Can we really resurrect extinct animals, or are we just creating hi-tech lookalikes?
The Promise of De-Extinction
The idea of resurrecting extinct species like the woolly mammoth and dire wolf has captured the public imagination. Biotech company Colossal Biosciences is leading the charge, using genetic engineering to bring back traits of long-lost animals. This has fueled a sense that de-extinction is imminent, but it also raises a crucial question.
The Science of the Comeback
De-extinction uses several techniques, including selective breeding, cloning, and genome editing. Because ancient DNA is often incomplete, most projects don’t create an exact genetic copy. Instead, scientists use the powerful editing tool CRISPR to insert key genes from an extinct species into the genome of a close living relative. The result is not a perfect replica, but a “proxy”—a modern hybrid engineered to resemble its ancestor.
A Mammoth Undertaking
To create a woolly mammoth, scientists aren’t starting from scratch. They are editing the DNA of an Asian elephant, its closest living relative. However, the two species differ by an estimated 1.5 million genetic variants. Since editing all of them is impossible, scientists target a few dozen genes linked to key traits like cold resistance and hair growth. The resulting animal will be more of a cold-adapted elephant than a true mammoth.
From Resurrection to Conservation
A more grounded use of this technology is in conservation. The effort to save the functionally extinct northern white rhino, for example, uses preserved genetic material from the last individuals to create viable embryos with a surrogate mother. This is less about reversing extinction and more about preventing it. The tools of de-extinction may ultimately be most valuable for helping endangered species by boosting genetic diversity or resilience to disease.
