Non-fossilized tyrannosaurus
2005/06/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria
We almost always find fossil remains of living beings millions of years ago. But occasionally there are also non-fossilized tissues. In 2003, in Montana, USA, they found a trace of this type: they found a skeleton of an unfossilized tyrannosaurus capable of extracting cells.
The process of fossilization of the bone had begun, but it was much slower than normal. Scientists were able to remove the mineralized parts with a weak acid, finding the dinosaur blood vessels and other soft tissues. These blood vessels found cellular structures from which proteins are expected to be extracted. They will also look for genetic material, but it degrades much faster than proteins, so scientists don't believe they can recover the animal's DNA.
However, simply obtaining soft tissue is very important in the research of dinosaurs. They are woven 68 million years ago and, although only comparable to today, it is a revolutionary discovery.
