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Tasmanian tiger, a marsupial apex predator, went extinct nearly a century ago. Now, scientists are closer than ever to reviving the animal through genome sequencing in a process similar to the fictional revival of dinosaurs in Jurassic Park.

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The carnivore's genome has been reconstructed with 99.9% accuracy, the latest breakthrough in the years-long 'de-extinction' project. 

There are only 45 gaps left to fill in the genome sequencing, which was made possible from a chance discovery of a head of the animal pickled in a jar in Australia some 110 years ago.

Watch: Gravitas: Scientists extract RNA from extinct Tasmanian tiger

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Behind this mammoth task (pardon the pun) is Colossal Biosciences, a Texas-based firm that is also in the process of reviving the woolly mammoth and the dodo, a flightless bird that also went extinct over a century ago.

What happened to tasmanian tiger? An icon of extinction

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The Tasmanian tiger or thylacine roamed the forests of Tasmania in Australia from where it takes its name.

Once a critical link in the ecosystem of Tasmania, they officially went extinct in 1936 after the last animal died at Beaumaris Zoo in Tasmania's Hobart.

Colossal teased that a major update is coming soon on the revival of the animal, whose scientific name is Thylacinus cynocephalus,

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Also read: Did woolly mammoth go extinct because of a blocked nose? Study says they did

A miracle in the making: How a head pickled in a jar could bring back extinct Tasmanian tiger

The Tasmanian tiger head recovered from the jar in Australia still had RNA molecules, which is crucial for rebuilding the genome. Using samples from the head, most of the DNA of the animal has been sequenced along with strands of RNA.

It was nothing short of a miracle, according to scientists involved in the project who spoke to media.

Also read: In 'Jurassic Park' style, extinct flightless bird dodo to be revived. Scientists say...

“This was the miracle that happened with this specimen. It blew my mind,” said Prof Andrew Pask, the head of the thylacine integrated genetic restoration research or Tigrr lab at the University of Melbourne.

“It was literally a head in a bucket of ethanol in the back of a cupboard that had just been dumped there with all the skin removed, and been sitting there for about 110 years,” The Guardian quoted Pask as saying. “It was pretty putrid, a completely gruesome sight. People had chopped large chunks off it.” 

Genome sequencing: A method of 'de-extinction' of the world's lost species?

“You absolutely can get a phenomenal genome from old samples,” Pesk told LiveScience.

DNA is the genetic material that is the fundamental building block of life. A genome is a full set of DNA that gives the unique charecteristsic to each organism. Genome contains the chemical information for development, growth and functioning of living beings.

As Pesk puts it, genomes provide 'the full blueprint for de-extincting this species'.

Getting the complete genome sequencing at very high quality is a huge help to the efforts to revive extinct species, he said.

(With inputs from agencies)