Scientists modify stem cells to revive mammoths that became extinct more than 4,000 years ago – Enséñame de Ciencia

The mammoth, a giant animal that existed on Earth about 4.8 million years ago and became extinct nearly 4 thousand years ago, will return to life and here we tell you all the details of this amazing discovery.

Mamuthusis the scientific name for these giant herbivores, which are relatives of the ancestors of the common elephant we know now, which survived the Ice Age, and inhabit all of Africa and the Eurasian continent.

They are described before Encyclopedia of world history Like foraging animals, they are huge, with imposing bodies, curved tusks, abundant fur, small, shiny eyes, and have thick layers of insulating fat that keep them warm.

That, regardless of their huge and majestic appearance, Neanderthals and humans sought strategies so that they could hunt them, making use of their tender meat as food and their skins as clothing, which was probably one of the main reasons for their emergence. In addition to diseases and climate changes.

These majestic animals that we would love and be shocked to see in person and that were only recorded in frescoes inside caves, are about to return to our planet.

This is the situation! Scientists were able to return them to the planet.

Experts from Phenomenal biological scienceA scientific laboratory company dedicated to biotechnology and genetic engineering research has managed to “reprogram” elephant pluripotent stem cells into an embryonic state, a massive milestone that will lead them to achieve their goal of reviving the extinct mammoth before 2028.

Dr. George Church, lead geneticist at Colossal, stated in an interview with the Daily Mail that by producing elephant stem cells, and combining them with genes taken from a frozen woolly mammoth, they hope to produce hybrid eggs that could one day become embryos. The artificial womb in this way enriches the Asian elephant and restores the diversity of the mammoth.

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Image credit: National Geographic

This research project also seeks to create strategies that will help the survival of the common elephant and restore its affected Arctic ecosystem.

As you already know, International Union for Conservation of Environment The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has announced that elephants are on the Red List of Threatened Species.

These animals are at risk of extinction due to illegal hunting, in order to trade the ivory found in their tusks. Another reason is the unimaginably terrible lifestyle these animals lead in Asian countries, where overpopulation keeps them busy in their daily tasks.

Through this project, experts seek to improve the genetics of elephants so that these species can be introduced into another type of habitat, away from society, where they live healthy and can thrive.

“We hope to use the diversity that comes from their non-ancient relatives to help them adapt to new environments that may be necessary for them to thrive,” Dr Church said in the Daily Mail.

That is why researchers at Colossal do not stop searching for strategies that would allow them to modify genes, make elephants more tolerant to the cold, and be able to bring back the extinct woolly mammoth.

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