I think it is incredible that scientific research has advanced so far that we could even imagine a future in which we could bring an entire species back from extinction. Teams of scientists around the world are exploring the idea of using preserved Mammoth DNA to create hybrids with modern Asian elephants. This would not completely bring back a pure mammoth but the hybrids would share nearly 99% of their DNA with the pre-historic species. This could be possible through genetic engineering techniques like the new CRISPR/Cas9 system. CRISPR is a system that allows geneticists to cut, add, and remove genes from the organism’s genome. This sounds like something from the mind of a science fiction writer but it is a tool that has been around since 2012. CRISPR stands for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats” and works by using a strand of RNA to ‘read’ the DNA and target a specific segment. The RNA works as a guide and leads the Cas9 cutting enzyme to a region of the DNA that needs some kind of modification. Scientists can manipulate this weakened area and cause a number of mutations and changes.
Some articles say that we would want to bring the Mammoth back for conservation purposes to protect the at-risk Asian elephants, but I don’t think this is the solution. If conservation is the priority, then we need to work with the species we still have in the wild rather than introducing some new species. In terms of advantages, I think it would simply be proving that we have the power to do it, but that in itself could be disastrous. Sure some people would love the opportunity to see a ‘Mammoth,’ but I don’t think it is worth the risk or necessary. A new species could wreak havoc on an arctic ecosystem; resources are sparce and existing species are already fragile due to the pressures of global warming. Not to mention that these animals existing during an Ice Age. Modern Earth is no place for a creature that lived when the world was frozen.
If scientists are successful in their attempts to hybridize the Mammoth/Asian elephant, then yes, I do think it could lead them to pursue the same for other species. This would prove challenging since the Mammoth was preserved in permafrost and had biological fluids still present; this is not possible for all species.
Pruitt, S. (2019). Are scientists on the verge of resurrecting the Wooly Mammoth? Retrieved from: https://www.history.com/news/wooly-mammoth-resurrection-cloning-genesis
Weintraub, K. (2015). 5 Reasons Gene Editing is both terrific and terrifying. Retrieved from: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/12/151203-gene-editing-terrific-terrifying-science/
Saey, T. (2017). Explainer: How CRISPR works. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/explainer-how-crispr-works
Worrall, S. (2017). We could resurrect the Wooly Mammoth. Here's how. Retrieved from: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2017/07/woolly-mammoths-extinction-cloning-genetics/