Cells, Collagen Fibrils and Vessels in Dinosaur Bone

Pawlicki, R; Korbel, A.; Kubiak, Henryk

doi:10.1038/211655a0

Cited by 52 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 6 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Comparative studies of bone matrix in normal and osteoporotic bone Little et al (1962Little et al ( ) 1962 Kinetics of acid demineralization are described Gray (1962); Birkedal-Hansen (1974 Decalcification of chicken egg shell and isolation of glycosaminoglycans Baker and Balch (1962); Bronsch and Diamantstein (1965); Heaney and Robinson (1976); Nakano et al (2001Nakano et al ( ) 1963 Collagen and a cellulose-like substance in fossil dentine and bone Isaacs et al (1963); Shackleford and Wyckoff (1964); Wyckoff et al (1964); Ho (1966); Pawlicki et al (1966Pawlicki et al ( ) 1963 ''Principles of Bone Remodeling'' is published Enlow (1963Enlow ( ) 1963 ''Mechanism of Hard Tissue Destruction'' is published Soggnaes (1963Soggnaes ( ) 1963 ''Comparative Biology of Calcified Tissue'' is published Moss (1963Moss ( ) 1964 Macromolecular organization of dentine matrix collagen Schlueter (1964) 1964 Lipids in demineralized dentine, proteolipids, phospholipids and lipids in demineralized bone and kidney stone matrices Dirksen and Ikels (1964); Ennever et al (1977); Nefussi et al (1992); Khan et al (1996); Septier (2002) 1965 Intramuscular implantation of demineralized bone matrix elicits new bone formation, discovery of Bone Morphogenetic Protein Urist (1965); Urist and Nogami (1970); Urist et al (1979Urist et al ( ) 1965 Phenomenon of focal calciolysis in exhumed bones is described Thurner et al (1965Thurner et al ( ) 1966 ''Preparation of Decalcified Sections'' is published Brain (1966Brain ( ) 1966 ''Interactions in Electrolyte Solutions'' is ...…”

Section: Biominerals and Biomineralizationmentioning

confidence: 98%

Principles of demineralization: Modern strategies for the isolation of organic frameworks

Ehrlich

Koutsoukos

Demadis

et al. 2008

Micron

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Biominerals and Biomineralizationmentioning

confidence: 98%

Principles of demineralization: Modern strategies for the isolation of organic frameworks

Ehrlich

Koutsoukos

Demadis

et al. 2008

Micron

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…(iv) Osteocytes While Schweitzer et al (2005a,b) are not the first to report osteocytes preserved in dinosaur bone (Pawlicki et al 1966;Pawlicki 1995;Pawlicki & Nowogrodzka-Zagorska 1998), they were the first to demonstrate that these structures retained internal contents, original transparency and flexible, supple and, in some cases, extensive filipodia. We have been unable to postulate alternative hypotheses consistent with all the data regarding the source of these microstructures, and pending further analyses, consider these cell-like structures to be remains of original cells.…”

Section: (C) Moa Trabecular Bone (Mor Oft255) (D ) Mammoth (Mor 917mentioning

confidence: 99%

Soft tissue and cellular preservation in vertebrate skeletal elements from the Cretaceous to the present

2007

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Soft tissues and cell-like microstructures derived from skeletal elements of a well-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex (MOR 1125) were represented by four components in fragments of demineralized cortical and/or medullary bone: flexible and fibrous bone matrix; transparent, hollow and pliable blood vessels; intravascular material, including in some cases, structures morphologically reminiscent of vertebrate red blood cells; and osteocytes with intracellular contents and flexible filipodia. The present study attempts to trace the occurrence of these four components in bone from specimens spanning multiple geological time periods and varied depositional environments. At least three of the four components persist in some skeletal elements of specimens dating to the Campanian. Fibrous bone matrix is more altered over time in morphology and less likely to persist than vessels and/or osteocytes. Vessels vary greatly in preservation, even within the same specimen, with some regions retaining pliability and other regions almost crystalline. Osteocytes also vary, with some retaining long filipodia and transparency, while others present with short and stubby filipodia and deeply pigmented nuclei, or are pigmented throughout with no nucleus visible. Alternative hypotheses are considered to explain the origin/source of observed materials. Finally, a twopart mechanism, involving first cross-linking of molecular components and subsequent mineralization, is proposed to explain the surprising presence of still-soft elements in fossil bone. These results suggest that present models of fossilization processes may be incomplete and that soft tissue elements may be more commonly preserved, even in older specimens, than previously thought. Additionally, in many cases, osteocytes with defined nuclei are preserved, and may represent an important source for informative molecular data.

show abstract

“…[1] and references therein). Soft tissue structures retaining some aspects of original material, and thus not completely replaced replicas, have been described in Mesozoic fossil bone as early as the 1960s [2][3][4][5]. This 'exceptional preservation' has been observed for decades, but is not addressed by models of fossilization processes wherein an organism is buried and degraded, and spaces left by degrading organics are subsequently filled by precipitation of exogenous minerals.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A role for iron and oxygen chemistry in preserving soft tissues, cells and molecules from deep time

Schweitzer¹,

et al. 2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The persistence of original soft tissues in Mesozoic fossil bone is not explained by current chemical degradation models. We identified iron particles (goethite-aFeO(OH)) associated with soft tissues recovered from two Mesozoic dinosaurs, using transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, micro-X-ray diffraction and Fe micro-X-ray absorption nearedge structure. Iron chelators increased fossil tissue immunoreactivity to multiple antibodies dramatically, suggesting a role for iron in both preserving and masking proteins in fossil tissues. Haemoglobin (HB) increased tissue stability more than 200-fold, from approximately 3 days to more than two years at room temperature (258C) in an ostrich blood vessel model developed to test post-mortem 'tissue fixation' by cross-linking or peroxidation. HB-induced solution hypoxia coupled with iron chelation enhances preservation as follows: HB þ O 2 . HB 2 O 2 . 2O 2 þO 2 . The well-known O 2 /haeme interactions in the chemistry of life, such as respiration and bioenergetics, are complemented by O 2 /haeme interactions in the preservation of fossil soft tissues.

show abstract

Cells, Collagen Fibrils and Vessels in Dinosaur Bone

Cited by 52 publications

References 6 publications

Principles of demineralization: Modern strategies for the isolation of organic frameworks

Principles of demineralization: Modern strategies for the isolation of organic frameworks

Soft tissue and cellular preservation in vertebrate skeletal elements from the Cretaceous to the present

A role for iron and oxygen chemistry in preserving soft tissues, cells and molecules from deep time

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About