Colossal scientists have claimed that they have created three dire wolf pups by using ancient DNA, cloning and gene-editing technology, which they used to alter the genes of a gray wolf. The dire wolf is a species that died out some 12,500 years ago. It now lives again as the “world’s first successfully de-extincted animal,” according to Dallas-based biotech company Colossal Biosciences, CNN reported. The three dire wolf pups were named Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi.
The dire wolf, Aenocyon dirus, was the inspiration for the courageous canine featured in the HBO TV series Game of Thrones. The gray wolf is the prehistoric dire wolf’s closest living relative. The dire wolf was a top predator that once roamed North America, and was larger in size than the gray wolf.
What are dire wolves?
According to Britannica, the dire wolf existed during the Pleistocene Epoch (2.6 million to 11,700 years ago), and is possibly the most common mammalian species to be found preserved in the La Brea Tar Pits in southern California. Dire wolves first appeared in the Americas. There is no evidence to suggest that they interbred with gray wolves, which originated in Eurasia before dispersing to North America.
According to the Colossal Laboratories & Biosciences’ analysis, “the dire wolf genome revealed that they were stunning, with likely light, nearly-white coats, sturdy legs and the unique craniofacial features of a true American superwolf.”
The Colossal Laboratories & Biosciences noted that dire wolves were visually similar to today's gray wolves and jackals. However, they had a distinct genetic lineage. “Unlike with the gray wolf and jackal, which can produce hybrid offspring with related species, there is no current data showing interbreeding between dire wolves and other canids,” it said.
Difference between dire wolves and gray wolves
Britannica revealed that dire wolves and the modern day gray wolves differed in various ways. The dire wolf “was larger and it had a more massive skull, a smaller brain, and relatively light limbs,” the website says, adding, “the species was considerably widespread.” Skeletal remains of the dire wolf have been found in Florida, the Mississippi River valley, and the Valley of Mexico.
TIME reported that creating the new dire wolves required 20 edits in 14 genes in the common gray wolf. Those tweaks, however, prompted various changes, including “Romulus’ and Remus’ white coat, larger size, more powerful shoulders, wider head, larger teeth and jaws, more-muscular legs, and characteristic vocalizations, especially howling and whining.”