in pearl formation and its characteristics influence markedly the quality of the final product. As it is manufactured from mollusc shells, it contains a small percentage of organics. In the present paper, we used a set of biochemical techniques to characterize a…

Vu du côté des bases : le recueil des données par Trans'Tyfipal®.

2 pages; National audience

Une autre collection de mulettes de Drouët à l'université de Bourgogne : la collection "Henri Miot".

4 pages; National audience

'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…

Le Turonien du Saumurois et de la Touraine dans les collections.

8 pages; National audience

La collection de paléontologie du musée de Semur-en-Auxois.

6 pages; National audience

Le Sinémurien de l’Auxois dans les collections.

3 pages; National audience

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

Collections universitaires et Paléontologie.

À partir de l’exemple du programme Trans’Tyfipal®, mené par le laboratoire Biogéosciences de l’université de Bourgogne et qui a pour objectif d’inventorier tous les spécimens types paléontologiques conservés en France, l’auteur montre comment l’un des grands défis pour les musées universitaires est de se développer en bonne harmonie entre la recherche, la formation et la valorisation. From the example of the Trans’tyfipal® programme, led by the Biogeosciences laboratory at Burgundy University, and which aims at listing all the Paleontological type specimens kept in France, the author explains how one of the major challenges for university museums is to encourage research, training and prom…

Shell repair process in the green ormer Haliotis tuberculata: a histological and microstructural study.

In the present paper, juvenile and adult shells of the green ormer Haliotis tuberculata ('Oreille de Saint-Pierre') were perforated in a zone close to the shell edge and the shell repair process was followed at two levels: (1) by observing the histology of the calcifying mantle in the repair zone and (2) by analyzing with SEM the microstructure of the shell repair zone. Histological data clearly show the presence of calcium carbonate granules into the connective tissues, but not in the epithelial cells. This suggests that calcium carbonate granules are synthesized by sub-epithelial cells and actively transported through the epithelium to the repair zone, via a process which may be similar t…

Service des collections du laboratoire Biogéosciences-Dijon.

6 pages