MOSCOW, September 1 (RIA Novosti) — Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed on Monday the possibility of cloning a woolly mammoth with the scientists from the Lazarev Mammoth Museum, part of the Northeastern Federal University.
This museum is the only one of its kind in the world: with a collection that includes some of the most recently excavated and unique ancient animals.
Putin was shown the only complete skeleton of a mammoth, while viewing an exhibition made specially for the president.
The head of the museum, Semyon Grigoriev, told the head of state that in the last 4 years they had managed to collect more than 4,000 exhibits. One of them is the a 12,500 years old mummy of a dog, the only one in the world, according to Grigoriev.
The main treasure of the museum is the so-called Malolyahovsky mammoth, which is virtually intact, after being preserved for 28,000 years under the Siberian ice. Even its soft tissue and liquid blood remain.
President Putin asked whether the scientists possessed materials to clone the animal. "Soft tissues are preserved, — said the president. — So, can it be cloned?"
The museum staff explained that they are working in close co-operation with South Korean scientists in order to achieve this.
As for the prospects of cloning, the students told Putin that there is a complete cell's worth of mammoth DNA. The blood sample is kept in a specialized freezer at —17°C (1.4°F).
Cloning prehistoric animals has interested scientists for a long time, but the results are still hard to predict.
