Can we bring back extinct animals?
Thanks to recent developments in biotechnology, the stuff of science fiction may soon become a reality through a fascinating process called ‘de-extinction’.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) guidelines define de-extinction as the generation of proxies of extinct species that are functionally equivalent to the original extinct species, but are not ‘replicas’. More simply put, de-extinction is like a ‘ctrl-Z’ (undo key) for extinct animals, but the resurrected animal is not an exact copy.
Techniques of de-extinction include
Back breeding
Existing species that have similar traits to the extinct species can be identified and selectively bred to produce offspring that more closely resembles the extinct species.
Cloning
A clone of an extinct animal is created by extracting the nucleus, which contains the DNA of the extinct animal, from its preserved cells. This DNA is then inserted into an egg cell (obtained from the animal’s closest living relative) that is devoid of its own DNA, i.e., a nucleus. This egg cell completes its development in the womb of a surrogate female and the offspring will be an identical genetic copy of the extinct species.
Genetic engineering
This is the newest technique that has become available thanks to the advancements of modern technology. It uses gene-editing tools, such as CRISPR, to insert selected genes from extinct animals in place of those present in its closest living relative. The resultant hybrid genome is inserted into a surrogate.
De-extinction caters more to ecology than to tourism. According to ecologist Ben Novak, if a resurrected animal is always going to be a zoo animal then it shouldn’t be brought back.
Since all animals perform critical roles in their ecosystem, the void that their loss leaves can have detrimental consequences. Woolly mammoths, for example, were excellent gardeners.
They stomped down saplings and spread seeds through their nutrient-rich dung across the then Arctic grasslands. Their disappearance was followed by a loss in biodiversity and transitioned the grassland to a cold, mossy tundra.
