The half-life of DNA has been determined

Ancient geneticists used the extinct Moa bird bone to calculate half the life of the DNA.

Researchers believe that dinosaur DNA samples have survived so far, but no one knows exactly when the genetic material will begin to be destroyed. Now research on the collected fossil record in New Zealand is opening hope for the possibility of cloning a carnivorous dinosaur (Tyrannosaurus rex).

After the death of the cell, the enzyme begins to break down the bonds between the nucleotides (these nucleotides form DNA circuits) and microorganisms increase the rate of decay.

For a long time, the reaction with water is thought to be the most destructive factor. With groundwater very common in the rock layers, the DNA in the buried bones will, in theory, be broken down to a certain extent.

However, determining the decay rate is a difficult task because it is very rare to find a large number of DNA-containing fossils for comparison. Moreover, environmental factors such as temperature, microbial activity and oxidation also change the speed of decay.

Ancient paleontologists conducted a study of 158 DNA-containing bones of the aforementioned Moa bird. These bones date to about 600-8000 years and have been found at locations within about 5km of each other and in almost buried conditions, both at 13.1 degrees Celsius. published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B1.

By comparing the age of the specimen and the degradation status of DNA, the researchers calculated the half-life of DNA to be 521 years.

Researchers predict that even in a fossil skeleton at an ideal temperature of -50 ^° C DNA is also destroyed for the longest at 6.8 million years, while dinosaur bones are at least is 65 million years.

This confirms the claims of finding dinosaur DNA and amber fossils containing insects.

The oldest DNA sequence has been identified for about half a million years.