ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Environment → Animals

Scientists resurrect extinct frog species that gives birth through its mouth

Tibi PuiubyTibi Puiu
March 18, 2013
in Animals, Genetics, Research
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

RelatedPosts

Females are not rational when it comes to choosing their mates – at least in frogs
China builds massive cloning factory to feed its people
Adorable pig-nosed frog completely new to science found in India
Researchers successfully regrow limbs on frogs. They want to do the same thing with humans
The gastric brooding frog incubates and hatches its eggs in its gut. The hatchlings then exit through the frog's mouth. (c) Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts
The gastric brooding frog incubates and hatches its eggs in its gut. The hatchlings then exit through the frog’s mouth. (c) Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts

In a great leap forward towards reviving extinct animal species, scientists at University of New South Wales, Australia have grown embryos that contain the genetic markup of a rather peculiar, yet unfortunately extinct frog species native to Australia. The frog died off in the 1980s due to parasites, loss of habitat, invasive weeds and fungus, and was one of the few animals known in the world to give birth through its mouth.

Birth through its mouth? Well, we’ve heard of weirder uses of the oral cavity, like urinating, but the gastric-brooding frog’s breeding trick is quite nifty. When this frog used to lay eggs, these were coated in a substance called prostaglandin, which breaks off the gastric acid in the stomach, making it a hospitable place for just about anything, including eggs. Naturally, the frog swallows these eggs, incubates them directly in the gut and when they hatch, the little baby frogs crawl out through the mouth.

Alas, both subspecies of frog – the the northern and souther gastric-brooding frog – went extinct sometime in the mid ’80s, yet genetics is not keen of farewells. Aptly named the Lazarus project, scientists have inserted dead genetic material of the extinct amphibian (conveniently, frozen specimens were kept in a common household freezer) into the donor eggs of another related species of living frog  – the great barred frog, which also lives in Queensland.

“In the beginning, the single cell eggs just sat there. But then, all of a sudden, one of the cells divided, and then it divided again, and again,” said University of NSW palaeontologist Mike Archer.

“There were a lot of high fives around the laboratory at that point.”

Resurrecting  the extinct back to life

The eggs continued to grow into three-day-old embryos, which scientists refer to as blastulas. They didn’t survive afterwards, unfortunately,  it was confirmed however that these embryos contain genetic information from the gastric-brooding frog. Still, their findings mark a big step forward in research efforts directed towards riving extinct animals. The Newcastle researchers are confident that this is a purely technical, not biological problem and in future attempts they’ll be able to breed a gastric-brooding frog to adulthood.

“This is the first time this technique has been achieved for an extinct species,” conservation biologist Michael Mahony told the Sydney Morning Herald.

The researchers hope that someday they’ll be able to revive a slew of currently extinct species  – a flicker of hope that humanity’s monstrous mistakes might be mended –  such as the woolly mammoth, dodo, Cuban red macaw and New Zealand’s giant moa.

“We are watching Lazarus arise from the dead, step by exciting step,” says the leader of the Lazarus Project team, Professor Mike Archer, of the University of New South Wales, Sydney. “We’ve reactivated dead cells into living ones and revived the extinct frog’s genome in the process. Now we have fresh cryo-preserved cells of the extinct frog to use in future cloning experiments.

“We’re increasingly confident that the hurdles ahead are technological and not biological and that we will succeed. Importantly, we’ve demonstrated already the great promise this technology has as a conservation tool when hundreds of the world’s amphibian species are in catastrophic decline.”

Professor Archer spoke last week at the TEDx DeExtinction event  when the Lazarus Project was publicly discussed for the first time. Archer also expressed his ongoing interest in cloning the extinct Tasmanian tiger, which died off almost a century ago.

Tags: cloningextinctfrog

ShareTweetShare
Tibi Puiu

Tibi Puiu

Tibi is a science journalist and co-founder of ZME Science. He writes mainly about emerging tech, physics, climate, and space. In his spare time, Tibi likes to make weird music on his computer and groom felines. He has a B.Sc in mechanical engineering and an M.Sc in renewable energy systems.

Related Posts

Animals

This frog is so yellow it even colors researchers’ hands

byMihai Andrei
7 months ago
Animals

Seven New Frog Species Discovered in Madagascar Whistle Like They’re from Star Trek

byTibi Puiu
7 months ago
majestic tiger
Animals

We only have one last chance to save the tigers

byMihai Andrei
9 months ago
Antonia, a cloned black-footed ferret, .
Animals

Scientists just cloned two endangered ferrets using frozen cells from 1988

byRupendra Brahambhatt
1 year ago

Recent news

The Worm That Outsourced Locomotion to Its (Many) Butts

May 16, 2025

The unusual world of Roman Collegia — or how to start a company in Ancient Rome

May 16, 2025
Merton College, University of Oxford. Located in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK. Original public domain image from Wikimedia Commons

For over 500 years, Oxford graduates pledged to hate Henry Symeonis. So, who is he?

May 16, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • How we review products
  • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Science News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Space
  • Future
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Physics
      • Matter and Energy
      • Quantum Mechanics
      • Thermodynamics
    • Chemistry
      • Periodic Table
      • Applied Chemistry
      • Materials
      • Physical Chemistry
    • Biology
      • Anatomy
      • Biochemistry
      • Ecology
      • Genetics
      • Microbiology
      • Plants and Fungi
    • Geology and Paleontology
      • Planet Earth
      • Earth Dynamics
      • Rocks and Minerals
      • Volcanoes
      • Dinosaurs
      • Fossils
    • Animals
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Fish
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
      • Invertebrates
      • Pets
      • Conservation
      • Animal facts
    • Climate and Weather
      • Climate change
      • Weather and atmosphere
    • Health
      • Drugs
      • Diseases and Conditions
      • Human Body
      • Mind and Brain
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Wellness
    • History and Humanities
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • History
      • Economics
      • People
      • Sociology
    • Space & Astronomy
      • The Solar System
      • Sun
      • The Moon
      • Planets
      • Asteroids, meteors & comets
      • Astronomy
      • Astrophysics
      • Cosmology
      • Exoplanets & Alien Life
      • Spaceflight and Exploration
    • Technology
      • Computer Science & IT
      • Engineering
      • Inventions
      • Sustainability
      • Renewable Energy
      • Green Living
    • Culture
    • Resources
  • Videos
  • Reviews
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Editorial policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.