Abiotic or bacterial degradation? Short Note

摘要

In this paper the authors describe and illustrate extensive cell wall degradation in old ash and oak wood buried in water-logged conditions for a long time. A typical feature was that the middle lamella appeared structurally intact, a feature that excludes pre-burial attack by white rot fungi. The authors concluded that the degraded "structures of the samples are consistent with abiotic rather than bacterial degradation". This conclusion was based on the fact that their light and electron microscopic analyses showed no evidence of bacterial decay. We are convinced that most of the extensive degradation described has been caused by bacteria.