Latest news with #BasKorsten
Indianapolis Star
10-05-2025
- Science
- Indianapolis Star
Scientists are growing T. rex leather in a lab. It could be used to make purses.
The next time you go shopping for a new purse, your choices could go beyond traditional materials such as leather, nylon, cotton and polyester to include … Tyrannosaurus rex skin? Yes, the remnants of the prehistoric predator are being used to create synthetic T. rex leather, which can be turned into accessories including purses. That's the plan for a trio of companies – The Organoid Company, Lab-Grown Leather Ltd., and VML – working on "a high-quality alternative to traditional leather that's cruelty-free and eco-friendly," said the collaborators in an April 25 news release. The goal of a "luxury fashion item," hitting later this year, would be the first example of leather developed from an extinct species, the companies said. "With T-Rex leather we're harnessing the biology of the past to create the luxury materials of the future," said Bas Korsten, global chief creative officer, Innovation & CCO EMEA at VML, the agency behind the 2024 Super Bowl "Mayo Cat" campaign and 2023's Mammoth Meatball, made of lab-grown meat. Cosmos 482: Here's when the Soviet-era spacecraft may return to Earth The team at The Organoid Company, a Netherlands-based biotech, will use fragments of T-Rex collagen protein recovered from fossils to recreate the prehistoric protein and engineer the new DNA into specialized cells for leather production. Another biotech company, the U.K.-based Lab-Grown Leather Ltd., will then use those specialized cells to produce skin, made with the T-Rex collagen protein, which is then tanned to form T-Rex leather. "This project is a remarkable example of how we can harness cutting-edge genome and protein engineering to create entirely new materials," said The Organoid Company CEO Thomas Mitchell. T. Rex leather could serve as a more environmentally friendly option to traditional leather and also eliminate "animal cruelty concerns," the companies said. But some detractors consider the project misleading. University of Maryland vertebrate paleontologist Thomas Holtz, Jr. pointed out to Live Science, a science news site, how the lab-created skin won't be authentic because there's no actual T. rex skin or DNA to serve as a basis. "What this company is doing seems to be fantasy," he said. Calling the announcement a "gimmick," Tom Ellis, professor of synthetic genome engineering at Imperial College London, told NBC News, 'I doubt that our knowledge of dinosaur evolution is good enough to be able to design a collagen gene specifically from T. rex." But researchers have found collagen in an 80-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex fossil and that can be used as a template, they say. The Organoid Company is creating a T-Rex protein by using fragments of the T-Rex collagen protein from fossils, the companies said in a statement to USA TODAY. "An important distinction is that (the companies) are starting with the language of proteins, amino acids, rather than the DNA itself," according to the statement. "This encodes what the 3D structure looks like and from this they can then recreate or 'molecularly resurrect' the DNA which is put into special cell lines for leather production." The result of this reconstruction of ancient protein sequences is T. Rex leather, which is structurally identical to T. rex skin. "A biomaterial inspired by prehistoric biology," Mitchell said. Eventually, T. rex leather could be used beyond handbags and clutches to cover chairs and vehicle seats. "The production of T-Rex leather demonstrates VML's commitment to pioneering new grounds and shaping the future of our industry," Korsten said. Mike Snider is a reporter on USA TODAY's Trending team. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @ & @mikesnider & msnider@
USA Today
10-05-2025
- Science
- USA Today
Scientists are growing T. rex leather in a lab. It could be used to make purses.
