using animal dna to make coats

[rosie]

Is it possible to use an animal's dna like tiger's pelt to make one that looks the same instead of cloning and killing the whole creature?

[action9000]

In order to use DNA (genetic code, basically), the genetics need to be formed into a complete creature that can survive on its own.  There's no way to simply manufacture a material such as skin and fur using only DNA without some sort of method of reproduction (which will result in a new living creature).

Scientists have been able to "grow" human skin to an extent in labs.  Perhaps eventually this technology could be used to "grow" fur coats someday, who knows?

It probably won't be cost-effective for tens or hundreds of years though, if ever...

[Kor]

It should be possible since in the laboratory they have managed to grow a human bladder in cell scaffolding using the patient's own cells, or some such like that.  A few may have been transplanted.  Though it may not be ready for general hospital use yet I would guess.  So it seems, and once the genetic knowledge and technology is there it should be possible, though expensive at first, to get some dna samples of an animal and grow what they can make into a fur coat, leather ect without harming the animal, or even some meat, without harming any animals, by just growing some skin, skin & hair, meat, ect.  Though the knowledge and technology may be decades or longer away.

[Petrie.]

Its called fake fur from a man-made material, like nylon or something, yet looks real.  Best choice yet.

[Kor]

Yes, based on current technology.  But in the future, who knows.  Maybe clones of fur, grown in special vats, may be possible, though it would be very expensive at first.

Got me to thinking just now.  If they did get the cloning individual organs to where they could grow meat in some sort of vats, that could mean, assuming the frozen mammoth's dna is not all messed up, that they could vat grow mammoth meat.  Imagine in some sci-fi story some could sell vat grown mammoth steaks.

[Ptyra]

Fake fur is the best fur   . And leather instead of stinking, horrible, and most of all UGLY snakeskin. How dare those stupid roundup people and so on   . My poor snakies  

Or, better yet, make its fur grow really long and sheer it. Like with sheep and llamas