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arXiv · 2412.06550

DNA Fragments in Crude Oil Reveals Earth's Hidden History

Wan-Qian Zhao·Zhan-Yong Guo·Yu-Qi Guo·Mei-Jun Li·Gang-Qiang Cao·Zeng-Yuan Tian·Ran Chai·Li-You Qiu·Jin-Hua Zeng·Xin-Ge Zhang·Tian-Cang Qin·Jin-Yu Yang·Ming-Jie Chen·Mei-Rong Song·Fei Liang·Jun-Hui Geng·Chun-Yan Zhou·Shu-Jie Zhang·Li-Juan Zhao
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Abstract

This groundbreaking research extracted DNA from petroleum using nanoparticle affinity bead technology, yielding 3,159,020 petroleum DNA (pDNA) sequences, primarily environmental DNA. While most original in situ DNA (oriDNA) was lost, ancient DNA (aDNA) from petroleum offers an important source of ecological and evolutionary information, surpassing traditional fossils. This study reveals that oil, mainly sourced from algae and lower aquatic plants, now serves as a new type of fossil, providing detailed insights into Earth's hidden history, including unclassified species and ancient events, revolutionizing petroleum geology and paleontology.

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Wan-Qian Zhao, Zhan-Yong Guo, Yu-Qi Guo, Mei-Jun Li, Gang-Qiang Cao, Zeng-Yuan Tian, Ran Chai, Li-You Qiu, Jin-Hua Zeng, Xin-Ge Zhang, Tian-Cang Qin, Jin-Yu Yang, Ming-Jie Chen, Mei-Rong Song, Fei Liang, Jun-Hui Geng, Chun-Yan Zhou, Shu-Jie Zhang, Li-Juan Zhao. 2024-12-09. DNA Fragments in Crude Oil Reveals Earth's Hidden History. https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.06550

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