The Torund man is c. At the age of 30-40, he died of hanging c. 405-380 BC. He is
Discovered in a swamp in 1950. 10 kilometers west of Fort Silk. The Torundian head is preserved
But his body was dry. Now show the body’s entertainment.
Peat swamps are mainly composed of mosses called mudstones, which are special environments that play a key role in regulating the Earth’s climate by storing large amounts of carbon. These swamps are also known for preserving ancient human remains (called swamp bodies) because of their cold, acidic and slum conditions. In these ecosystems, however, scientists have long been confused by two strange patterns: the amount of carbon dioxide is unusually high compared to the release of methane, and the decomposition of dead plant materials is very slow. Interestingly, these two confusing functions actually help reduce climate change by capturing carbon or reducing the release of more efficient greenhouse gases. It is important to solve these mysteries, as peatlands will contain nearly one-third of the carbon found in Earth’s soil the same as the total carbon present in the current atmosphere.
Including Alexandra B. Cory, Rachel M. Wilson, M. Elizabeth Holmes, William J. Riley, Yueh-Fen Li, Malak M. Their findings, published in the Revered Scientific Report, show that a chemical process called the Maillard reaction, a non-survival chemical interaction between sugar and protein, most notably creating brown, tasty shells on toast and barbecue (such as barbecue) can help both puzzles. This reaction usually occurs when certain sugars and proteins interact, unlike the enzyme-driven browning process that relies on microorganisms, this particular reaction can occur without any involvement of the organism.
Their results show that natural chemical reactions in peat, without involving organisms, can produce large amounts of carbon dioxide. To test this, the scientists conducted experiments using a mixture of natural peat and a laboratory-made one. Even peat that has been sterilized (with all biological microorganisms removed) can release carbon dioxide, indicating that this gas can be produced by chemical reactions alone. These reactions also produce complex nitrogen compounds, which may make it harder for microorganisms to obtain the required nitrogen. Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for microbial dependence for decomposition and reduces competition in the swamp with pasta moss as it adapts to a low nitrogen environment. ”
With less nitrogen availability, fewer microorganisms in peat become, slowing down the speed at which they can break down plant material. Meanwhile, chemical reactions increase the amount of carbon dioxide released without producing similar methane, contrary to the usual models, which expect both gases to be released the same. This non-coupling or separation from microbial processes has given scientists a new way to think about how these environments work.
“The non-biological Maillard reaction is driven by a compound similar to phytoacid peat moss, a natural sugar acid found in the cell walls of plants, which significantly affects the carbon cycle in peat bogs,” said Dr. Cory, the lead investigator of the study. “These reactions not only produce carbon dioxide on their own, but also capture nitrogen in a form that microorganisms cannot use, thus slowing down the decomposition.”
Researchers have confirmed that galactolic acid found in large quantities in peat moss can react with common proteins even at low temperatures found in swamps. These reactions are seen in both laboratory-made mixtures and natural peat samples, and the chemical evidence is consistent with the steps known to earlier studies of Maillard reactions.
Looking at the broader impact, Professor Chanton added: “This abiotic process changes our perception of carbon in peatlands. Most climate models (used by scientists to simulate and predict future climate behavior) only mass microbial activity.
Including these insights in global climate models is especially important because Maillard’s response tends to accelerate as temperatures rise. As the planet continues to warm, these reactions may cause more carbon to be released from the peat swamp. This study challenges long-term beliefs about how carbon behaves in wetlands and encourages further research on chemistry (not only biology) shaping these ecosystems.
Journal Reference
Cory AB, Wilson RM, Holmes ME, Riley WJ, Li YF, Tfaily MM, Bagby SC, Crill PM, Ernakovich JG, Rich VI, Chanton JP “A climate-important abiotic mechanism driving carbon loss and nitrogen limits in peat bogs.” Scientific Reports, 2025; 15:2560. doi:
Image source
Original image of the Silkeborg Museum. Uploaded by Ibolya Horváth and published on June 12, 2024.
About the Author
Alexandra Cory In 2022, she received her PhD from Florida State University, where she studied biogeochemical mechanisms that allow peat swamps to act as climate mitigators, which are emitted by specially retaining organic carbon and methane smaller than other wetland systems. Her research spans a variety of systems, including geological strata, hot springs, peatlands and oceans. Among everyone, her central focus is on the carbon cycle – tracking the flow and storage that shapes the future of Earth’s climate. She currently serves as a data scientist at USDA through the Cadmus Group, where she is helping develop an application to support metadata-coherent, accessible geospatial assets into the entry. Outside her technical work, Cory is also a songwriter. Her music explores the themes of climate, humanity and bicycles (at this time she wrote three songs). One of her favorite lyrics – in a conversation with her graduate school consultant Jeff Chanton, her scientific worldview: “Trees are like icebergs/they sit in a mirror,/reflect the secrets under the veneer.”
Jeff Canton In 1985, he received his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina, where he worked in the nearshore area. He and his consultant Chris Martens were greatly influenced by the speech by legendary Ralph Cicerone, who focused on the rapid increase in atmospheric methane, a powerful greenhouse gas in the atmosphere that scientists just realized. Shanton then began methane transport and production from wetlands, peatlands, landfills and other environments. As a scientist, he realized our climate change and its causes, and he observed the effects of climate change along the coastline and first-hand. Chanton is Professor Lawton at FSU and has published more than 300 papers in the literature being directed. He is fortunate to benefit from outstanding students, collaborators and science colleagues.
Rachel Wilson He is a biogeochemist whose research focuses on methane production in the natural environment of peatlands in northern Sweden, to deep-sea methane leakage in the Gulf of Mexico. She has a Ph.D. A PhD in Chemistry Oceanography from Florida State University and was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship to the National Research Council in 2010 to study the stability constraints of methane gas hydrates, a potentially large marine methane reservoir. She is currently a research assistant at Florida State University, where she co-led a number of research projects, including the project, to explore how climate change affects methane production in peatland ecosystems. Outside the lab, she reduces carbon emissions through sustainable agriculture on her small farm, which integrates plant practices with a small group of dairy goats to reduce the carbon footprint of food production.
Beth Holmes When she studied coral and estuary systems in the Bill Sackett lab at the University of South Florida, stable isotopes were used to understand biogeochemical processes. She received her PhD in 1996, the University of Bremen, Germany used carbon and nitrogen isotopes from deep-sea sediments to reconstruct past nutrient utilization in water columns. Recently, Beth’s research has focused on methane and carbon dioxide production pathways in wetlands in Everglades, Panama and Subarctic Sweden. Her work contributes to an increasing body of knowledge aimed at better predicting how climate change changes natural greenhouse gas dynamics.
