From woolly mice to woolly mammoths - 31st March 2025

A biosciences company in the US is trying to bring back the woolly mammoth. This elephant-like creature existed on Earth more than 4,000 years ago.

Colossal Biosciences is using the latest scientific methods to achieve their goal. The project involves making changes to genetic information. It makes use of the frozen bodies of mammoths which have emerged from the ice due to global warming. The scientists compare this material with the DNA of the Asian elephant to understand, for example, which genes produce the mammoths' hairy coat.

Mice rather than elephants are then used to experiment with the genetic data. This is because of the long pregnancy periods in elephants. And the specialist team has successfully produced mice with longer fur, as well as fur which is lighter brown in colour.

The head of Colossal Biosciences, Ben Lamm, is satisfied with their successes so far. He expects to have "the first cold-adapted elephant by 2028". Lamm believes their work is essential to protect the planet's biodiversity.

However, many experts think differently, for scientific, practical and philosophical reasons. One bioscientist from Sheffield University, Dr Tori Herridge, doubted whether it was in fact a woolly mammoth. She said the Colossal project was simply about changing "the appearance of elephants".

A different expert wrote that it was impossible to bring an extinct animal back to life. While another questioned if it was right to use an elephant mother to give birth to a different species. But for Colossal, a woolly mammoth-like creature remains the end goal.