Extinction Solution for Thousands of Species Thanks to Gene Editing

 

        

       Ethical genome engineering has been making exceptional progress in the stride to rehabilitate endangered species and their compromised ecosystems.  Professor Cock Van Oosterhout and Dr. Stephen Turner's team of geneticists and bio-technologists claim recovery of lost genetic diversity in endangered species can be restored with the help of historic DNA samples. Van Oosterhout states "Gene engineering provides a way to restore that variation, whether it's reintroducing DNA variation that has been lost from immune-system genes that we can retrieve from museum specimens or borrowing climate-tolerance genes from closely related species". This statement suggests that by figuring out what gene is compromising a species, such as lack of climate change tolerance, scientists can extract a wanted gene from a relative species and introduce this to the compromised species. 

    One example of this successful application is the restoration of the once critically endangered pink pigeon (pictured below). This species was down to 10 known birds and brought back up to over 600, thanks to three key methods: restoration of variation that was once lost, facilitating adaptation, and reducing the passing of harmful mutations to following generations. 

    

Figure 1: newborn genetically altered pink pigeon 

    Some risks factors of this method include unintentional genetic modifications and reductions, therefore until percent error is mitigated, this approach remains experimental. 

    This method of attempting to help endangered species seems simple, yet practical. By introducing new technologies with what scientists already know about the species and their ancestors,  solutions can be suggested and practical applications can be made. Although gene alteration is not a replacement to species protection,  this is a hopeful positive step in the rehabilitation of many organisms, and perhaps one day the term "extinction" will be endangered. 

Sources

https://phys.org/news/2025-07-gene-solution-endangered-species.html

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/07/250720034017.htm