Subsequently it happened that Russell Higuchi, in Allan Wilson's lab, and I were simultaneously but independently working on fossil molecules from the recently extinct quagga, a South African zebra. This obscure species also hit front pages all over the world when Higuchi was able to extract and sequence a fragment of DNA, the first time this genetic material had been successfully obtained from a fossil. Though the book and film dramatically depict dinosaurs recreated from dinosaur DNA in amber-preserved mosquitoes, no scientist has yet been able to extract DNA or protein molecules from dinosaur bones and teeth, though many have tried, let alone from a mosquito's stomach. Nevertheless, the search for such very ancient molecules has inspired research on ways of detecting ever smaller amounts of biological material. Developing such supersensitive techniques requires special equipment and collaborations with those who have it, which is half the fun of doing research.
Science is a cooperative venture involving many individuals and institutions.
Our present pursuit of the genetic essence of T. rex benefit from the brilliant Bay Area bonanza of scientific institutions and enterprises. This laboratory also serves as an ideal venue for collaborative research on fossil molecules. The most advanced PCR devices in the world, capable of measuring the smallest amounts of DNA and proteins, are being developed at Roche Molecular Systems in Alameda, California. On my first visit there, I found that one of the leading investigators is Higuchi, the man who first sequenced quagga DNA in the 1980's. Jerold M. Lowenstein is a professor of medicine at the University of California at San Francisco and chairman of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.