Scientists one step closer to recreating woolly mammoth

Melbourne: Scientists are one step closer to recreating the DNA of woolly mammoth, it has been reported.

After studying the preserved DNA from mammoths, the scientists at Harvard University were able to separate the genes that made them unique from elephants, News.com.au reported.

They were then able to reproduce an exact copy of 14 of the mammoth's genes and splice them into the genetic code of an elephant with no fault.

Professor of genetics at Harvard University George Church said the ground breaking technique, known as "Crispr," allowed scientists to make precision edits to DNA.

This has been the first time mammoth genes have been alive for more than 3,300 years.