1. TLE
Total Neutral
Fraction
(TNF)
N1
(Alkanes)
N2
(Alkenones)
N3
(Diols)
N4
Total Acid
Fraction (TAF)
University of Glasgow, charity number SC004401
Late Holocene palaeoenvironmental
reconstruction on the eastern Red Sea coast
(Saudi Arabia)
References
Alkenones
Methodologies Expected Results
Natasha Kumar
Supervisors: Dr Julien Plancq, Dr Jaime L. Toney
The Shuaiba Lagoon, a fossil-back reef and
shallow basin, is an area is of particular
interest due to the intact evidence of
changing environments
The project aims to determine changes in the
environment during the late Holocene in the
Shuaiba Lagoon area
Freeze Dry Sediment Samples
Total Lipid Extraction (TLE)
Neutral Lipid Separation using Silica Gel
Analysis by GC-FID & GC-MS
Continuous sediment record spanning ~ 3600
years
So far multi proxy investigations, such as
sediment lithology and isotope ratios, have
reconstructed palaeoclimate changes identifying
2 particular environments
Long chained lipids
Derived from a few phytoplankton and some
non-calcifying species
UK’37 = [C37:2]
[C37:2]+[C37:3] Abu-Zied, R.H. and Bantan, R.A., 2015, Palaeoenvironment, palaeoclimate
and sea-level changes in the Shuaiba Lagoon during the late Holocene (last
3.6ka), eastern Red Sea coast, Saudi Arabia: The Holocene, v. 25, p. 1301-
1312, doi: 10.1177/0959683615584204
Prahl, F.G. and Wakeham, S.G., 1987, Calibration of unsaturation patterns in
long-chain ketone compositions for palaeotemperature assessment: Nature, v.
330, p. 367-369, doi: 10.1038/330367a0
Rampen, S.W., Willmott, V., Kim, J.H., Uliana, E., Mollenhauer, G., Schefus,
E.,Sinninghe Damste, J.S., Schouten, S., 2012, Long chain 1,13- and 1,15-diols
as a potential proxy for palaeotemperature reconstruction: Geochim et
Cosmochimica Acta, v. 84, p. 204-216, doi:10.1016/j.gca.2012.01.024
Through the extraction of lipids and the
analysis of:
- Alkenones
- Diols
- Alkanes
Reconstructing and correlating past Sea
Surface Temperatures using lipid biomarker
proxies for:
Alkenone: UK’37 ratio (Prahl & Wakeham, 1987)
Long-chain Diol Index LDI (Rampen et al., 2012)
The study and concentration of lipid biomarkers
such as Alkenones and Diols were measured
through the following methods
Further Research
First to research the area using Lipid
biomarkers and especially Alkenone and Diol
proxies
The sediment record covers important time
periods (Little Ice Age and Medieval Warm
Period) where changes in climate have had
major human impact
Possibility of further studies throughout different
areas of the Red Sea to calibrate temperatures
and palaeoclimates
BackgroundIntroduction and Aims
Samples were freeze dried at -52°C to avoid
destruction of any organic material
Next Steps:
Separations will be analysed by GC-FID and
GC-MS to measure concentration of lipids and
calibrate to past temperatures
1. GC-FID: measure concentration of organic
species in a gas stream
2. GC-MS: profiles and identifies compounds
Simplified temperatures over last 1000 years in Northern Hemisphere
(Antarctic Journal, 2015)
Cyclic variation in temperatures expected
Significant temperature variations resulting in
long warm and cold periods
Top: Location map of Red Sea and Saudi Arabia Coast (Google, 2015)
Bottom Left: Shuaiba Lagoon, eastern Red Sea coast (Google, 2015)
Bottom Right: Shuaiba Lagoon lithology and location of samples SHUA3
used (Abu-Zied & Bantan, 2015)
Lithological description of core (SHUA3) obtained (Abu-Zied &
Bantan, 2015)
GC-MS instrument used for analysing lipids (University of Bremen, 2015)