Can boron isotopes be used as a palaeodietary proxy?

化石牙釉质的稳定同位素和微量元素生物地球化学为包括早期人类在内的已灭绝哺乳动物的饮食和行为生态学提供了许多见解，特别是碳同位素作为C4（萨凡纳）草的代表（Lee-Thorp et al.，2012年）。海洋微体化石中的硼同位素反映了海洋环境的pH值，但在陆地生态系统中的研究有限。硼是植物中必需的微量营养素（奥尼尔等人，2004），并被消化并掺入哺乳动物的组织中。硼同位素的测量可以从牙釉质获得（He等人，2015），其在结晶化期间抵抗改变。由于硼同位素的质量差异很大，在制备或食用食物时可能会发生硼同位素分馏。更广泛地了解硼在生态系统中的转移和同位素分馏，可以促进硼作为一种新的和信息丰富的饮食代理的发展，对我们理解灵长类动物和人类祖先的饮食习惯有影响。

The stable isotope and trace element biogeochemistry of fossil tooth enamel has provided many insights into the dietary and behavioural ecology of extinct mammals, including early hominins, especially carbon isotopes as a proxy for C4 (savannah) grasses (Lee-Thorp et al., 2012). Boron isotopes in marine microfossils reflect the pH of the ocean environment, but research in terrestrial ecosystems is limited. Boron is an essential micronutrient in plants (O'Neill et al., 2004), and is digested and incorporated into the tissues of mammals. Measurements of boron isotopes can be obtained from tooth enamel (He et al., 2015), which is resistant to alteration during fossilisation. Given the large mass difference in boron isotopes, boron isotope fractionation may occur during the preparation or consumption of food. A broader understanding of the transfer and isotopic fractionation of boron within an ecosystem could facilitate the development of boron as a new and informative dietary proxy, with implications for our understanding of the dietary habits of primate and human ancestors.