Uncovering Ancient Secrets: Dinosaurs Hold Clues to Cancer Discoveries

A groundbreaking study has discovered that dinosaurs may hold the key to new cancer discoveries. Researchers from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) and Imperial College London have used advanced paleoproteomic techniques to analyze dinosaur fossils, revealing previously unknown secrets about the evolution of diseases in ancient creatures.

The researchers analyzed a fossilized bone of a Telmatosaurus transsylvanicus, a duck-billed plant-eater that lived between 66-70 million years ago. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), they identified low-density structures resembling red blood cells in the fossilized bone. This finding raises the possibility that soft tissue and cellular components are more commonly preserved in ancient remains than previously thought.

By identifying preserved proteins and biomarkers, scientists believe they can gain insights into the diseases that affected prehistoric creatures, including cancer. This has significant implications for future treatments for humans. The authors of the study highlight the importance of prioritizing the collection and preservation of fossilized soft tissue, rather than just dinosaur skeletons, as future advancements in molecular techniques will enable deeper insights into disease evolution.

A previous study had already identified evidence of cancer in Telmatosaurus transsylvanicus, indicating its deep evolutionary roots. Senior author Justin Stebbing, Professor of Biomedical Sciences at Anglia Ruskin University, emphasized the significance of dinosaurs in understanding how species managed cancer susceptibility and resistance over millions of years.

“Dinosaurs, as long-lived, large-bodied organisms, present a compelling case for investigating how species managed cancer susceptibility and resistance over millions of years,” said Stebbing. “Proteins, particularly those found in calcified tissues like bone, are more stable than DNA and are less susceptible to degradation and contamination. This makes them ideal candidates for studying ancient diseases, including cancer, in paleontological specimens.”

The research invites further exploration that could hold the key to future discoveries that could benefit humans. However, it is crucial that long-term fossil conservation efforts are coordinated to ensure that future researchers have access to specimens suitable for cutting-edge molecular investigations.

The discovery of a nearly complete fossil of what looked like a lizard or salamander in Scotland in 1984 has turned out to be a significant find. The creature, called Westlothiana lizziae, is one of the earliest examples of a four-legged animal that had evolved from living underwater to dwelling on earth. It and other stem tetrapods like it are common ancestors of the amphibians, birds, reptiles, and mammals that exist today, including humans.

Despite its significance, researchers had never determined an accurate age of the fossil. However, thanks to new research out of The University of Texas at Austin, scientists now know that the Westlothiana lizziae, along with similar salamander-like creatures from the same spot in Scotland, are potentially 14 million years older than previously thought.

The new age – dating back to 346 million years ago – adds to the significance of the find because it places the specimens in a mysterious hole in the fossil record called Romer’s Gap. This time period, from 360 to 345 million years ago, is where water-dwelling fish took an evolutionary leap, growing lungs and four legs to become land animals.

The research, published recently in the journal PLOS One, was led by Hector Garza, who just graduated with his doctoral degree from the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. Garza used a geochemical technique called radiometric dating to determine the age of the fossils. This technique involves using zircon crystals to date rocks, but not all rock types are amenable to this type of analysis.

The site in Scotland where the fossils were discovered was near ancient volcanoes whose lava flows had long hardened into basalt rock, where zircons do not typically form. Fellow scientists warned Garza that chemically dating the rocks might be fruitless. However, he got lucky and was able to extract zircons from the rock surrounding six of the fossils.

Garza X-rayed 11 of the rock samples at the Jackson School and conducted uranium-lead laser dating on the zircons at the University of Houston to determine their oldest possible age. Before Garza’s gamble, scientists had figured the fossils were as old as similar fossils from around the world – about 331 million years old.

The more accurate, older maximum age of 346 million years is significant because it places the specimens in Romer’s Gap. This time period is crucial to understanding the timing of the emergence of vertebrates on land and why this transition occurs when it does.

“I can’t overstate the importance of the iconic East Kirkland tetrapods,” said Julia Clarke, professor at the Jackson School and co-author of this paper. “Better constraining the age of these fossils is key to understanding the timing of the emergence of vertebrates on to land. Timing in turn is key to assessing why this transition occurs when it does and what factors in the environment may be linked to this event.”

The site in Scotland where the fossils were found, the East Kirkton Quarry, is a veritable treasure trove of early tetrapod records. Seven stem tetrapod fossils, including the Westlothiana lizziae, have been found there. Hundreds of millions of years ago when these early four-legged creatures roamed, this site was a tropical forest with nearby active volcanoes, a toxic lake, and a diverse plant and animal community.

The National Museum of Scotland provided Garza with bits of rock that surrounded the fossils to use for the sampling. Other study co-authors are Associate Professor Elizabeth Catlos and Michael Brookfield, both of the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the Jackson School, and Thomas Lapen, professor and chair of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Houston.

The origin of life is one of humanity’s greatest mysteries. For centuries, scientists have sought to understand how the complex systems that govern our world emerged from the simple chemistry of the early Earth. A crucial step in this process is the replication of genetic material, which would have been carried by RNA (ribonucleic acid) molecules before DNA and proteins later took over.

Chemists at UCL and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have made a groundbreaking discovery that brings us closer to understanding how life began. They’ve successfully recreated the conditions under which RNA might have replicated itself on early Earth, a key process in the origin of life.

The researchers used three-letter “triplet” RNA building blocks in water and added acid and heat, which separated the double helix structure that normally prevents RNA strands from replicating. By neutralizing and freezing the solution, they created liquid gaps between the ice crystals where the triplet building blocks could coat the RNA strands and prevent them from zipping back together, allowing replication to occur.

By repeating this cycle of changes in pH and temperature, which could plausibly occur in nature, the researchers were able to replicate RNA over and over again. This process produced RNA strands long enough to have a biological function and play a role in the origin of life.

The study’s lead author, Dr James Attwater, emphasized that replication is fundamental to biology. “In one sense, it is why we are here,” he said. “But there’s no trace in biology of the first replicator.”

The researchers believe that early life was run by RNA molecules, and their findings provide a possible explanation for how this process could have occurred before life began several billion years ago.

While the study focuses solely on the chemistry, the conditions they created could plausibly mimic those in freshwater ponds or lakes, especially in geothermal environments where heat from inside the Earth has reached the surface. However, this replication of RNA could not occur in freezing and thawing saltwater, as the presence of salt interferes with the freezing process and prevents RNA building blocks from reaching the concentration required to replicate RNA strands.

The origin of life is likely to have emerged out of a combination of RNA, peptides, enzymes, and barrier-forming lipids that can protect these ingredients from their environment. The researchers are uncovering clues about how life began, and their findings bring us closer to understanding this fundamental mystery.
In recent years, teams led by Dr John Sutherland and Professor Matthew Powner have demonstrated how chemistry could create many of the key molecules of life’s origin, including nucleotides, amino acids and peptides, simple lipids and precursors to some of the vitamins, from simple molecular building blocks likely abundant on the early Earth.

The latest study was supported by the Medical Research Council (MRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), as well as the Royal Society and the Volkswagen Foundation.