Isotopic Paleodiet Studies

Ambrose and Norr (1993) and Tieszen and Fagre (1993) have shown that 5 C of carbonate in bone apatite (6 C,p) is the most accurate measure of the whole-diet composition (Ambrose and Norr 1993 28). The actual 5 C of total diet is related to that of apatite by an isotopic offset (fractionation) which Ambrose and Norr estimate to be 9.5 0.6%o. Other estimates range from 9.6 0.1%o for small mammals on controlled diets (DeNiro and Epstein 1978) to 12%o for large herbivores on natural diets (Lee-Thorp et al., 1989). The origin of this offset is of some concern to us here. We can only use 5 Cap as a measure of total diet if we know A,p.j,e, and also know that this fractionation is a constant, at least for a given species, and does not itself depend on the quality of the diet. 

Several authors, beginning with Kmeger and Sullivan (1984), have noted a smaller 8 C fractionation between collagen and apatite (A,p.co) in carnivores as compared to herbivores. These authors presented a model to accoimt for this, and the observation was confirmed in studies by Lee-Thorp and van der Merwe (1991) of populations of carnivores and herbivores that differed widely in their intake of C3- and C4-based foods. Here 1 shall show how this effect might be accounted for as a consequence of partial blocking of AA synthesis from lipids. 

Most accounts of the larger A,p.,.o in carnivores have attributed this effect to higher proportion of lipids in the diet of carnivores. This arises because carnivores obtain all or most of their nutrition from the flesh of other animals, a significant part of which is composed of lipid. By contrast, lipids make up a much smaller fraction of the total carbon pool in the diet of herbivores, particularly mminants which get much of their energy from digestion of cellulose. Humans who selectively use seeds and grains as food sources obtain a 

We can now appreciate that this explanation is incorrect, because the energy food for an animal is all of its diet and not just carbohydrates and lipids. Therefore we should not expect any selective offset due to the presence of lipids in the flesh of herbivores. Indeed, in general, the average 5 Cof total consumable herbivore tissues (flesh, lipids, etc.) is very close to that of the diet, and we might not expect any difference in the isotopic composition of the collagen or carbonate of a consumer of pure Cj plants as opposed to a consumer of the flesh of Cs-eating herbivores. We must seek elsewhere for the cause of the trophic level effect on A,p.co- 

Finally, if we set rr 1.00 (Fig. 10.2c), the pool of neAAs available to produce collagen excludes some part of the complement of C atoms derived from lipid. Since these are isotopically lighter, the result is that the AA pool is made somewhat heavier. The fraction of eAAs used to make collagen and their 

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Schwarcz, H.P. 1991 Some theoretical aspects of isotope paleodiet studies. Journal of Archaeological Science 18 261-275. 

Some Biochemical Aspects of Carbon Isotopic Paleodiet Studies... 

BIOCHEMICAL ASPECTS OF CARBON ISOTOPIC PALEODIET STUDIES... 

Schwarcz, H.P. (2000). Some biochemical aspects of carbon isotopic paleodiet studies. In Biogeochemical Approaches to Paleodietary Analysis (S.H. Ambrose, M.A. Katzenberg, Eds.), Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers New York, pp. 189-209. (http //dx.doi.org/10.1007/0-306-47194-9 10)... 

Paleodiet studies have focused on the analysis of collagen, due to its ability to survive in ancient bone. Like all proteins, collagen is composed of amino acid (AA) units present in relatively constant proportions characteristic of the specific protein. The isotopic composition of a sample of collagen is the weighted average of the 5 C values of each of the constituent amino acids. 

Harrison, R.G., and M.A. Katzenberg. 2003. Paleodiet studies using stable carbon isotopes from bone apatite and collagen examples from southern Ontario and San Nicolas Island, Cahfornia. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 22 227-244. 

We proposed to study diet and health by combining bone chemistry and histomorphometry. Diet would be determined by analysis of stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen in bone protein and some preserved hair. In addition, trace elements would be quantitatively analyzed in preserved bone mineral. Abonyi (1993) participated in the study by reconstructing the diet from historical sources and analyzing various foods. Having analyzed human tissues for stable isotopes and trace elements, and foods for the same variables, we hoped to learn more about 19th century diet in southern Ontario, and at the same time, learn more about paleodiet reconstruction. 

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