they want to create a mammoth

Scientists have obtained the stem cells of an elephant: they want to create a mammoth from them

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Scientists are making progress in “resurrecting” the woolly mammoth or hairy mammoth, which died out 4 thousand years ago. Their goal is to create a hybrid of an elephant and a mammoth, which would not visually differ from its predecessor.

If released into the wild, it could potentially help restore the arctic tundra ecosystem, informs CNN.

Harvard University geneticist George Church has been working on the “resurrection” of the mammoth for more than ten years. In 2021, he co-founded Colossal Biosciences and received money to implement his plan.

Last week, the company announced that it had succeeded in reprogramming the cells of an Asian elephant – the closest relative of the mammoth – into an embryonic state. This is the first time when scientists were able to obtain stem cells from the cells of an elephant.

From these modified cells, it will be possible to grow any kind of elephant cells in the future.

The research team has already analyzed the genomes of 53 woolly mammoths. Ancient DNA extracted from fossils helped them in this. These data helped scientists to understand exactly which genes make the mammoth unique.

Scientists are currently modeling and testing dozens of genetic changes that will give the Asian elephant the genetic traits it needs to survive in the Arctic. These are wool, a layer of insulating fat and smaller ears.

“The great thing about these cells is that they can potentially renew themselves indefinitely and differentiate into any type of cell in the body,” – says Colossal Biosciences geneticist Eriona Haisolli.

Scientists will be able to use the edited elephant cells to obtain eggs, sperm and embryos that can be implanted into an artificial uterus. However, it will take years of work.

Geneticists also want to create a mammoth without tusks, so that the animals do not become prey for poachers.

The company claims that if mammoths return to the grasslands in the northernmost regions of the planet in sufficient numbers, they will help slow down the melting of permafrost.

Some scientists believe that before their extinction, grazing animals, including mammoths, horses, and bison, kept the land frozen. Trampling the grass, they felled trees and compacted the snow under them. However, there is no exact information about this.

Also, stem cells will make it easier for scientists to study the unique biology of the Asian elephant. These animals have a unique resistance to cancer, but the reasons for this are still unclear.

We will remind, scientists for the first time managed to get Tasmanian tiger RNA from dried animal skin and muscle.