Scientists find 115-million-year-old fossilised red blood cells in dinosaur bone
Researchers led by Kliti Grice report discovering heme molecules and preserved blood cells in an Aratasaurus fossil from Brazil, challenging assumptions about molecular preservation in deep time.
What to know
- Curtin University researchers report discovering fossilised red blood cells and heme molecules in a 115-million-year-old Aratasaurus dinosaur bone from Brazil—potentially the oldest dinosaur blood cells ever found.
- A manganese compound called hausmannite preserved the cells by stabilising them in a low-oxygen, microbially rich burial environment, challenging the conventional assumption that all biological molecules degrade within a million years.
- Paleontologist Mary Schweitzer questions the red blood cell identification based on morphological differences, though acknowledges the chemical evidence of heme and collagen amino acids as significant.
- The discovery could enable molecular-level investigation of dinosaur metabolism, activity levels, and blood evolution if the findings withstand scrutiny.
The dispute Whether the observed structures are genuinely fossilised red blood cells versus other biological structures that happen to contain heme and collagen amino acids. · positions read across 12 posts and comments
This is a genuine breakthrough that rewrites our understanding of molecular preservation and opens new avenues for studying extinct animals.
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“Fossilised red blood cells with distinct chemistry related to heme have never been found in situ in any fossil, let alone a dinosaur. This is a world first.”
Prof Kliti Grice · The Guardian ↗
The structures may not be red blood cells based on their morphology, though the chemical evidence of heme and collagen amino acids is noteworthy and deserves investigation.
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“One reason for her doubt is that the dinosaur's red blood cells should have a 'nuclear bulge' making them appear dome-like on both sides. The structures Grice found are concave, suggesting they might be something else.”
Prof Mary Schweitzer · The Guardian ↗
“There's drawers and drawers of fossil material, which don't look very nice. This kind of work opens up a whole new opportunity to unlock those collections and bring modern technology and molecular techniques to these specimens.”
Prof Kliti Grice, Lead researcher, Curtin University · New Scientist ↗ · Nov 1
Prof Kliti Grice Lead researcher, Curtin UniversityProf Mary Schweitzer Paleontologist, North Carolina State UniversityAratasaurus museunacionali 115-million-year-old theropod dinosaurCurtin University research team International research collaboration
How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts
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Mary Schweitzer expresses doubts about red blood cell identification
Prof Mary Schweitzer at North Carolina State University, who has discovered remnants of blood vessels and soft tissues in dinosaur fossils, questioned whether the structures are actually red blood cells. She noted that dinosaur red blood cells should have a 'nuclear bulge' making them dome-like on both sides, whereas the discovered structures are concave.
“The conventional wisdom in palaeontology that all endogenous organics would disappear in a million years or less is being r…”
— Prof Mary Schweitzer -
first by SuaraGarut.ID, 5d ago · also New Scientist, Live Science, ThePrint, The Brighter Side of News, Open Access Government, Scientific Frontline +7
12 more headlines
- Dinosaur red blood cells recovered from 115-million-year-old fossil New Scientist · 5d ago
- Traces of ancient blood found in 115 million-year-old dinosaur fossil, new study claims Live Science · 5d ago
- Not just bones and fossils. Scientists find 115-million-year-old dinosaur blood ThePrint · 5d ago
- Scientists find first-ever evidence of fossilized blood cells in 115-million-year-old dinosaur bones The Brighter Side of News · 5d ago
- Curtin University study discovers 115-million-year-old dinosaur red blood cells and heme biomolecules Open Access Government · 5d ago
- 115-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Hemoglobin Verified Scientific Frontline · 5d ago
- Dinosaur Blood Cells Detected in 115-Million-Year-Old Fossil Yahoo · 5d ago
- 115-million-year-old dinosaur fossil uncovers oldest confirmed evidence of blood Xinhua · 4d ago
- Scientists Say They've Found Preserved Dinosaur Blood in a 115-Million-Year-Old Fossil, but Not Everyone Is Convinced Smithsonian · 4d ago
- A 115-million-year-old dinosaur from Brazil still held traces of its blood inside its bones, a new study claims Futura, le média qui explore le monde · 2d ago
- Scientists just found dinosaur blood that survived 115 million years Science Daily · 2d ago
- “Astonishing” Find: Fossilized Dinosaur Blood in a 115-Million-Year-Old Specimen Nautilus · 1d ago
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first by Channel 3000, 5d ago · also BBC Wildlife Magazine, IFLScience, CTV News, 104.1 WIKY, Channel News Asia, Reuters +6
10 more headlines
- Scientists find red blood cells in dinosaur bone in "landmark discovery" BBC Wildlife Magazine · 5d ago
- First Confirmed Evidence Of Fossilized Red Blood Cells In Dinosaur Bones Is A Gamechanger In What Fossils Can Reveal About Ancient Life IFLScience · 5d ago
- Scientists say they’ve found the strongest evidence yet of red blood cells in a dinosaur bone CTV News · 5d ago
- Researchers say they’ve found the strongest evidence yet of red blood cells in a dinosaur bone Mezha.net · 5d ago
- Evidence of red blood cells seen in dinosaur fossil from Brazil 104.1 WIKY · 5d ago
- Scientists Find Dinosaur Blood and Cells For First Time in Fossil Nerdist · 4d ago
