Fibres and cellular structures preserved in 75-million-year-old dinosaur specimens.

ABSTRACT: Exceptionally preserved organic remains are known throughout the vertebrate fossil record, and recently, evidence has emerged that such soft tissue might contain original components. We examined samples from eight Cretaceous dinosaur bones using nano-analytical techniques; the bones are not exceptionally preserved and show no external indication of soft tissue. In one sample, we observe structures consistent with endogenous collagen fibre remains displaying ∼ 67 nm banding, indicating the possible preservation of the original quaternary structure. Using ToF-SIMS, we identify amino-acid fragments typical of collagen fibrils. Furthermore, we observe structures consistent with putative erythrocyte remains that exhibit mass spectra similar to emu whole blood. Using advanced material characteri

SUBMITTER: Bertazzo S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4468865 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature