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Issue: Vol. 9 No. 1: February 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-02-25
DOI: 10.11646/palaeoentomology.9.1.10
Page range: 85-98
Abstract views: 276
PDF downloaded: 4

A bone lesion in a lizard from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber

State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, School of Earth Sciences and Resources, Frontiers Science Center for Deep-time Digital Earth, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
Department of Medicine, IU Health, Muncie, IN, USA
State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, School of Earth Sciences and Resources, Frontiers Science Center for Deep-time Digital Earth, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (UMR 7205), MNHN, CNRS, SU, EPHE-PSL, UA, CP50, 57 Rue Cuvier, F-75005 Paris, France
State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, School of Earth Sciences and Resources, Frontiers Science Center for Deep-time Digital Earth, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
Shandong Jinan No.20 Middle School, No. 585, Jingqi Road, Huaiyin District, Jinan 250021, China
Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Regina, S4P 2V7, Canada; Biology Department, University of Regina, S4S 0A2, Canada
fossil resin Myanmar Squamata Anguimorpha paleopathology pigmented villonodular synovitis

Abstract

Paleopathology is an interdisciplinary subject that focuses on evidence of injuries and pathological conditions in ancient animals. This paper reports the first documented case of a giant bone cell tumor within two digits of an amber-preserved lizard from the mid-Cretaceous of Myanmar. The amber specimen contains complete phalanges and distal metacarpal components that were imaged with micro-computed tomography (μCT) scanning, which revealed detailed morphological and pathological features. Morphological analysis indicates the specimen perhaps pertain to Anguimorpha, and show greater affinity to Paleoanguimorpha than to Neoanguimorpha. Comparative analysis with both extant and extinct Paleoanguimorpha species was conducted to establish its taxonomic position. The paleopathological analysis suggests this represents the first reported case of giant cell tumor/PVS found in an amber-preserved vertebrate.

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