Mammoth De-Extinction Delayed
Colossal Biosciences Delays Mammoth-Like Elephant Project to Early 2030s Due to Genetic Complexities
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Colossal Biosciences has pushed its target for producing a mammoth-like calf from 2028 to the early 2030s, as researchers confront greater genetic and reproductive complexities than expected. The company now estimates that more than 150 genes may need to be edited, up from an earlier estimate of about 60, and is using AI alongside CRISPR to study and modify elephant DNA. The goal is not to recreate an exact woolly mammoth, but to engineer an Asian elephant with cold-adapted traits associated with the extinct animal. Colossal says it has made progress by producing 38 woolly mice with mammoth-like hair and identifying genes linked to traits such as ear size.
Key Points
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Colossal says it is using DNA from a frozen mammoth discovered in Siberia in 2018 as part of its research.
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The company’s original schedule called for a pregnancy in 2027, followed by a calf’s birth in 2028.
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Colossal has described its 2025 dire wolves as gray wolves edited to carry traits of the extinct species, using an approach it says is similar to its mammoth work.
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For its moa project, Colossal has hatched chicks from 3D-printed eggs as part of its work on the extinct bird.
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