(Washington) Those woolly mammoths, which became extinct 4,000 years ago, have once again set foot in Arctic soil, a challenge that the American company Colossus is trying to tackle with the help of genetic manipulations launched Monday.
“Colossus will release a practical and efficient model of extinction and will be the first company to apply innovative genetic modification techniques to reorganize woolly mammoths in the Arctic tundra,” the company said in a statement.
The idea of eradicating an extinction and creating an animal similar to an endangered species using genetics is not unanimous in the scientific community, with some researchers doubting its potential or the dangers of its application.
Colossal, created by entrepreneur Ben Lam and geneticist George Church, intends to add DNA sequences of woolly mammoths collected from remains stored in Siberian soil to create a species hybrid.
Asian elephants and woolly mammoths have 99.6% similar DNA, Colossal points out on its website.
The creation of these hybrid pachyderms and their subsequent reconstruction into the tundra will enable them to “restore the extinct habitat that will help prevent or reverse the effects of climate change.”
Genetically modified woolly mammoths in particular can “give new life to Arctic prairies”, helping to capture carbon dioxide and remove methane and two greenhouse gases.
The biotech company was able to raise $ 15 million in private funds to achieve this goal, which some experts skeptically welcome.
“There are a number of issues that arise in this process,” says biologist Beth Shapiro New York Times.
“It’s not an extinction. There will never be mammoths on Earth again.
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