The 'resurrection' debate in biotechnology is growing: Can extinct species really be brought back?

The idea of ​​"bringing extinct creatures back to life", which came to the center of popular culture with Jurassic Park, one of the cult productions of cinema history, is today the main agenda item of multi-million dollar biotechnology investments. However, a new scientific article signed by researchers at Wheaton College in Massachusetts and published in the respected science journal Biology Letters revealed that commercial companies' claims of "de-extinction" do not reflect reality.

Scientists stated that combining ancient DNA data with the genes of modern creatures does not mean resurrecting an extinct species, and that the public is being misled by terminological games.

20 EDITIONS MADE IN 14 GENES DO NOT TURN THE GRAY WOLF INTO THE Terror WOLF

In the article, the announcements of the biotechnology company Colossal Biosciences that they brought back the "dire wolf" that lived between 250 thousand and 10 thousand years ago were scrutinized. Biologists stated that the process consisted of comparing ancient DNA with modern canids, and emphasized that 20 genetic edits made in 14 genes in gray wolf cells only created physical similarities.

Researchers stated that a historical lineage shaped by generations of mutation, natural selection and ecological interactions cannot be replicated in a laboratory environment, and noted that the resulting creature is not a real terror wolf, but only a "modified gray wolf with terror wolf characteristics."

THE BIOLOGICAL GIFT BETWEEN CLONING AND GENE EDITING

Scientists point out that the biological results of the methods that are publicly collected under a single title are completely different from each other. It is stated that since backward breeding and gene editing techniques are carried out on existing living species, they can never produce the original extinct species; It is stated that cloning from frozen cells and embryos can establish a direct biological link with the original population.

However, it is emphasized that even genomes synthesized from ancient samples will remain only "ecological proxies built from information" unless they come from a living ancestor.

"ORPHANIZED ANIMALS ARE RISK OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAUMA"

Experts state that the debate is not limited to genetic terminology and make serious warnings about the animal welfare and ethical aspects of the project. Animal welfare expert from the University of Southampton, Dr. Heather Browning stated that breeding creatures that have learned to survive through generations of herd culture in nature, on their own, in the laboratory creates a major ethical problem.

Dr. Browning stated that these creatures, who were born without parents to guide them and their natural social environment, were left "orphan" and that they would face severe psychological trauma as they were deprived of the security and social interaction they needed during their youth. The researchers called for these advanced genetic technologies to be used to preserve the genetic diversity of living species currently at risk of extinction, rather than in stunts to resurrect the extinct.