Isoarborinol (original) (raw)
Isoarborinol is a triterpenoid ubiquitously produced by angiosperms and is thus considered a biomarker for higher plants. Though no isoarborinol-producing microbe has been identified, isoarborinol is also considered a possible biomarker for marine bacteria, as its diagenetic end product, arborane, has been found in ancient marine sediments that predate the rise of plants. Importantly, isoarborinol may represent the phylogenetic link between hopanols and sterols.