Latest news with #ColossalBiosciences®
NZ Herald
25-05-2025
- Science
- NZ Herald
Jurassic tech: Company claims the dire wolf is ‘de-extinct', but is it ethical?
The biotech company, backed by big-name investors and celebrities alike, has a goal to bring back the likes of the woolly mammoth, the Tasmanian tiger, the northern white rhino and the dodo. But, even if it's successful, is it right? And, have we learned anything from the happenings in Jurassic Park? University of Otago department of zoology associate professor Nic Rawlence told The Front Page he challenges the term 'de-extinction'. 'The technology they've developed is stunning and will have very real-world conservation benefits, but it's not de-extinction. This is a genetically modified, designer grey wolf. 'If you think of all the individual DNA letters in a genome, which are millions and millions of them, they've only done 20 modifications to that genome. It's only a small number of modifications. But, if we think of functional de-extinction, all they've got is something that looks like a dire wolf,' he said. SOUND ON. You're hearing the first howl of a dire wolf in over 10,000 years. Meet Romulus and Remus—the world's first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024. The dire wolf has been extinct for over 10,000 years. These two wolves were brought back from extinction using… — Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025 Even if it were possible to bring back a species, Rawlence said, the ecosystem it was part of no longer exists. 'If you try to de-extinct a moa, New Zealand's only got 25% forest cover. At the time of human arrival, it was 80% forest cover... Central Otago, for example, used to be covered in lancewood and kōwhai, which is weird to think of, but there's no analogue of that anywhere. 'So you haven't got the ecosystems for these animals to go back into. A lot of the ecosystems have been highly modified, they're full of predators. But, also, if you are gonna introduce animals into an ecosystem, you need them to be genetically healthy, not inbred. Think Tutankhamun married his sister, the Habsburgs out of Europe, or even Queen Victoria married her cousin. 'For a population to be genetically healthy, you need at least 500 individuals, which is a very tall order indeed,' he said. The technology could instead be used in ongoing conservation efforts, Rawlence said. 'You could use it to reintroduce lost genetic variation back into kākāpō or takahē so that they have the evolutionary potential to respond to ongoing climate change or diseases. In kākāpō, you've got aspergillosis, lung fungus, or crusty bum. 'So we could use that technology to help what we've got rather than, in my view, assuaging human guilt for causing extinctions.' In Colossal Bioscience's efforts to de-extinct the woolly mammoth, it has bred genetically modified mice with mammoth-inspired traits, such as woolly coats and cold tolerance. The company says the loss of these large, cold-tolerant mammoths over the past 10,000 years has stripped the ecosystem of the Siberian tundra – a grassland that once efficiently absorbed carbon. 'If the mammoth steppe ecosystem could be revived, it could help in reversing the rapid warming of the climate and more pressingly, protect the Arctic's permafrost – one of the world's largest carbon reservoirs,' its website says. 'How many hundreds of millions of dollars are you going to have to spend to bring back enough mammoths to trample Siberia? It won't be 500 mammoths, it's probably gonna be thousands. I think the money's better spent elsewhere,' Rawlence said. 'Sometimes conservation can be sexy, kākāpō or takahē, but often the non-sexy species are the ones that are just as highly endangered, and trying to get money is a lot easier if people are investing in something akin to Jurassic Park.' Listen to the full episode to hear more about whether we've learned anything from Jurassic Park and which 'un-sexy' species need the most help.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists bring dire wolf species back from extinction after 10,000 years
The dire wolf has been brought back from extinction after more than 10,000 years, a U.S. biotech start-up has announced. On Monday, Colossal Biosciences, based in Texas, said its researchers had successfully facilitated the birth of three modern dire wolf pups – two six-month-old males named Romulus and Remus and a three-month-old female named Khaleesi. The extinct species was recently made famous on the TV series Game of Thrones. The company achieved this feat using cloning and gene-editing techniques based on two ancient dire wolf DNA samples. Colossal's chief executive Ben Lamm called the development a 'massive milestone'. 'I could not be more proud of the team. This massive milestone is the first of many coming examples demonstrating that our end-to-end de-extinction technology stack works,' he said. 'Our team took DNA from a 13,000 year old tooth and a 72,000 year old skull and made healthy dire wolf puppies. 