Posted on 06/09/2015 12:22:24 PM PDT by ETL
Dinosaur fossils, it was long thought, are simple objects. The fossilization process leaves the overall shape of a dinosaur's bones intact, but all the microscopic structures inside them — the blood cells, connective fibers, and other sorts of soft tissue — inevitably decay over time.
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The photo above, from a new study published today in Nature Communications and led by Sergio Bertazzo of Imperial College London, shows an extremely zoomed-in view of a 75-million-year-old theropod claw, taken from the London Natural History Museum's collection. When researchers scraped tiny pieces off the fossil and looked at them under an electron microscope, they found tiny structures that look a lot like collagen fibers present in our own ligaments, tendons, and bones.
In other dinosaur fossils, the researchers found features that resemble red blood cells. Tests showed that they have a similar chemical composition to the blood of an emu (a bird thought to be a relatively close relative to dinosaurs).
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The idea that dinosaur fossils might harbor soft tissue first surfaced about a decade ago, when paleontologist Mary Schweitzer found evidence of blood cells preserved inside T. rex fossils.
But what's so exciting about this new study is that the fossils used, unlike Schweitzer's, aren't particularly well-preserved. Susannah Maidment, one of the paleontologists who worked on the paper, called them "crap" specimens. If they have preserved soft tissue inside them, it could be a sign that thousands of other fossils in museum collections do too.
I’ve often wondered that myself. Nobody has ever seen a dragon, but every culture has them, even the Aztecs.....................
I seriously hope someone stores some well preserved cells from Ann Margret, Raquel Welch, Sophia Lauren, among others.
When the technology is advanced enough, I am ordering me a dozen!
Are those her natural teeth?
Is that picture of the proud paleontologist who found the specimen? She looks very professorial.
Just in time to cash in with the new Jurassic movie.
Paleontology lectures could have been SOOO much more interesting!
A number of these soft tissue finds have been carbon-dated to 20,000 to 40,000 years old.
In fact, Mary Schweitzer, who was referenced in the article, carbon-dated some. But she claimed said she couldn’t recall how old they were.
I mean, worst case scenario. Suppose the experiment goes awry, and the clones escape and run amuck. Would you rather it was a group of T-rex’s or a group of Ann-Margrets?
Thanks ETL.from the FRchives:
“The photo above, from a new study published today in Nature Communications and led by Sergio Bertazzo of Imperial College London, shows an extremely zoomed-in view of a 75-million-year-old theropod claw, “
No. That is the Emu blood.
by Adrienne Mayor
foreword by Peter Dodson
My operating theory is that over the Millennia, all these different cultures have come across dinosaur bones.
When people find a dinosaur skeleton, they recognize instantly that such an animal must have existed at one time, and for all they know, could still exist somewhere.
Once the rumor is spread, it will take on a life of it's own.
Sounds like a great idea; then have a large jungle park where people can see them in their natural habitat and all.
...or the people who wrote those stories found fossil bones.
It’s always refreshing to hear the views of an eminent molecular paleontologist like yourself. Given your expertise, how do you respond to the explanations of Mary Schweitzer as to the chemical and molecular processes that allow for the preservation of certain proteins in collagen for over 145 million years? Do you think her analysis which claims that the presence of iron and the generation of free radicals that have the ability to tightly bond proteins is faulty? If so, why?
Tattoos and a skanky tooth.
My kinda girl!
Source?
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