Will Tasmanian Tiger Clone Work
Many scientists believe that they would be able to reproduce a clone
from the available DNA of a 136-year-old Thylacine specimen conserved in
ethanol since 1866. The geneticists of the Australian museum believe
they would be able to replicate bits of this wonderful creature from its
century-old ancestor.
The Australian Museum has quite wonderfully involved private funding
parties who are ready to finance this project. It also attracted the
attention of the renowned Australian documentary television channel,
which aims at broadcasting a television show on the cloning research
program.
 Some even think that it would not be viable and intelligent to spend so
much money behind an unsuccessful project rather the investment should
me made towards the conservation of those species that are on the verge
of extinction now. It would be wise to spend behind the present than the
one, which is already lost. There is also a possibility when the
commoners may take duplication of species negatively following an
environmental disorder.
The cloning process
The duplication may take place through a process known as Polymerase
Chain Reaction, which points to the small part of the DNA derived from
the specimen, which is of good quality to function and match with a
living cell.
Going by the planning and statements given by the experienced Australian
geneticists, the reproduction of clones of this extinct creature may not
be possible immediately. The most significant step would be to arrange
the entire hereditary library for proper reference of DNA of the
animals. This sort of practice will in turn work as a catalyst for the
process of reproduction of clones of a particular animal. Autonomous
observers are watching the whole process with intense interest but they
remain doubtful on the probability of the fertilization of the embryo,
which is implanted, in a near relative species like the Tasmanian Devil.
The efforts and experiment
Even after seventy years of extinction of the Tasmanian Tiger, in an
experiment the DNA has been restored inside the mice and was the first
time when the gene of an extinct animal was transfused into a living
host.
This procedure had high hopes and great prospective. It might just help
the researchers to reveal on how the Neanderthals or the dinosaurs
looked like. The university of Melbourne had collected DNA samples of
four 100 years old Tasmanian Tigers that included three infants and one
adult. These samples are preserved in alcohol for future experiments and
research.
Before the DNA was injected into the embryo of the mouse, the team of
researchers had speculated, copied the DNA fragment and matched it with
the gene that produces blue pigment.
This experiment proved to be highly successful and the team decided to
use the same technique to investigate biological syndromes like the
awkward shape of the Tasmanian Tiger that almost looked like a dog than
a kangaroo and even huge creatures like the dinosaurs and Neanderthals.
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