Bioengineers have successfully utilized AI-driven protein modeling to reconstruct Type I collagen from the Tyrannosaurus rex genome.
Credit: VML
Scientists and designers unveiled the world’s first handbag made from T-Rex Leather last week. The leather was engineered using reconstructed dinosaur collagen. The handbag will be on display beside a life-sized T. rex statue in Amsterdam.
VML, a creative agency, announced its ambition to create T-Rex Leather in 2025. The company partnered with The Organoid Company, a genomic engineering company, and Lab-Grown Leather Ltd., a sustainable biotechnology company, to develop the material.
Computational biology bridges the gap in fragmented ancient proteomics
The research team used fossilized T.rex collagen peptide sequences to create the material. They employed computational biology and AI modeling to predict and reconstruct the remaining genetic information for the dinosaur’s collagen. Computational biology was used to predict the missing sections of amino acid chains by comparing them to the collagen of T. rex’s closest living relatives: birds, specifically ostriches and chickens, and crocodiles.
The synthesized DNA was inserted into a carrier cell line. Billions of engineered cells were then cultivated using Lab-Grown Leather’s Advanced Tissue Engineering Platform (ATEP) and integrated into its Elemental-X product line.
Lab-Grown Leather uses a scaffold-free approach that allows the cells to create their own natural structure, resulting in a material that is structurally identical to traditional leather, the company says. The resulting leather is durable, repairable, biodegradable and fully traceable. It is also created without animal slaughter, deforestation or chromium-heavy tanning processes.
Reducing the environmental footprint
Traditional leather production has significant environmental challenges, including deforestation and chemical-intensive tanning. One square meter of finished leather is associated with 22.48 kg of CO2e, reported the Leather Working Group. This is equivalent to the emissions of the average passenger vehicle driving approximately 56.2 miles. T-Rex Leather offers a new way to reduce these impacts while maintaining quality, VML said in a statement.
Dinosaurs evolved to survive extreme environments, conditions that echo the climate challenges we face today, VML said. By studying and reconstructing ancient biology, this collaboration opens new possibilities for resilient, high-performance materials, the company added.
Some experts have raised concerns about claiming this material as a true reconstruction of “dinosaur leather.” The collagen used to produce the material originates from fossilized skeletal matter, not skin cells. The fossil collagen survived only in tiny, heavily degraded fragments that differ from the molecular structure of the fibrous layer used for conventional leather.
After six weeks on display at Art Zoo in Amsterdam, the bag will be auctioned off. But this is only the beginning for T-Rex Leather. The material will be made commercially available to brands and designers, VML said.