'It was once said, 'any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'. Today, our team gets to unveil some of the magic they are working on and its broader impact on conservation.' We're Colossal Biosciences, the de-extinction company responsible for bringing back the first animals from extinction. Our dire wolf pups, Romulus and Remus, were born on October 1, 2024. Watch these pups grow up on our YouTube channel. Link in bio. These two wolves were… — Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025 Researchers at Colossal explained the de-extinction process involved taking blood cells from a living grey wolf – the dire wolf's closest living relative – and genetically modifying them in 20 different sites. That genetic material was transferred to an egg cell from a domestic dog, then the embryos were transferred to surrogates for gestation and, finally, successful birth. Dr Beth Shapiro, Colossal's chief science officer, said: 'Our novel approach to iteratively improve our ancient genome in the absence of a perfect reference sets a new standard for paleogenome reconstruction. 'Together with improved approaches to recover ancient DNA, these computational advances allowed us to resolve the evolutionary history of dire wolves and establish the genomic foundation for de-extinction – specifically for selecting with confidence dire wolf specific genetic variants that establish our targets for gene editing.' Distinctive traits of the dire wolf include light thick fur and muscular jaws, while they are also much larger than grey wolves. Colossal said the animals will live their lives on a continuously monitored, secure ecological preserve that is certified by the American Humane Society and registered with the US Department of Agriculture. The dire wolf is a mainstay of fantasy settings in pop culture, with mentions in role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons and video games like World of Warcraft. However, the vehicle which truly shot dire wolves to fame is the HBO series Game of Thrones, based on the works of author George RR Martin. Mr Martin, an investor in Colossal and cultural adviser for the company, said: 'Many people view dire wolves as mythical creatures that only exist in a fantasy world, but in reality, they have a rich history of contributing to the American ecosystem.' 'I get the luxury to write about magic, but Ben and Colossal have created magic by bringing these majestic beasts back to our world.' Colossal also announced it had cloned four red wolves using blood drawn from wild wolves of the southeastern US' critically endangered red wolf population. The aim is to bring more genetic diversity into the small population of captive red wolves, which scientists are using to breed and help save the species.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists announce dire wolf has been brought back from extinction
The dire wolf – an extinct animal made famous in the TV series Game of Thrones – has been brought back from extinction after more than 10,000 years, a biotech start-up has announced. Texas company Colossal Biosciences said on Monday its researchers had used cloning and gene-editing based on two ancient samples of dire wolf DNA to birth three modern dire wolf pups – two six-month-old males named Romulus and Remus and a three-month-old female named Khaleesi. Colossal's chief executive Ben Lamm called the development a 'massive milestone'. He said in a statement: 'I could not be more proud of the team. This massive milestone is the first of many coming examples demonstrating that our end-to-end de-extinction technology stack works. We're Colossal Biosciences, the de-extinction company responsible for bringing back the first animals from extinction. Our dire wolf pups, Romulus and Remus, were born on October 1, 2024. Watch these pups grow up on our YouTube channel. Link in bio. These two wolves were… — Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025 'Our team took DNA from a 13,000 year old tooth and a 72,000 year old skull and made healthy dire wolf puppies. 'It was once said, 'any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'. Today, our team gets to unveil some of the magic they are working on and its broader impact on conservation.' Researchers at Colossal explained the de-extinction process involved taking blood cells from a living grey wolf – the dire wolf's closest living relative – and genetically modifying them in 20 different sites. That genetic material was transferred to an egg cell from a domestic dog, then the embryos were transferred to surrogates for gestation and, finally, successful birth. Dr Beth Shapiro, Colossal's chief science officer, said: 'Our novel approach to iteratively improve our ancient genome in the absence of a perfect reference sets a new standard for paleogenome reconstruction. 'Together with improved approaches to recover ancient DNA, these computational advances allowed us to resolve the evolutionary history of dire wolves and establish the genomic foundation for de-extinction – specifically for selecting with confidence dire wolf specific genetic variants that establish our targets for gene editing.' Distinctive traits of the dire wolf include light thick fur and muscular jaws, while they are also much larger than grey wolves. Colossal said the animals will live their lives on a continuously monitored, secure ecological preserve that is certified by the American Humane Society and registered with the US Department of Agriculture. The dire wolf is a mainstay of fantasy settings in pop culture, with mentions in role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons and video games like World of Warcraft. However, the vehicle which truly shot dire wolves to fame is the HBO series Game of Thrones, based on the works of author George RR Martin. Mr Martin, an investor in Colossal and cultural adviser for the company, said: 'Many people view dire wolves as mythical creatures that only exist in a fantasy world, but in reality, they have a rich history of contributing to the American ecosystem.' 