Scientists genetically revive extinct 'dire wolves'

What happened

Colossal Biosciences, the "de-extinction" company that gained prominence seeking to revive the woolly mammoth, said Monday it had genetically engineered three dire wolves — or at least wolf pups with many traits of the extinct species. Dire wolves, popularized in "Game of Thrones" and other fantasy media, ran wild in North America until they went extinct about 13,000 years ago.

Who said what

The three pups — Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi — were created by modifying 20 genes of the gray wolf, the dire wolf's closest living relative, based on DNA extracted from a dire wolf tooth and skull. The modified DNA was transferred to a domestic dog egg cell then implanted in surrogate dog mothers who gave birth to the pups.

Colossal said the pups have thick white fur and are 20% bigger than gray wolves their age, among other differences. The company called the project the world's first successful de-extinction effort, but these aren't full dire wolves and won't live and hunt like their extinct ancestors. "They are essentially living the Ritz Carlton lifestyle of a wolf," said Colossal chief scientist Beth Shapiro. With extinct species, University of Buffalo biologist Vincent Lynch told The Associated Press, "all you can do now is make something look superficially like something else."

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What next?

Colossal plans to create more dire wolves to study how they act in packs, and observe the three pups to see how big they get and how they change with age. "I'm fascinated to see what happens," Shapiro told The New York Times.