Koehler Geoff, Hobson Keith A
NHRC Stable Isotope Laboratory, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 11 Innovation Blvd, Saskatoon, SK, Canada S7N 3H5.
NHRC Stable Isotope Laboratory, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 11 Innovation Blvd, Saskatoon, SK, Canada S7N 3H5; Department of Biological Sciences, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, United Kingdom.
Forensic Sci Int. 2018 Nov;292:78-82. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2018.08.020. Epub 2018 Sep 24.
We investigated the effect of tanning on the stable isotopic compositions (CNHOS) of hair keratin. Samples of hair from polar bear (Ursus maritimus) hides were collected before and after the tanning process from a commercial tannery. With the exception of sulphur isotopes, tanning did not alter the stable isotopic compositions of hair. δS values were slightly more positive (1 per mil) in hair that had gone through the tanning process, likely as a result of the tanning agent, alum (Al(SO)) or exposure to sulphuric acid (HSO). This indicates that, with the exception of sulphur isotopes, hair keratin is resistant to subsequent isotopic alteration by the techniques used in tanning of animal hides and thus the original stable isotopic information is likely to be preserved in archived samples, such as taxidermic mounts and museum specimens. This is an important consideration when dealing with ecological and forensic applications to wildlife, such as evaluating provenance or migratory reconstructions, and so will assist in conservation efforts and investigations of trafficking and poaching.
我们研究了鞣制对毛发角蛋白稳定同位素组成（碳、氮、氢、氧、硫）的影响。从一家商业制革厂收集了北极熊（Ursus maritimus）兽皮鞣制前后的毛发样本。除硫同位素外，鞣制并未改变毛发的稳定同位素组成。经过鞣制过程的毛发中δS值略高（高出1‰），这可能是鞣制剂明矾（Al(SO)）或接触硫酸（HSO）的结果。这表明，除硫同位素外，毛发角蛋白对动物皮鞣制所用技术引起的后续同位素变化具有抗性，因此原始稳定同位素信息很可能保存在存档样本中，如标本剥制的标本和博物馆标本。在处理野生动物的生态和法医应用时，如评估来源或迁徙重建，这是一个重要的考虑因素，因此将有助于保护工作以及对非法交易和偷猎的调查。
