WACO, Texas (KXXV) — Researchers associated with Baylor College of Medicine has discovered a full DNA genome within a mummified mammoth — this research helps connect how these beasts lived and died.
The discovery will also assist researchers and paleontologists with learning more about extinction within similar animals.
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Paleontologist Dr. Lindsey Yann with the Waco Mammoth National Monument, has a big job, digging up digging up massive beasts.
“I am in charge of preserving and protecting all of the fossils at Waco Mammoth National Monument,” Dr. Yann said.
When researchers associated with Baylor College of Medicine made a ground breaking discovery —
“They were studying skin from a mummified mammoth, and what they were able to do was to extract this almost glass-like preserved genome, so we’re talking about all of the chromosomes and we’re talking about all the little tiny bits and pieces that allow us to understand the gene expression and why wooly mammoths are wooly, and modern elephants have very little hair,” Dr. Yann said.
— her excitement peaked.
“It’s going to allow us to really understand how these animals lived,” Dr. Yann said.
Why is this information is groundbreaking? 25 News went straight to researchers to find out.
“The skin of the wooly mammoth has one particular property that people are pretty darn excited about, which is its wooly — so you ask yourself, which of the 20,000 genes is responsible for the wooliness," said professor at Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Erez Aiden.
"What was really fun was, how do we narrow it down from 20,000 genes to figuring out which genes may be responsible for that wooly phenotype in a mammoth."
This gives a deeper understanding of the ancient history.
“The ability to study ancient life makes us more responsible stewards of life today — the reason we’re studying the past is to try to understand and build a better future,” Dr. Aiden said.
This might also bring up the question of — could any sort of mammoth be roaming the earth anytime soon?
“There is already a company, Colossal Biosciences, and they are working to bring back a mammoth-Asian Elephant hybrid," Dr. Yann said.
"They’ve made a lot of progress, but this new work might give some of those connections they didn’t have before to understand how mammoths work, live and breathe and survive."
