An international research group examined the fossilized remains of the meat-eating dinosaur *Aratasaurus museunacionali* to locate preserved red blood cells. The organic materials survived over geological time because rapid burial in a low-oxygen, microbial environment created a protective capsule stabilized by the mineral hausmannite. Published in the *Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences*, the findings prove that biological molecules can endure significantly longer than previously believed. This opens new opportunities to study ancient animal physiology and refine the search for traces of life on other planets.
Key points
The research overturns longstanding scientific beliefs regarding the endurance limits of…: The research overturns longstanding scientific beliefs regarding the endurance limits of delicate biological molecules over millions of years.
Natural preservation conditions involving rapid burial and low-oxygen sediments can prote…: Natural preservation conditions involving rapid burial and low-oxygen sediments can protect microscopic organic evidence from typical decay processes.
The molecular survival mechanisms identified in the fossils may assist scientists searchi…: The molecular survival mechanisms identified in the fossils may assist scientists searching for ancient biological signatures beyond Earth.
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- Date:
- November 6, 2026
- Source:
- Curtin University
- Summary:
- Scientists have discovered chemically confirmed traces of ancient blood inside 115-million-year-old dinosaur bones, challenging assumptions about how long biological molecules can survive. The extraordinary preservation could unlock new clues about dinosaur physiology and even help scientists search for ancient life elsewhere in the universe.
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Scientists have discovered remarkably preserved traces of dinosaur blood inside 115-million-year-old bones, revealing that delicate biological molecules can survive far longer than previously believed. The breakthrough could transform how researchers study prehistoric animals and even influence the search for ancient life beyond Earth.
An international team led by Curtin University found fossilized red blood cells and chemical evidence of blood molecules in the remains of Aratasaurus museunacionali, a meat-eating theropod dinosaur discovered in northeastern Brazil. The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also include amino acids associated with collagen, an important structural protein found in bones and other connective tissues.
The discovery provides the first definitive chemical confirmation of molecules derived from hemoglobin inside fossilized…
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