Soft Dino Tissues Recovered

Two big announcements this week from paleontologist Mary Schweitzer at North Carolina State regarding the recovery of soft tissues from dinosaur fossils.

First, she has recovered soft tissue from the interior of a fossilized Tyrannosaurus leg that appears to be a blood vessel. A 68 million year old blood vessel that is still elastic and resilient. Here is a picture. There is also tissue that may be red blood cells present.

Second she has recovered proteins from dinosaur eggs that are capable of generating a mammalian immune response indicative of a strong resemblence to modern birds.