In a groundbreaking new study, scientists have sequenced RNA from a Tasmanian tiger specimen that is over a century old, bringing the goal of resurrecting extinct species closer to reality.
The specimen, preserved at room temperature in the Swedish Museum of Natural History, has allowed researchers to reconstruct the skin and skeletal muscle transcriptomes from this extinct species, marking a first in the scientific community.
The Tasmanian tiger, or thylacine, stands as a symbol of human-induced extinction. This carnivorous marsupial, once reigning as an apex predator across Australia and the island of Tasmania, faced its downfall post-European colonization.
Deemed an agricultural nuisance, the government set bounties on these creatures in the late 19th century. This resulted in their rapid decline. The last recorded thylacine died in captivity in 1936, but its memory still haunts the conservationist community.
Emilio Mármol, the lead author of the study, highlights the challenges of de-extinction, stating, “Resurrecting the Tasmanian tiger or the woolly mammoth requires a deep knowledge of both the genome and transcriptome regulation.” This sentiment underscores the significance of their research, published in the Genome Research journal, as they’ve provided the first detailed look into the Tasmanian tiger’s RNA.
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