It’s amazing what an incredibly prescient work of science fiction Jurassic Park (the novel) really was. Before CRISPR, before Dolly, before the Human Genome, Crichton called it.
One can’t help but wonder how much the movie influenced the work
A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
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Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#12Earlier quoted context omitted.
The claim from the researchers is that there has been a lot of success in reintroducing human-raised animals into the wild, and that for mammals, most hunting/etc behavior is indeed instinctive.
An interesting test of some of the claims about epigenetics...
Why?
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#13It seems like the only “leap” is partnering with some other group. Which, yes, organizing is critical on large scale projects… but for those of us looking for a breakthrough, I guess we’ve been clickbaited.
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#14Earlier quoted context omitted.
An interesting test of some of the claims about epigenetics...
Why?
My guess: if non-genetic heritable elements -- epigenetics (such as modifications to DNA) -- are necessary for proper development, then the DNA sequence alone will not be enough to develop thylacines. (There are caveats, notably that some modifications can be inferred). However, the scientists will also be experimenting with gestation and creating embryos from modified cells, so whether epigenetics specifically is a limiting factor will be hard to tell.
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#15Wow, I was just reading about Benjamin, the last known captive thylacine filmed in 1935 > https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-footage-benjam...
There are periodic sightings of them. Although not with high enough confidence or documentation to say definitely, "They are still out there".
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#16“We can now take the giant leaps..." says Professor Pask of the Thylacine Integrated Genetic Restoration Research (TIGRR) Lab.
Which is a lot more accurate than the article headline, which says that they _have already_ taken a 'giant leap'. I expect such exaggeration and overstatement from mainstream news sources; I suppose I should not be surprised to see it coming from a university website.
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#17Wow, I was just reading about Benjamin, the last known captive thylacine filmed in 1935 > https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-footage-benjam...
There are periodic sightings of them. Although not with high enough confidence or documentation to say definitely, "They are still out there".
It's not plausible that such a large animal can have a self-sustaining population in the wild, and not be properly detected by the scientific community for 100 years.
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#18Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are periodic sightings of them. Although not with high enough confidence or documentation to say definitely, "They are still out there".
It's not plausible that such a large animal can have a self-sustaining population in the wild, and not be properly detected by the scientific community for 100 years.
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#19Is this likely to be the first de-extinct animal which we can bring back does anyone know?
The Pyrenean ibex was de-extincted for 7 minutes: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/news-buca...
There are a number of other candidates, though. I would guess either the thylacine, the woolly mammoth, or the passenger pigeon would be first to sustain an actual population, but I don't really follow the projects: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-extinction#Current_candidat...
Re: A lab pursuing de-extinction of the thylacine partners with a genetics company
#20I wonder, have they asked the people of Tasmania if they want it back? It's Jurassic Park writ small.