JAKARTA - A startup or startup engaged in the manufacture of computer chips, delivery drones, and social networks, dubbed Colossal, has a goal to bring the woolly mammoth back from extinction.
Quoting Slashgear, Tuesday, September 14, Colossal said it will really happen in 2027 using CRISPR, a revolutionary gene editing technology.
The plan was not to recreate real woolly mammoths, but to carry their cold-adapted genetic traits such as small ears and more body fat to elephants as their closest relatives.
Colossal Co-founder and Chief Executive Ben Lamm said it was aimed at harnessing CRISPR technology to return mammoths to the Arctic tundra, as knowledge of how such an approach could help conserve endangered species. Mammoths are known to have long been absent from the Arctic. Living during the Pleistocene era, and then extinct in the Holocene epoch, it was the last in the mammoth line, the last believed to have died out about 4,000 years ago.
“In addition to bringing back extinct ancient species such as the woolly mammoth. We will be able to leverage our technology to help conserve endangered species that are on the verge of extinction and restore animals. Where humanity had a hand in their demise," Lamm.
Gene editing promises to make genetic modification much easier and affordable than other biotech approaches. Since it was developed, the technique could one day eliminate cancer and other diseases from humans. That means it can be used to make new drugs and build more resilient and productive agricultural products.
Approaches vary, using fragments of the DNA sequence to be broken down, and then alternative DNA is introduced. However, the potential for irreversible changes to the genome and moral questions about human embryo editing, have overshadowed some of its research and potential applications.
However, Colossal will also focus on animals rather than humans. Currently, there are approximately 15 million US dollars in seed funding. The company will genetically modify Asian elephants, similar to those of the woolly mammoth, to create new elephant-mammoth hybrids genetically engineered to help them survive in the Arctic.
But the results of this development will not be for display, the Colossal founders argue, there are legitimate environmental reasons why Earth could benefit from the return of the woolly mammoth. In particular, restoring an extinct species to its natural habitat could trigger a resurgence in the area.
"Restoring woolly mammoths has the potential to revitalize Arctic prairies, which have key climate change-fighting properties including carbon sequestration, methane suppression and light reflection," Lamm said.
Finally, the company also revealed that the same technique could be used in the future to stabilize threatened species that are not yet extinct.
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