Cloning Dinosaurs: The Difficulties of Finding Complete DNA and a Surrogate Species
© Beverly Eschberger
DNA is found in all the cells of all living organisms, and it is theoretically possible to find dinosaur DNA preserved in the fossilized bones of dinosaurs.
The problem lies in how bones are fossilized. Living bones are composed of mineral components (calcium hydroxyapatite) and organic components (collagen, blood cells, etc.). Fossilization involves the replacement of the mineral components with other minerals which seep into bones from water or sediment immersion.
Dr. Mary Schweitzer has been doing research on organic material found in dinosaur bones at the Museum of the Rockies in Montana., but refuses to confirm dinosaur DNA until she is absolutely certain.
Finding Complete Dinosaur DNA
If preserved DNA is found, the next requirement is that the DNA is complete. The cloning process of dinosaurs involves the insertion of complementary DNA from extant (still living) species into the gaps where the dinosaur DNA was missing.
This would require that the complete genome of both the dinosaur and any animals used to fill in the gaps. It would also be important to know what functions these genes performed in both the extinct and extant species.
Although the Human Genome Project has recently completed its mapping of the human genome, scientists do not know the functions of the genes in most complex animals that are not commonly used in genetic research.
What about cloning dinosaurs from DNA recovered from mosquitoes preserved in amber? Again, the first difficulty would lie in being able to recover the complete genome of the animal. The majority of the DNA extracted would belong to the insect.
The mosquito's digestion of the blood would destroy the DNA, a chemical breakdown which continues even after death. Mosquitoes do not feed on only one species. This means that any DNA recovered from a mosquito would be a mix of the DNA from the different animals that it fed on.
Finding a Surrogate Species for Dinosaur Eggs
If the complete genome of a dinosaur could be mapped, the next step is to make the egg. Scientists could remove the nuclear DNA from the egg of a an ostrich, before the shell is formed, and insert the dinosaur DNA. The shell would then form while the egg was inside the bird, and could then be laid and incubated by the ostrich.
It might also be possible to do this with the egg of a crocodilian. Much more research is required before we will see dinosaurs and other extinct animals in our local zoos.
The problem lies in how bones are fossilized. Living bones are composed of mineral components (calcium hydroxyapatite) and organic components (collagen, blood cells, etc.). Fossilization involves the replacement of the mineral components with other minerals which seep into bones from water or sediment immersion.
Dr. Mary Schweitzer has been doing research on organic material found in dinosaur bones at the Museum of the Rockies in Montana., but refuses to confirm dinosaur DNA until she is absolutely certain.
Finding Complete Dinosaur DNA
If preserved DNA is found, the next requirement is that the DNA is complete. The cloning process of dinosaurs involves the insertion of complementary DNA from extant (still living) species into the gaps where the dinosaur DNA was missing.
This would require that the complete genome of both the dinosaur and any animals used to fill in the gaps. It would also be important to know what functions these genes performed in both the extinct and extant species.
Although the Human Genome Project has recently completed its mapping of the human genome, scientists do not know the functions of the genes in most complex animals that are not commonly used in genetic research.
What about cloning dinosaurs from DNA recovered from mosquitoes preserved in amber? Again, the first difficulty would lie in being able to recover the complete genome of the animal. The majority of the DNA extracted would belong to the insect.
The mosquito's digestion of the blood would destroy the DNA, a chemical breakdown which continues even after death. Mosquitoes do not feed on only one species. This means that any DNA recovered from a mosquito would be a mix of the DNA from the different animals that it fed on.
Finding a Surrogate Species for Dinosaur Eggs
If the complete genome of a dinosaur could be mapped, the next step is to make the egg. Scientists could remove the nuclear DNA from the egg of a an ostrich, before the shell is formed, and insert the dinosaur DNA. The shell would then form while the egg was inside the bird, and could then be laid and incubated by the ostrich.
It might also be possible to do this with the egg of a crocodilian. Much more research is required before we will see dinosaurs and other extinct animals in our local zoos.
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