A group of scientists manages to activate the cells of a 28,000-year-old mammoth "Diario The capital of La Plata

A group of scientists managed to activate the cells of a 28,000-year-old mammoth by implanting them in mouse oocytes, although it is very unlikely that they bring them back to life.

The project, conducted in Japan by an international team, took cells from a well-preserved mammoth discovered in 2011 in Siberian permafrost and introduced them into dozens of female mouse badual cells.

Five of the mice had characteristic biological reactions of the beginning of cell division, said AFP Kei Miyamoto, a member of the Kindai University team, in western Japan. .

But none has entered the division phase that would have been needed to create a mammoth, he said.

"This shows that despite years, cell activity can still occur," said the scientist.

"So far, many studies have been devoted to fossil DNA and not to its effectiveness," he added.

But the results of this research published in the journal Scientific reports They give little hope of ever seeing a new specimen of this extinct species, he warned.

"We also realized that the damage to the cells was very deep (…) We did not even see cell division and that's why I must say that we are very far from the reproduction of a mammoth, "he said.

This university has collaborated with other Japanese and Russian institutions to study the possible cloning of a mammoth and hopes to explore other methods to bring prehistoric animals to life.

"We need new technologies, we want to try several approaches," said Miyamoto.