In the workshops of the American company Colossal Laboratories & Biosciences i were born woolly mice characterized by a thick fur with long hair And wavy To try to bring i mammoth. THE Woolly mouse they were obtained thanks to Genetic engineering techniques as part of the de-extinctiona process that aims to bring to life extinct species by modifying the DNA of living organisms. Colossal Biosciences, based in Dallas in Texas, is among the leading companies in this sector and has invested millions of dollars in ambitious projects for the de-extinction of dodusof woolly mammoth and of the Tigre della Tasmania. The de-extinction, or biological resurrectionis based on the genetic modification of the cells of a living species so that they acquire characteristics of an extinct species. In the case of the woolly mammoth, the project aims to restore key traits of these animals, such as hair and cold adaptations. The study, entitled Multplex-Edited Mice Recapitullato Woolly Mammoth Hair Phenottypes and led by the geneticist Rui Chenis available on the Biorxiv platform, but has not yet been subjected to a peer review for the publication in a scientific journal. The researchers used mice such as experimental models, introducing genetic mutations, thanks to advanced techniques such as Crispr/Cas9, in genes related to the structure of the hair, offering new information for the de-extinction.
The woolly mice summarize some characteristics of the extinct mammoths
The project of wool mammoth de-extinction (Mammuthus primigenius) has the aim of restoring the main characteristics of these animals, such as woolly hair and adaptations to cold environments. To do this, the researchers aim to express specifications Genetic variants of mammoths in the Asian elephant (Elephas Maximus), their closest relative. However, the direct study on elephants is complex due to the long period of gestation (22 months) and ethical issues. To overcome these obstacles, Colossal Biosciences scientists have used i Mice as model organismsthanks to theirs Quick reproductive cycle (20 days) and the advanced genetic engineering techniques, such as the system Crispr/Cas9.
This technique uses a protein that works as a molecular scissor for cut DNA in specific points, led by a filament of RNA which indicates where to intervene. The complex Protein -na It binds to the mouse DNA and cuts it at the desired point. At that point, the original DNA segment can be removed, replaced or modified. By repeating this process for all necessary changes, mammoth genetic traits are obtained, such as woolly hair, useful for studying the genetic adaptations of these extinct animals.
The researchers of the study Multplex-Edited Mice Recapitullato Woolly Mammoth Hair Phenottypesguided by the geneticist Rui Chen They therefore selected 7 genes known to influence the structure and growth of the mammoth’s hair, identified the corresponding genes in the mouse and modified them to obtain the desired phenotype. The chosen genes are linked to different aspects of the hair including the orientation of follicles (FZD6), the length and color of the hair (Mc1r And Fgf5), the wavy hair (TGM3) and rough and woolly hair (Fam83g). In addition, the gene has been changed Fabp2involved in lipid metabolism, whose alteration in mammoths may have contributed to theadaptation to the cold. On this last aspect there are still no significant results to understand the distribution of body fat and the ability to live in habitats with rigid temperatures.
Doubts about the impact of the study of woolly mopeds on the de-extinction of mammoths
The “Colossal Woolly Mouse”, for the company’s CEO Well lammrepresents an important milestone in the mammoth de-extinction project. The development of mopes with characteristics inspired by mammoths has demonstrated the company’s ability to reproduce complex genetic combinations, a process that in nature required millions of years. However, experts like Stephan Riesenbergresearcher of Max Planck Institute of Leipzig in Germany, they point out that these mice are not a replica of the mammoth, but only a genetically modified variant, since generating a mouse with some mutations does not seem to approach the creation of a real mammoth. Also, theabsence of data On cold tolerance, a distinctive trait of the mammoths, leaves further doubts about the significant impact of the study.
Despite the critical observations, the Colossal team considers mice a fundamental step to test genetic mutations that could be transferred to Asian elephants thus providing precious Information on genetic traits related to mammoths. However, Colossal’s goal is not to recreate an identical mammoth, but rather to recall key sections to fill the ecological niches which once occupied, with the aim of restoring the biodiversity lost.
Woolly mammoths: features and extinction
The woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) It was a species lived between the Pleistocene and the Holocene in Europe, Northern Asia and North America and were closely related to the current ones Asian elephants. It was known for its great dimensions, the thick fur and the imposing curved zanne. Reached a height of 3-3.7 meters and a weight of 5.500-7.300 kg. His cloak was made up of an undercoat often about 2.5 cm and from long dark brown hair that could overcome the 70 cm. To resist the cold, it had a layer of insulating fat often up to 8 cma thick skin and small ears to reduce heat dispersion. He had a hump on his back that served as a fat and energy reserve.
The woolly mammoth prospered during the glacial eras, but the loss of their habitat due to climatic warming and hunting by human beings contributed to their extinction, which occurred about 10,000 years agoalthough some populations have survived longer. They lived the tundraan ecosystem full of low shrubs, carticians and herbs, and fed on herbaceous and shrubby vegetation.
This kind of mammoth is the best known thanks to the abundance of well preserved carcasses in the Siberian permafrost. Advancements in the genetics and in the cloning have allowed scientists of sequeniation DNA of the woolly mammoth, and some hypothesize that one day it may be possible to bring it back to life through the de-extinction.
