Tasmanian Tiger DNA 'Lives' Again

Seventy years after the ferocious Tasmanian tiger went extinct, its marsupial DNA has been resurrected inside mice. This is the first time that genetic material from an extinct animal has functioned inside a living host... The team then copied the DNA snippet, coupled it with a gene that produces a blue pigment, and injected it into very early mouse embryos. When the fetuses were 14 days old, the team studied them, and found that the thylacine genetic material was functioning – as indicated by the blue stain... But it should also be possible to use this technique with other, much older extinct specimens, including some for which their DNA is much better preserved – such as the mammoth, various dinosaurs and Neanderthals.