Extinctions

Until recently, it had been universally accepted that the extinction of a species meant the complete end of its time on Earth. However, recent technological advances have encouraged the hypothesis that through the process of cloning, extinct species may be "brought back to life". Proposed targets for cloning include the mammoth and thylacine, although the latter attempt has been abandoned. In order for such a program to succeed, a sufficient number of individuals would need to be cloned (in the case of sexually reproducing organisms) to create a viable population size. The cloning of an extinct species has not yet been attempted, primarily due to technological limitations, though bioethical and philosophical objections have also been raised. The concept of cloning extinct species was popularized in the successful novel and movie Jurassic Park. DNA preserves poorly, and it is unlikely that DNA of organisms which lived more than 10,000 years ago could ever be recovered.[

Perhaps one of the most controversial issues of the new century is that of cloning.  While scientists have been able to successfully clone animals, it remains to be seen how the genetic lineage of the subjects ill be altered. Already, we have heard reports that "Dolly", the cloned sheep, is weaker than the original, and has suffered through a series of illnesses, including arthritis. The issue of human cloning has also generated public outcry, with both left and right wing groups agreeing on a ban. One of the most popular arguments is the possibility that in the wrong hands, cloning technology could be used to replicate malevolent individuals such as Adolph Hitler. Hollywood fantasy, or possible reality? The blockbuster hit Jurassic Park, based on the Michael Crichton novel of the same name, introduced the theory that by using genetic material from extinct animals combined with that of amphibians (the only species of vertebrates able to regenerate lost limbs), scientists would be able to bring dinosaurs back to life.

While Dino DNA could only have been extracted from blood inside mosquitoes that were preserved in amber to suit the story, it is in fact possible for us to get material from recently extinct animals to try and bring a species back. That is where science fiction ends and science fact begins. First off, the material must be extracted from an animal that has been dead for a maximum of 5 days, or if longer, the animal must have been preserved by being frozen immediately after death to preserve its cellular integrity.

In order to bring back a rare Asian ox, the Gaur, Scientists infused a regular cow's egg with the genetic material of a living Gaur. While the egg was accepted by Bessie the cow's immune system, the Gaur calf suffered the same fate as all of the other cloned animals, and it succumbed to illness shortly after being born. If the technique had been successful, it could have been used to repopulate extinct species, or strengthen the ranks of those on their way to extinction.

If implanting eggs which were taken from a host animal with the DNA of another animal for the purpose of its acceptance by the host body's immune system produces similar results every time, maybe the implanted embryo's immune system fails to develop as that of a normal fetus. Perhaps by looking more closely at the immune system and its adaptability, we will understand why genetically identical clones are always inferior to the originals.

The suggested method is as follows:
   1. remove soft tissue from one frozen mammoth
   2. attempt to identify a complete strand of DNA
   3. extract an egg from a female of the mammoth's closest living relative, the Asian elephant
   4. irradiate that egg to destroy its existing DNA
   5. take the mammoth DNA and insert it into the elephant egg
   6. using in-vitro fertilisation, insert the egg into the female elephant
   7. wait 22 months (the gestation period of an elephant)
   8. raise and care for the baby mammoth