Woolly mammoths could once again roam Arctic regions as part of an incredible plan to clone these vast beasts that disappeared 10,000 years ago.

Harvard University scientists - who are set to publish scientific papers in the coming weeks - are using DNA from a woolly mammoth that has been preserved in Siberian ice for more than 42,000 years.

If the two-year plan came to fruition, the woolly mammoths would live in a 20,000 hectare Ice Age safari park created by Russian scientists in a remote part of Siberia.

This could also regenerate Arctic climates because they would stimulate the growth of vegetation, the lead researcher has said.

Their ambitious plan involves growing the creature within an artificial womb rather than recruiting a female elephant as a surrogate mother.

The final beast would be a hybrid between an Asian elephant and a mammoth.

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Woolly mammoths could once again roam Arctic regions as part of an incredible plan to clone these vast beasts that disappeared 10,000 years ago (artist's impression)

The Harvard University scientists plan to use CRISPR gene technology to splice the preserved DNA of a frozen mammoth carcass with the DNA of an Asian elephant

Researchers are using a genetic technique called CRISPR-Cas9.

The system allows the 'cut and paste' manipulation of strands of DNA with a precision not seen before.

Using this technique, scientists could cut and paste preserved mammoth DNA into Asian elephants to create and elephant-mammoth hybrid.

'We have already revived dozens of genes and are testing them in elephant cells', lead researcher Professor George Church told the Sun Online.

'We are focusing on a reviving mammoth genes and making a mammoth/elephant hybrid and help them spread to vast wild, arctic climates', he said.

According to Professor Church, these large beasts could even repopulate freezing wastelands.

'Cold-resistant elephants would flatten the insulating snow and supporting trees in winter and favour the highly heat reflective grass in summer', he said.

'They would also help capture new carbon by enhancing the photosynthetic capacity of the vegetation.'

It's thought that the grasslands will reflect more sunlight than the forests that exist today, allowing the winter freeze to penetrate deeper into the crust, and cool the soil beneath.

Over the years, the trees at the Siberian park have been flattened using powerful tank-like vehicles.

But, in order to keep the trees from taking over again, they'll need to employ large, grazing animals – including resurrected woolly mammoths.

Using this technique, scientists -led by Dr George Church (pictured) from Harvard University could cut and paste preserved mammoth DNA into Asian elephants to create and elephant-mammoth hybrid

COULD WE RESURRECT MAMMOTHS? Male woolly mammoths were around 12 feet (3.5m) tall, while the females were slightly smaller. They had curved tusks up to 16 feet (5m) long and their underbellies boasted a coat of shaggy hair up to 3 feet (1m) long. Tiny ears and short tails prevented vital body heat being lost. Their trunks had 'two fingers' at the end to help them pluck grass, twigs and other vegetation. They get their name from the Russian 'mammut', or earth mole, as it was believed the animals lived underground and died on contact with light – explaining why they were always found dead and half-buried. Their bones were once believed to have belonged to extinct races of giants. Woolly mammoths and modern-day elephants are closely related, sharing 99.4 per cent of their genes. The two species took separate evolutionary paths six million years ago, at about the same time humans and chimpanzees went their own way. Woolly mammoths co-existed with early humans, who hunted them for food and used their bones and tusks for making weapons and art. The most widely used technique, known as CRISPR/Cas9, allows scientists to create a hybrid animal from the preserved fossils of woolly mammoths and merging it with cells from a living elephant. The two species share 99.4 per cent of their DNA 'De-extincting' the mammoth has become a realistic prospect because of revolutionary gene editing techniques that allow the precise selection and insertion of DNA from specimens frozen over millennia in Siberian ice. The most widely used technique, known as CRISPR/Cas9, has transformed genetic engineering since it was first demonstrated in 2012. The system allows the 'cut and paste' manipulation of strands of DNA with a precision not seen before. Using this technique, scientists could cut and paste preserved mammoth DNA into Asian elephants to create and elephant-mammoth hybrid. Mammoths roamed the icy tundra of Europe and North America for 140,000 years, disappearing at the end of the Pleistocene period, 10,000 years ago. They are one of the best understood prehistoric animals known to science because their remains are often not fossilised but frozen and preserved. Advertisement

It was first announced the billionaire founder of Paypal had funded an ambitious project back in June last year.

Peter Thiel, who is worth $2.7billion (£2.1 billion), had reportedly put $100,000 (£77,000) of his own funds into a scheme.

In February 2017, the group announced that the scheme would take just two more years to produce the 'nearest possible thing to a mammoth' that could be created.

Lyuba, the world's most well-preserved mammoth, went on display at the Natural History museum in 2014

The bundle of cells would have genes for mammoth features such as shaggy long hair, thick layers of fat, and blood that is perfectly suited to flowing in sub zero conditions.

Since starting the project in 2015, the researchers have increased the number of 'edits' where mammoth DNA has been spliced into the elephant genome from 15 to 45.

Professor Church said: 'We're working on ways to evaluate the impact of all these edits and are basically trying to establish embryogenesis in the lab.

'The list of edits affects things that contribute to the success of elephants in cold environments.

Paypal founder Peter Thiel (file photo), who is worth $2.7billion (£2.1 billion), has reportedly put $100,000 (£77,000) of his own funds into a scheme

'We already know about ones to do with small ears, sub-cutaneous fat, hair and blood, but there are others that seem to be positively selected.'

He added: 'Our aim is to produce a hybrid elephant/mammoth embryo. Actually, it would be more like an elephant with a number of mammoth traits.

'We're not there yet, but it could happen in a couple of years.'

The woolly mammoth roamed across Europe, Asia, Africa and North America during the last Ice Age and vanished around 10,000 years ago.

Their closest living relative is the Asian, rather than the African, elephant.

'De-extincting' the mammoth has become a realistic prospect because of revolutionary gene editing techniques that allow the precise selection and insertion of DNA from specimens frozen over millennia in Siberian ice.