Scientists' hearts are pounding after discovering a 380 million year old fish

heart lodged in a piece of Australian sediment. This organ is not just in

extraordinary condition, but it may also hold the key to understanding how

The heart is a full 250 million years older than the jawed-fish heart that

presently holds the title of "oldest." The heart belongs to an extinct class of

armoured, jawed fish called arthrodires that flourished between 419.2 million

and 358.9 million years ago. But despite the fish's primitive nature, scientists

were surprised to find startling anatomical parallels between the ancient