Scientists are growing T. rex leather in a lab. It could be used to make purses. Scientists say they want to create design durable and sustainable high-end accessories made with artificial dinosaur leather. They got the genetic building blocks from Tyrannosaurus rex fossils. Show Caption Hide Caption Fossilized dinosaur footprints found on boulder An Australian researcher discovered dozens of three-toed dinosaur footprints on a boulder in Callide Basin. The next time you go shopping for a new purse, your choices could go beyond traditional materials such as leather, nylon, cotton and polyester to include … Tyrannosaurus rex skin? Yes, the remnants of the prehistoric predator are being used to create synthetic T. rex leather, which can be turned into accessories including purses. That's the plan for a trio of companies – The Organoid Company, Lab-Grown Leather Ltd., and VML – working on "a high-quality alternative to traditional leather that's cruelty-free and eco-friendly," said the collaborators in an April 25 news release. The goal of a "luxury fashion item," hitting later this year, would be the first example of leather developed from an extinct species, the companies said. "With T-Rex leather we're harnessing the biology of the past to create the luxury materials of the future," said Bas Korsten, global chief creative officer, Innovation & CCO EMEA at VML, the agency behind the 2024 Super Bowl "Mayo Cat" campaign and 2023's Mammoth Meatball, made of lab-grown meat. Cosmos 482: Here's when the Soviet-era spacecraft may return to Earth The team at The Organoid Company, a Netherlands-based biotech, will use fragments of T-Rex collagen protein recovered from fossils to recreate the prehistoric protein and engineer the new DNA into specialized cells for leather production. Another biotech company, the U.K.-based Lab-Grown Leather Ltd., will then use those specialized cells to produce skin, made with the T-Rex collagen protein, which is then tanned to form T-Rex leather. "This project is a remarkable example of how we can harness cutting-edge genome and protein engineering to create entirely new materials," said The Organoid Company CEO Thomas Mitchell. T. Rex leather could serve as a more environmentally friendly option to traditional leather and also eliminate "animal cruelty concerns," the companies said. But some detractors consider the project misleading. University of Maryland vertebrate paleontologist Thomas Holtz, Jr. pointed out to Live Science, a science news site, how the lab-created skin won't be authentic because there's no actual T. rex skin or DNA to serve as a basis. "What this company is doing seems to be fantasy," he said. Calling the announcement a "gimmick," Tom Ellis, professor of synthetic genome engineering at Imperial College London, told NBC News, 'I doubt that our knowledge of dinosaur evolution is good enough to be able to design a collagen gene specifically from T. rex." But researchers have found collagen in an 80-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex fossil and that can be used as a template, they say. The Organoid Company is creating a T-Rex protein by using fragments of the T-Rex collagen protein from fossils, the companies said in a statement to USA TODAY. "An important distinction is that (the companies) are starting with the language of proteins, amino acids, rather than the DNA itself," according to the statement. "This encodes what the 3D structure looks like and from this they can then recreate or 'molecularly resurrect' the DNA which is put into special cell lines for leather production." The result of this reconstruction of ancient protein sequences is T. Rex leather, which is structurally identical to T. rex skin. "A biomaterial inspired by prehistoric biology," Mitchell said. Eventually, T. rex leather could be used beyond handbags and clutches to cover chairs and vehicle seats. "The production of T-Rex leather demonstrates VML's commitment to pioneering new grounds and shaping the future of our industry," Korsten said. Mike Snider is a reporter on USA TODAY's Trending team. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @ & @mikesnider & msnider@ What's everyone talking about? Sign up for our trending newsletter to get the latest news of the day
Daily Mail
25-04-2025
- Science
- Daily Mail
Your next jacket could be made from a DINOSAUR: Scientists are using fossilised collagen to create the world's first T.Rex leather
Most fashionistas like to try and stay ahead of the curve. But a new style involves going quite far in the opposite direction – around 70 million years back in time. A company has announced plans to create the world's first leather, engineered from the prehistoric beast's DNA. And it could mean that, one day, we have the option of carrying a leather handbag, slipping on a leather jacket or even getting into a car with leather seats. A team of scientists will 'combine creative innovation, genomic engineering and advanced tissue engineering to start producing sustainable luxury materials from prehistoric species'. It builds on previous research which involved extracting a fragment of collagen from a fossil, found in 1988 in Montana. It was one of the most complete specimens at the time of its discovery, and even contained preserved blood proteins. Now, experts will use this fragment to artificially recreate what a full-length collagen sequence would have looked like. Once they have made sure it looks genetically similar to that of the ancestors, they will incorporate it into their own lab-grown leather cells and 'grow' it. This will produce a dense network of collagen – similar to the middle layer of skin – which will then become the leather. The collaboration is between The Organoid Company, Lab-Grown Leather Ltd and creative agency VML, and the leather will be developed at a lab in Newcastle. Thomas Mitchell, CEO of The Organoid Company, said: 'This project is a remarkable example of how we can harness cutting-edge genome and protein engineering to create entirely new materials. 