The dire wolf has returned from the dead. A Dallas company ‘de-extincted’ them
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Summary
Colossal Biosciences, a de-extinction company, has announced the successful birth of three dire wolves, which have been extinct for over 12,500 years.
The birth of the dire wolves sets a new milestone in the field of de-extinction, illustrating the company’s advancements in genome editing.
Colossal also announced the birth of two litters of cloned red wolves, the most critically endangered wolf in the world.
The successful de-extinction of the dire wolf could lead to the rescue of other critically endangered species.
The company believes its technologies can be used to help prevent the extinction of other species.
Colossal’s research on the dire wolf has led to advancements in technologies beyond de-extinction, including advances in ancient DNA genome reconstruction and genotype-to-phenotype prediction.
The successful birth of the dire wolf and red wolf also led to optimized tools for multiplex gene editing, which could be used to help conserve other endangered species.