Valentina Rossi

I am a palaeobiologist, skilled in the analysis of pigmented soft tissues in fossil and extant vertebrates. A particular focus of my studies is the preservation of melanosomes in fossil vertebrates. My work so far have produced the first report of a tissue-specific chemical signal in melanosomes in extant amphibians, reptiles, mammals and birds and the first report of similar chemical signals in fossils, spanning in age between 10 and 280 millions years old. During my PhD I have specialised in the study of metal-melanin associations using synchrotron-based chemical analysis.

My research interest also include the investigation of the taphonomic processes that lead to the preservation of soft tissues and biomolecules using taphonomic experiments at high pressure and temperature.