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A Chinese gene business has effectively cloned a wild arctic wolf for the first time. One hundred days following her birth in a Beijing facility, Sinogene Biotechnology published a video of Maya, the very first wild arctic wolf that would be cloned.
The very first clone wild arctic wolf, Maya, is 3 approximately months old & healthy, as per the Global Times. A wild female polar wolf’s skin sample was the origin of Maya’s donor cells. As per the article, its surrogate was a beagle, and its oocyte was derived from a female dog.
Key Takeaways
- A Beijing-based gene company successfully cloned the Arctic Wolf to save the imperilled species from extinction.
- The name Maya, which signifies health, was given to the freshly cloned wolf.
- A native female Arctic Wolf’s skin sample served as the wolf’s donor for its stem cells. A dog’s oocyte was used to create it.
- By enucleating (removing the cell’s nucleus) eggs and somatic cells, 137 new embryos were created during the cloning procedure.
- Seven beagles’ wombs received 85 embryo transfers.
- The beagle has been chosen as a surrogate mother as it was discovered that this canine breed has genetic ties to the extinct wolf.
Chinese scientists exhibit the very first cloned wild Arctic wolf
The first wild Arctic wolf to be successfully cloned was by researchers at a gene company in Beijing. The Arctic wolf has been successfully cloned after 2 years of arduous work, according to Mi Jidong, general manager of Sinogene Biotechnology Co. in Beijing, as reported by Global Times. The firm claims that the wolf going by the name of Maya is healthy. Arctic wolves are in danger of becoming extinct. China has, for the first-ever, cloned Arctic wolves to conserve them. This youngster has now lived 100 days. This wolf has been cloned by Beijing-based Harbin Polarland and the genetics firm Cyanogen Biotechnology. Cloning, as per the executives and experts of this firm, can help rescue endangered and rare species from extinction.
Cloning
Cloning is the act of creating identical genetically matched live entities, such as cells, tissues, etc., either by organic or artificial processes. Asexual reproduction is a process used by some organisms in nature to create clones. Dolly, a sheep, was the first creature to be cloned artificially two. A Scottish scientist developed it in 1996 using an adult sheep’s udder cell. Japanese researchers have recently, around July 2022, been successful in creating cloned rats using freeze-dried cells. With the help of this recent development, bio-banking—the procedure of preserving animal cells and making clones from them—will now be achievable.
Arctic wolf
Polar or white wolves are other names for the arctic wolf. On Canada’s Queen Elizabeth Island, a variety of grey wolves may be discovered in the High-Arctic tundra. North of the northernmost treeline is where Arctic wolves reside. Its more diminutive stature, thinner braincase, white colouring, and bigger carnassials set it apart from the northern wolf.
Procedure for cloning Arctic Wolf
- A Beijing-premised gene company successfully cloned the Arctic Wolf to save the imperilled species from extinction.
- The name Maya, which signifies health, was given to the freshly cloned wolf.
- Arctic wolf cloning research was initiated in 2020 to save endangered species.
- Arctic wolves were successfully cloned after 2 years of intense work.
- The Beagle dog breed served as Maya’s surrogate mother.
- The dog was selected as the surrogate because it had genetic ties to extinct wolves, which will make cloning successful.
- Using somatic cells and enucleated oocytes, 137 new embryos were first created.
- 85 embryos were then transferred into the uteri of 7 beagle dogs, one of which gave birth to a healthy wolf.
The Threat of extinction
is not the first time conservation biologists have exploited cloning technology. In Malaysia, where every Sumatran rhino has perished, scientists are trying to use stored tissues and cells to employ surrogate women to give birth to new rhinos. Others, though, depend on gene editing technology, with one team in Australia attempting to modify cells from a marsupial to resurrect the extinct Tasmanian tiger. As the Earth approaches what is widely regarded as its sixth mass extinction, scientists all over the world are racing to conserve endangered species.
This massive extinction would be unusual in that it would be caused by humans, who have wiped out thousands of species via wildlife trafficking, pollution, habitat loss, and hazardous chemical usage. However, most of these newer conservation initiatives have sparked debate, with concerns about the ethical and health consequences of cloning and gene editing.
In Maya’s instance, one expert informed the Global Times that additional research is required to determine whether cloning has any health hazards. He also believes that further rules should be established to assess the proper application of the technology, including only cloned extinct or critically endangered species.
Potential of Cloning Technology
For a long time, cloning technology has been used by conservationists. Researcher Lai Liangxue from the Chinese Academy of Biomedicine & Health described cloning as a breeding technique distinct from natural reproduction, particularly for living creatures with small populations and those for which it is challenging to obtain germ cells.
According to him, cloned animals may still procreate if they have intact fertilised eggs. The expert emphasised that an animal that has been cloned shares the same physical characteristics as the animal that served as its model. To carry out reproductive processes, they can create gametes.
Scientists in Malaysia intend to use preserved cells and tissues to conceive rhino calves using surrogate moms. In late 2020, American researchers successfully cloned a threatened species of the wild black-footed ferret. And in Australia, scientists are attempting to resurrect the endangered Tasmanian tiger by editing the cells of a mammal.