'By reconstructing and optimizing ancient protein sequences, we can design leather, a biomaterial inspired by prehistoric biology, and clone it into a custom-engineered cell line.' Bas Korsten, Global Chief Creative Officer at VML, added: 'With leather we're harnessing the biology of the past to create the luxury materials of the future. 'This ground-breaking collaboration represents the intersection of creative innovation and cutting-edge biotechnology.' The team said the environmental and ethical implications of their design are significant. Traditional leather production is linked to extensive deforestation, while some leather tanning processes involve the use of harmful chemicals like chromium, which can lead to pollution. WHAT WAS T. REX? Tyrannosaurus rex was a species of bird-like, meat-eating dinosaur. It lived between 83–66 million years ago in what is now the western side of North America. They could reach up to 40 feet (12 metres) long and 12 feet (4 metres) tall. More than 50 fossilised specimens of T. Rex have been collected to date. The monstrous animal had one of the strongest bites in the animal kingdom. They said the new leather technology offers a way to dramatically reduce these environmental impacts while eliminating animal cruelty concerns linked to traditional leather production. Initial applications will focus on accessories, with the ambition to produce a luxury fashion item as its flagship commercial product by the end of 2025. Following their proof-of-concept design, they say increased production should open up opportunities to expand into sectors beyond fashion, such as the automobile industry. 'The material is fully biodegradable while maintaining the durability and repairability of traditional leather, offering a sustainable, cruelty-free, and traceable alternative for future generations of consumers, who demand both innovation and environmental responsibility,' the team said. Professor Che Connon of Lab-Grown Leather added: 'We're unlocking the potential to engineer leather from prehistoric species, starting with the formidable 'This venture showcases the power of cell-based technology to create materials that are both innovative and ethically sound.' In 2023 scientists managed to grow mammoth flesh in a lab to make a prehistoric meatball. The delicacy was made by an Australian cultivated meat company that ultimately wants to mix and match cells from unconventional species to create new kinds of meat. Scientists took the DNA sequence from a mammoth muscle protein and filled in the gaps with code from an elephant, the species' closest-living relative. This sequence was then placed in the myoblast stem cells from a sheep, which replicated to grow 20 billion cells that were in turn used to grow the mammoth meat. However, despite creating what they hope will be a 'really tasty' meat, the experts were too afraid to eat it in case the ancient protein proves deadly. Around 66 million years ago non-avian dinosaurs were wiped out and more than half the world's species were obliterated. This mass extinction paved the way for the rise of mammals and the appearance of humans. The Chicxulub asteroid is often cited as a potential cause of the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. The asteroid slammed into a shallow sea in what is now the Gulf of Mexico. The collision released a huge dust and soot cloud that triggered global climate change, wiping out 75 per cent of all animal and plant species. Researchers claim that the soot necessary for such a global catastrophe could only have come from a direct impact on rocks in shallow water around Mexico, which are especially rich in hydrocarbons. Within 10 hours of the impact, a massive tsunami waved ripped through the Gulf coast, experts believe. This caused earthquakes and landslides in areas as far as Argentina. While investigating the event researchers found small particles of rock and other debris that was shot into the air when the asteroid crashed. Called spherules, these small particles covered the planet with a thick layer of soot. Experts explain that losing the light from the sun caused a complete collapse in the aquatic system. This is because the phytoplankton base of almost all aquatic food chains would have been eliminated. It's believed that the more than 180 million years of evolution that brought the world to the Cretaceous point was destroyed in less than the lifetime of a Tyrannosaurus rex, which is about 20 to 30 years.
