At 3,500 pounds, the northern white rhino is the second largest land animal on the planet — and one of the most poached.

Its horns are made of pure keratin, used in Asian traditional medicines and as status symbols within the culture. There are only two of these giants left on our planet, under constant protection of the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Both are female and non-reproductive. But a breakthrough in genome sequencing might give the species a second chance at life.

A group of scientists has completed a full genetic map of this rare rhino, sort of like creating its complete instruction manual. Published in the journal PNAS, this breakthrough could one day help bring the species back using cutting-edge science.

The genetic blueprint could allow researchers to create special cells that behave in the same manner as the rhino’s stem cells. They can possibly be turned into eggs or sperm and perhaps into embryos.

There is still a way to go. Growing a rhino embryo in a lab won’t happen overnight, but this is a giant leap forward to not only saving the northern white rhino, but other animals threatened by extinction.

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