• HumanPenguin@feddit.uk
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    1 month ago

    Genuine question. How many genes were different in the original dir wolf?

    Also elsewhere said 20 genes were changed. But I’ve no reason to consider that source better then yours.

    • underscores@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      1 month ago

      Ancient DNA is pretty degraded, so it’s hard to get an exact number. It’s estimated they diverged more than 5 million years ago, so it’s probably hundreds or thousands of different genes.

      wikipedia article

      Scientists rewrote 14 key genes in gray wolf EPC cells to express 20 dire wolf traits meaning that “no ancient dire wolf DNA was actually spliced into the gray wolf’s genome.”

      • HumanPenguin@feddit.uk
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        1 month ago

        Thanks.

        Also thanks for pointing out I mixed genes and traits. Was a video I saw so me missing it makes perfect sense.