'I get the luxury to write about magic, but Ben and Colossal have created magic by bringing these majestic beasts back to our world.' Colossal also announced it had cloned four red wolves using blood drawn from wild wolves of the southeastern US' critically endangered red wolf population. The aim is to bring more genetic diversity into the small population of captive red wolves, which scientists are using to breed and help save the species.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Game of Thrones' Fans Howl Over Claim Dire Wolf Was Brought Back From Extinction
The beloved 'Game of Thrones' dire wolf has returned … or has it? Folks online are sharing their take after a genetic engineering company called Colossal Biosciences brought the canine — that has been extinct nearly 10,000 years — back to life. While some are just having fun with it all, others are providing some clarification amongst the chatter. 'This one is F—G WILD. Literally. Ben Lamm and his team are Colossal Biosciences have brought back the Dire Wolf,' former TV host and podcaster Joe Rogan tweeted on Monday. This one is FUCKING WILD. Literally. Ben Lamm and his team are Colossal Biosciences have brought back the Dire Wolf. Fascinating conversation available now on @spotify — Joe Rogan (@joerogan) April 7, 2025 Colossal announced the news on Monday with the introduction of Romulus and Remus, 'the first animals ever resurrected from extinction.' Meet Romulus and Remus—the first animals ever resurrected from extinction. The dire wolf, lost to history over 10,000 years ago, has returned. Reborn on October 1, 2024, these remarkable pups were brought back to life using ancient DNA extracted from fossilized — Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025 'The dire wolf, we lost to history over 10,000 years ago, has returned. Reborn on Oct. 1, 2024, these remarkable pups were brought back to life using ancient DNA extracted from fossilized remains,' the company explained. The feat was accomplished through the DNA extraction of two fossils in addition to 20 edits of the genetic code of a gray wolf, which is the most closely related family member, per Colossal. The genetics startup Colossal has re-created the dire wolf, which went extinct some 12,000 years ago. @dtmax was the first journalist to meet the wolves. Read his report: — The New Yorker (@NewYorker) April 7, 2025 In between sharing adorable videos, many are calling out the news as a bit 'misleading,' especially for devout 'Game of Thrones' fans. The dire wolf is the ultimate symbol of the House Stark of Winterfell, a Great House of Westeros that rules the north. The most popular pups in the series were Jon Stark's Ghost, Arya Stark's Nymeria and Robb Stark's Grey Wind. 'Misleading as f—k,' one X user said. 'This is a Grey Wolf with genetic modification. There is no Dire genes in this.' Misleading as fuck This is a Grey Wolf with genetic modification. There is no Dire Wolf genes in this. Akin to giving chickens teeth-which we have done. The fact that they used Grey Wolves is also odd since if I remember right Dire Wolves are closer to jackals — Heidi (@birdmoder) April 7, 2025 'It's not a dire wolf,' another X user chimed in. 'It's a gray wolf clone with 20 dire-wolf gene edits, and with some dire wolf traits.' And others, well, they are just having a good time with it all. 'Bro, we literally got actual dire wolves before we 'Winds of Winter,'' one X user tweeted, referring to 'A Song of Ice and Fire' novelist George R.R. Martin and the forthcoming release of his sixth book, 'The Winds of Winter.' Martin's 'A Song of Ice and Fire' was adapted into the beloved HBO series. Bro we literally got actual dire wolves before we got Winds of Winter — Trey the Explainer (@Trey_Explainer) April 7, 2025 'Even direwolf khaleesi is the youngest sister of two brothers and the last of an extinct family,' another X user joked. even direwolf khaleesi is the youngest sister of two brothers and the last of an extinct family — dany starlight (@danyzstarlight) April 7, 2025 Whether folks are just laughing at the news or taking things more seriously, here are some of the best reactions: Genuinely frustrating that science figured out to resurrect Dire Wolves before George R R Martin figured out how to resurrect Jon Snow. — Flappr (@flapprdotnet) April 7, 2025 DIRE WOLVES RELEASED BEFORE GTA 6 DIRE WOLVES RELEASED BEFORE WINDS OF WINTER — Poe's Law, Esq: Poe's Lawyer (@dyingscribe) April 7, 2025 You'll likely see a lot of talk regarding the newly resurrected dire wolves. Just to be clear, these do not appear to be actual dire wolves, but more something like grey wolves(different genus btw) with edited genes. That said, Colossal hasn't been especially clear with- — Taylor McCoy (@TM9380) April 7, 2025 'we put dire wolves on the border.' — Logan Hall (@loganclarkhall) April 7, 2025 The post 'Game of Thrones' Fans Howl Over Claim Dire Wolf Was Brought Back From Extinction appeared first on TheWrap.
