'Initial stage' reached on dream of cloning woolly

mammoth - expert

By Olga Gertcyk

29 July 2016

South Korean specialist hails opening of new World Mammoth Centre in Siberia, dedicated to bringing

beast back to life.

A whooly mammoth inside a permafrost cave in Yakutsk. Picture: The Siberian Times

Cloning guru Professor Hwang Woo-Suk did not go into details of the progress made in restoring the extinct

species after several thousand years of extinction, but made clear he expected to publish new research in

scientific journals as soon as 'checks' are complete.

Speaking in Yakutsk - Russia's mammoth capital which is to host a pioneering new international centre

dedicated to the creature - the controversial South Korean scientist confirmed progress in bringing the animal

back to life after cooperation between experts from the two countries.

'As a result of tireless joint efforts, we have achieved what we call the 'initial stage' on our way to recovering the

mammoth,' he said, thanking Russian president Vladimir Putin for his support for research in this field. 'At this

stage, thorough scientific checks are under way.

'Once they are completed, we will publish the results in scientific journals.'

Yuka the 'strawberry blond' whooly mammoth in Yakutsk. Pictures: The Siberian Times

The professor

leads the SOAAM

Biotech Research

Foundation in

South Korea and

has been working

closely for several

years with Russian

specialists at the

North Eastern

Federal University

in Yakutsk, which

will host the new

World Centre for

Mammoth

Studies.

'The second step,

and further

studies, are

already scheduled

by researchers of

the university,

SOOAM and the Korean National Research Group,' he revealed.

He did not put a timescale on when he hoped to see mammoths once more tromping the earth, but said: 'We

continue the search for new materials and samples. We need such cell that can share information. If we could

find a sample that is not only well preserved but also in which biochemical processes can take place, we will be

able to impregnate it with the help of the Asian elephant materials.'

South Korean professor noted that the political leadership in Russia supports scientific achievements, and said

that the interest of the head of state in mammoth studies is evident.

Hwang Woo-Suk pictured working in Yakutia. Pictures: SEFU, Semyon Grigoryev, YSIA

The head of the university's Mammoth Museum laboratory, Semyon Grigoriev, said: 'There are two options

forthe mammoth cloning.

'The first is through the search for active cells. The second option is artificial DNA synthesis.'

The new World Mammoth Centre 'will see progress in palaeontological studies and the final goal will get

closer,' he added. 'The university is a unique place with a rigorous research team where serious studies are

conducted.'

He spoke as it was confirmed that the new World Centre for Mammoth Studies will be opened at

the Northeastern Federal University.

Successful cloning will be a key aim but in an intriguing move it was also revealed that tourists to Yakutsk - the

world's coldest city and Russia's diamond capital - would be invited to witness the ongoing work to bring the

woolly mammoth back from the dead.

The centre is being built in partnership with the Korean Fund for Biotechnology Research. It will have

underground laboratories sunk into the permafrost on which Yakutsk is built.

Semyon Grigoryev with Vladimir Putin, and Yakutsk marked on the world map. Pictures: YSIA

The centre will help improve competitiveness of Russian science in the field of paleontology, said Egor

Borisov, head of the Sakha Republic, also known as Yakutia, the largest constituent of the Russian

Federation. He stressed that the centre should be open to tourists from around the world.

In 2006, Hwang was dismissed by Seoul National University for faking groundbreaking work in stem cell

research.

The university said Hwang had damaged its and his country's reputation. Yet he remains at the forefront of

research into cloning, and he is leading research into seeking the DNA of the woolly mammoth from remains of

the creatures recovered from the permafrost in the Sakha Republic. He is also working on other extinct animals

such as Siberian cave lions.

The mass death of mammoths began about 20,000 to 24,000 years ago. The process continued for a long time

and had a pronounced second wave of extinctions that occurred 13,000 to 15,000 years ago.

The last major wave of deaths occurred about 9,000 to 12,000 years ago although there is evidence they

survived in smaller groups near Alaska and at Wrangel Island, in the Russian Arctic, as recently as 3,700 years

ago.

Pictures below show team if Yakutian scientists working with a carcass of a woolly mammoth

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