Saturday, March 31, 2007

Q: Are mammoth genes making a comeback?

A: As far as we know, the woolly mammoths (such as those we find as fossils in Siberia) are extinct. But not so long ago, a team of scientists reconstructed a portion of the genetic code of the mammoth. They found that half of the “meta-genome” they sequenced from the mammoth is very similar to the African elephant.

Scientists in Japan and Russia have even announced plans to attempt to clone this well-known symbol of the Ice Age. One scientist in the United States said it might even be possible to genetically alter an elephant to turn it into a mammoth.

It shouldn’t surprise us that some of the genes of the wooly mammoth are found in the elephant populations of today. In the book of Genesis we read that God created distinct kinds of animals and plants—each to reproduce after its own kind. Just as there’s only one kind of dog, with different species within the kind … there’s probably only one kind of elephant.

From biblical history, two elephants came off Noah’s Ark. As they increased in numbers, and different groups moved in varying directions, different species within the kind would form. All of this fits with the account of creation and the Flood … recorded in the Bible!

This information was provided by Answers In Genesis, an excellent source of material relating to Creation and evolution. Please visit their website using the link in the upper left.

No comments:

 
mobile='yes'