Meet the Museum: Bone Marrow and Biomolecules

Decoding the past through bone marrow

Bone marrow does much more than make blood. It stores energy, supports bone growth, and responds to the changing seasons - and it might even hold secrets that have lasted for hundreds of millions of years.

Most vertebrates have two main types of marrow in their long bones, and their structure, distribution, and function can vary with species, age, and environment. These differences leave behind molecular traces - signatures that might be preserved in fossils, offering rare insights into ancient physiology.

Join Luke Brosnan, PhD candidate at Curtin University and researcher at the Western Australian Organic and Isotope Geochemistry Centre (WA-OIGC), as he dives into the chemistry of bone marrow in modern animals and what it can reveal about long-extinct species.

Using specimens from the WA Museum, Perth Zoo, and Murdoch University, Luke will examine how bone marrow varies across the vertebrate family tree, and how these living insights might help us decode the distant past.

Meet the Museum 

Are you curious about the fascinating world behind the scenes at the Museum? This monthly program delves into the less visible parts of the Museum’s work, as scientists, researchers, historians and curators share their expertise and passions.