Palaeontology

Dinosaur DNA could help to cure diseases

By T.K. Randall
July 8, 2014 ·  24 comments

Dinosaurs were extremely tough and resilient to injury. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0 David Monniaux Dinosaurs could be the key to treating many modern day ailments in humans according to a new study conducted by researchers at Manchester University.

Professor Phil Manning and his team examined the fossil remains of a gorgosaurus, a 26ft tall predatory dinosaur that lived 72 million years ago and that was believed to have been an ancestor of Tyrannosaurus rex.The specimen appeared to have suffered a number of significant injuries including a compound fracture on its right leg, a broken and infected bone on its left leg and a broken tail.

Despite the severity of its wounds however the dinosaur seemed to have survived for several months and each of the breaks showed clear signs of healing.

The findings suggest that studying a dinosaur's DNA and antibodies could provide significant medical breakthroughs pertaining to everything from treating infections to curing cancer.

Source: IB Times | Comments (24)

Tags: Dinosaur