A TEAM of scientists from Harvard University are working to resurrect the woolly mammoth and believe that they are within two years of creating a hybrid embryo.

If they succeed it will mark a turning point in plans to haul the ancient beast – which once roamed across Europe, Asia, Africa and North America during the last Ice Age, vanishing some 4500 years ago – back from extinction by programming its key traits into an Asian elephant.

The bundle of cells would have genes for mammoth features such as shaggy long hair, thick layers of fat, and cold-adapted blood. However, years of work still lie ahead before an attempt can be made in earnest to produce a living creature.

The project was started two years ago, with researchers having increased the number of “edits” – where mammoth DNA has been spliced into the elephant genome – from 15 to 45.

Professor George Church, who heads the Harvard team, said: “We’re working on ways to evaluate the impact of all these edits and trying to establish embryogenesis in the lab.

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

“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.”