Game of Thrones Direwolves "Resurrected" in the USA (2 photos + 1 video)

An American company has brought back to life a species of wolf that became extinct more than 12 thousand years ago. These wolves became the prototype of the dire wolves from Game of Thrones.





The species is called the Terrible Wolf or Dire Wolf. In ancient times, these predators roamed the plains and foothills of South and North America. It was their images that formed the basis for the serial pets of the Stark house - the dire wolves in Game of Thrones.

The wolf became extinct approximately 10-13 thousand years ago. And this is not just a huge wolf: it has a wide muzzle, light fur, powerful jaws and paws, and a distinctive howl.



To resurrect the wolf, scientists used two ancient DNAs: a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull. Then they edited the gray wolf's genome, which is 95% identical to dire wolves. Using CRISPR technology, specialists changed 14 genes.

After that, the nuclei of the edited cells were placed in special eggs, and then in the embryos of surrogate mothers. After 65 days, two dire wolves were born: Romulus and Remus. These puppies, as well as the female Khaleesi, were the result of 45 attempts at surrogacy.

Now Colossal is planning to resurrect the mammoth, dodo, Tasmanian wolf, giant sloth, saber-toothed tiger and other extinct creatures in this way.