Branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol dialkyl (brGDGT) distributions in Lake Baikal sediments

An 8.6-million-year record of branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol dialkyl (brGDGT) distributions from Lake Baikal, Russia. BrGDGTs are membrane spanning lipids produced by bacteria in numerous growth media. The methylation patterns of brGDGTs are empirically related to changes in environmental temperature, making brGDGTs a useful proxy for temperature changes in the geologic record. The data archived here document shifts in brGDGT distributions (methylation, cyclization, and isomerization) that form the basis of the Lake Baikal brGDGT temperature record.