TY - JOUR
T1 - Long-chain alkanes preserved in a Martian mudstone
AU - Freissinet, Caroline
AU - Glavin, Daniel P.
AU - Archer, P. Douglas
AU - Teinturier, Samuel
AU - Buch, Arnaud
AU - Szopa, Cyril
AU - Lewis, James M.T.
AU - Williams, Amy J.
AU - Navarro-Gonzalez, Rafael
AU - Dworkin, Jason P.
AU - Franz, Heather B.
AU - Millan, Maëva
AU - Eigenbrode, Jennifer L.
AU - Summons, R. E.
AU - House, Christopher H.
AU - Williams, Ross H.
AU - Steele, Andrew
AU - McIntosh, Ophélie
AU - Gómez, Felipe
AU - Prats, Benito
AU - Malespin, Charles A.
AU - Mahaffy, Paul R.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2025 the Author(s).
PY - 2025/4/1
Y1 - 2025/4/1
N2 - Organic molecules preserved in ancient Martian rocks provide a critical record of the past habitability of Mars and could be chemical biosignatures. Experiments conducted by the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument onboard the Curiosity rover have previously reported several classes of indigenous chlorinated and sulfur-containing organic compounds in Gale crater sedimentary rocks, with chemical structures of up to six carbons. Here, we report the detection of decane (C10H22), undecane (C11H24), and dodecane (C12H26) at the tens of pmol level, released from the Cumberland drilled mudstone sample, using a modified SAM analytical procedure optimized for the detection of larger organic molecules. Laboratory experiments support the hypothesis that the alkanes detected were originally preserved in the mudstone as long-chain carboxylic acids. The origin of these molecules remains uncertain, as they could be derived from either abiotic or biological sources.
AB - Organic molecules preserved in ancient Martian rocks provide a critical record of the past habitability of Mars and could be chemical biosignatures. Experiments conducted by the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument onboard the Curiosity rover have previously reported several classes of indigenous chlorinated and sulfur-containing organic compounds in Gale crater sedimentary rocks, with chemical structures of up to six carbons. Here, we report the detection of decane (C10H22), undecane (C11H24), and dodecane (C12H26) at the tens of pmol level, released from the Cumberland drilled mudstone sample, using a modified SAM analytical procedure optimized for the detection of larger organic molecules. Laboratory experiments support the hypothesis that the alkanes detected were originally preserved in the mudstone as long-chain carboxylic acids. The origin of these molecules remains uncertain, as they could be derived from either abiotic or biological sources.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105002001683
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105002001683#tab=citedBy
U2 - 10.1073/pnas.2420580122
DO - 10.1073/pnas.2420580122
M3 - Article
C2 - 40127274
AN - SCOPUS:105002001683
SN - 0027-8424
VL - 122
JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
IS - 13
M1 - e2420580122
ER -