- Scientists examining dinosaur fossils report evidence of preserved red blood cells and collagen amino aci The Times of India · 2d ago
- Scientists find signs of red blood cells and collagen in dinosaur fossils Times of India · 2d ago
- This may be the best evidence yet that dinosaur blood can fossilize Science News · 2d ago
- Did These Scientists Find Evidence of Blood in a Dinosaur Bone? The New York Times · 8h ago
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Dinosaur blood? Could Jurassic Park finally happen? Well, no. So what happened was researchers were looking at the hind leg bones of Aratasaurus, a small theropod that lived in the Early Cretaceous of what is now Brazil. And they believe they found the structures of red blood cells. 👇👇
2 more of the top 3 · 12 posts in this stretch
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Researchers have found # fossilized # dinosaurblood by using multiple analytical methods, other researchers viewthis with skepticism. In a 115-million-year-old # fossil of the species # Aratasaurus # museunacionali , K. Grice et al. (2026) identified # redbloodcells with # heme molecules by employing mineralogy, spectroscopy, and #…
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To be fair, Dennis Nedry bid on a large-scale automation and telemetry project under competitive and secretive conditions and somewhat underestimated the scope … especially considering his previous experience as a postal worker. Hammond claimed to spare no expense but the launch timeline was, like some of the stake-holders, aggressive. Next time…
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Study explains preservation mechanism via hausmannite mineralisation
The research team identified that a manganese compound called hausmannite, which formed around the blood cells, may have stabilised them and preserved collagen amino acids prior to fossilisation. The exceptional preservation likely resulted from the dinosaur being rapidly buried in a low-oxygen, microbially rich environment.
“To detect intact heme derived molecules in 115-million-year-old red blood cells is astonishing: this really is a landmark discovery.”
— Prof Kliti Grice -
background
Curtin University team reports discovering fossilised red blood cells and heme in dinosaur bone — Researchers led by Prof Kliti Grice announced they identified small, round structures resembling red blood cells in the hind leg bone of the Aratasaurus, along with chemical evidence of heme and collagen amino acids. Electron microscope images revealed the structures in fine channels where blood vessels once ran.
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background
Aratasaurus fossil discovered in Brazilian mine — The fossilised remains of a small, meat-eating theropod dinosaur called Aratasaurus museunacionali were discovered in a mine in northeastern Brazil and subsequently held in the National Museum of Brazil for study.
Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet
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first by The Conversation, 5d ago · also Canberra CityNews
1 more headline
- Aussie researchers lead world-first dinosaur blood find Canberra CityNews · 5d ago
and 4 smaller pieces
What people are saying 8 voices from 2 sites · best of 12 · verbatim
- Nov 4
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I predict after Palmer Luckey's genetically modified guard dog venture fails, this will become his next wildly "profitable" next past-time. Dinosaur Blood y'all! Palmer Luckey's gonna make his own Jurassic Park! https://www. popsci.com/science/first-dinos aur-blood-fossil-discovery/
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https://www. theguardian.com/science/2026/n ov/02/fossilised-red-blood-cells-aratasaurus-dinosaurs-bone?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other
- Nov 3
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'After carefully examining thin slices of the fossils, paleontologists located the mineralized red blood cell molecular components, along with a complex manganese oxide called hausmannite.' Dinosaur blood found in fossils for the first time https://www. popsci.com/science/first-dinos aur-blood-fossil-discovery/?utm_source=DamnInteresting
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The universe didn’t come from nothing, most physicists say it always existed in some form. What even is “nothing”? It’s a nonsensical idea.
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Unfortunately a lot of Young Earth Creationists Christians still use the soft tissue “discovery” as evidence but twist the findings around.
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I think it was only last year that I fully realized that the dinosaur bones we're used to seeing and imagining aren't the actual petrified bones. Rock sediments literally seeped in and replaced the bones. The skeletal fossils that we see are literally just rocks in the shape of the bones there replacing.
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"A 115-million-year-old fossil dinosaur bone encased in a dense mat of microbes found in Brazil contains tiny structures resembling red blood cells, and molecular traces of blood." https:// theconversation.com/traces-of- dinosaur-blood-found-in-world-first-discovery-286450 # Fossils # Dinosaurs # Blood # Molecules
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Researchers have discovered intact heme biomolecules and mineralized red blood cells within the limb bones of a 115-million-year-old theropod dinosaur, Aratasaurus museunacionali. This finding provides the oldest verified and chemically proven evidence of blood-derived molecules preserved in the fossil record. # Paleontology # Geochemistry #…