Genetics unearth the colour of a mammoth's coat

The prehistoric wooly mammoth may have determined how your border collie got her rich, red coat.

Biologists from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany have discovered a gene called Mc1r that determines the colour of the wooly mammoth's coat. The gene still exists in mammals today, according to scientists.

The mammoth's leg bone, dating back to the Pleistocene era some 40,000 years ago, was used to extract DNA where two versions of the Mc1r gene were found. One version was active, the other only partially so.

When comparing the two genes, scientists realized different combinations could result in different coloured coats for the beasts.

According to the scientists, if a mammoth has both an inactive gene and an active gene, its coat would be a dark colour. If it has two inactive genes, its coat would be lighter.

Researchers predict this could be the way present-day mammals get their coat colour, although some are determined based on lifestyle.

Photography: Grand Valley State University

Source: Discovery Channel Reports, July 6 edition