The last two northern white rhinos - Ian He



The last two northern white rhinos - Ian He



The northern white rhino is a subspecies of the white rhino. They were indigenous to parts of Africa, but are now extinct in the wild due to poaching. As of March 19, 2018, there are only two northern white rhinos alive, living at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. They are both females, which means the only way to keep the population alive is with artificially assisted reproduction.

Through in vitro fertilization and stem cell techniques, we could create hybrids with southern white rhinos, or using artificial insemination with the DNA of dead male northern white rhinos. Scientists pushing to keep the species alive are trying to extract eggs from the remaining females and combine them with frozen sperm, and implant the embryo into a surrogate, most likely a southern white rhino or a horse.

Another method would be through pluripotent stem cells, which can be transformed from normal adult cells. Scientists are trying to turn skin cells into these stem cells, which can then be turned into egg cells.

Through these techniques, a live birth is planned within the next 10 years.




https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/northern-white-rhino-brought-back-brink-extinction-180969000/

http://www.olpejetaconservancy.org/wildlife/rhinos/northern-white-rhinos/

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/07/africa/kenya-northern-white-rhino-hope/index.html




Do you think this technique could be used on other extinct or near-extinct animals?

Do you think this will work?



What are the potential downsides?

Comments

  1. AnonymousJanuary 14, 2019 at 11:31 AM

    I think this is a really awesome thing because it will keep them from going extinct

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  2. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2019 at 11:50 AM

    lets pray this species does not die. if they are being genetically modified lets hope that they turn out well.

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  3. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2019 at 11:51 AM

    I think if the artificial insemination is done in moderation, it will be a good step towards saving our endangered species. -Ashley Herman

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  4. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2019 at 11:59 AM

    only two white rhinos left in africa due to paching

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  5. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2019 at 12:03 PM

    I think it's cool that there putting the rhinos DNA into another animal to try and make more white rhinos-Alvi Lending

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  6. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2019 at 12:06 PM

    Eventually we will come up with a solution to get another white rhino. I think our technology is there.

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  7. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2019 at 4:43 PM

    I think that the procedure could be useful but we wouldn't know what the for sure outcome would be. Potential downsides would be mixing animals and getting a different hybrid than we had originally expected. Trying to recreate a species that might be good to die off could potentially cause another problem.

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    Replies
    1. AnonymousFebruary 7, 2019 at 12:14 PM

      I agree, but I think the good outweighs the risks, and this is a good opportunity to save a species and potentially have a solution to save other species for extinction too.
      Ian He

      Delete
  8. AnonymousJanuary 17, 2019 at 12:08 PM

    i think that they should do whatever they can to save the animals and putting an animal through the insemination process will probably save the animals this is a rare opportunity
    and if they loose it they will regret it

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  9. UnknownJanuary 17, 2019 at 12:10 PM

    The injection of sperm for reproduction is the best idea for me, for it has the best benefits

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  10. AnonymousJanuary 17, 2019 at 12:11 PM

    i think that it'll be cool if we actually create more white rhinos with that DNA

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  11. UnknownJanuary 17, 2019 at 12:12 PM

    I think we can't make a other white rhinos unless we have something like frozen sperm.-Jason Williams

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  12. UnknownJanuary 17, 2019 at 12:14 PM

    no ISRAEL it will be AEWSOME if we can create more rhinios - Brando Mckinley

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  13. AnonymousJanuary 22, 2019 at 12:02 PM

    we need genetiv engineering

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  14. AnonymousJanuary 22, 2019 at 12:15 PM

    I say that unless there is another way to help this species of rhino, then we might as well go with genetic engineering. -Jeffrey

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  15. AnonymousJanuary 25, 2019 at 12:08 PM

    we need to put a stop to this because other animals need rhinos to eat and if we kill them all then that animal won’t haven anything to eat and they could die. -christa medcalf

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  16. AnonymousFebruary 7, 2019 at 12:04 PM


    We need crack down on the people who are doing this. We need more people to help animals because they can’t help themselves.

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  17. AnonymousFebruary 11, 2019 at 11:38 AM

    WOw, thats crazy. No females. There cant be new ones

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  18. UnknownFebruary 11, 2019 at 11:52 AM

    Genetic engineering is the best solution, for now and the future
    -jon

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  19. UnknownFebruary 12, 2019 at 5:51 PM

    Poaching is a problem but hopeful with artificial insemination we can create more northern white rhinos and save the species from extinction. I see the potential down sides as what could happen if we do not do it just right. Joe Peck

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  20. AnonymousFebruary 19, 2019 at 12:23 PM

    Let's hope this rhino doesn't die.

    ReplyDelete

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