Amazing stuff! Deextinction taken one step further!
When will we be able to visit the first zoo of deextinct animals?
".. Colossal Biosciences—a biotech company striving to bring extinct species like the mammoth, dodo, and Tasmanian tiger back from the dead—does have thick, wavy hair with a coarse texture. To create the animal’s fluffy golden coat, scientists combed through dozens of ancient genomes, then modified multiple mouse genes ...
The team began by exploring a data set of 121 mammoth and elephant genomes, looking for places where the mammoth had diverged from its cousins. They zeroed in on a handful of genes impacting hair length, thickness, color, and lipid metabolism—genes that also show up in mice. Then, using a combination of three gene-editing technologies, they made eight simultaneous tweaks to the mouse genome, resulting in changes to seven genes. By breaking a gene called FGF5, for example, the team created mice with extra-long hair, whereas similar edits to FAM83G, FZD6, or TGM3 produced curly whiskers and a woolly, wavy coat. Colossal’s woolly mice also have a modified version of a melanin production gene, making their fur golden instead of black. ...
But the Colossal team is still on track to have a mammoth like calf born to an elephant in 2028 ... and the woolly mouse is a stepping stone. ..."
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