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Asked by thequestionmaster to Alexis, Dr D, Helen, Jasmine, Mario on 18 Jun 2013.
Question: Do you think that we will ACTUALLY be able to use woolly mammoth DNA to bring them back from extinction? If so, where will they live and?
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Mario Ruiz answered on 18 Jun 2013:
If you are thinking of building a real Jurassic Park, I’m afraid it’s not possible! Even if the DNA of extinct animals could be preserved in, for example, mosquitoes trapped in amber, getting that DNA to ‘work’ inside another cell can’t happen. A cell has its own system of recognising DNA that it doesn’t belong to itself, and it can ‘kill’ it by degrading it.
Also, where would be able to grow a baby mammoth? Inside a female elephant? I wish we were able to do that!
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Andrew Devitt answered on 21 Jun 2013:
@thequestionmaster
Hey why not? It all depends on what info we can get out of the DNA from mammoths. Yes there will be technical issues (like who’s the mummy) and how do we fill in the gaps in the DNA. At the speed that science is advancing, anything is possible! That’s the beauty of science!
Comments
thequestionmaster commented on :
Ah well, disappointing but to be expected.
Dr D commented on :
Don’t give up hope! Become a scientist and this could be your life’s work. What a cool project! If someone tells you something is not possible, ignore them. It just means we haven’t thought of a way to do it yet…..