Woolly mammoths haven’t roamed the earth for roughly 4,000 years, but that could soon change. Scientists at Harvard University say they are about 2 years away from making a hybrid woolly mammoth embryo.
Woolly mammoths haven’t roamed the earth for roughly 4,000 years, but that could soon change.
Scientists at Harvard University say they are about two years away from making a hybrid woolly mammoth embryo.
Thus far, they’ve been able to isolate the genes that make the Ice Age creatures unique from their closest modern relatives, the Asian elephant.
The team, led by Professor George Church, believes that it is nearing the point where it can splice mammoth-exclusive traits, such as long hair and blood that’s resistant to freezing, into an elephant embryo’s genome.
Thus far, the DNA of the two animals has proven to be compatible.
There are many challenges that must be overcome before mammoth-elephant hybrids became a living, breathing reality.
They include finding a suitable womb, which would likely need to be done in a lab as Asian elephants are an endangered species.
That sort of development is still in the works and may be for many years to come.
There are also a number of ethical concerns needing to be addressed, such as ensuring the hybrids are accepted into elephant communities, as elephants are known to be social animals.
