Submitted via IRC for Bytram
Researchers produce virus-resistant pigs, could vastly improve global animal health
Researchers at the University of Missouri have successfully produced a litter of pigs that are genetically resistant to a deadly porcine virus.
Coronaviruses, highly contagious and widespread viruses known for their distinctive microscopic halos, are responsible for a variety of deadly intestinal diseases in livestock. One such virus, Transmissible Gastroenteritis Virus (TGEV), commonly infects the intestines of pigs, causing almost 100 percent mortality in young pigs. Now, a team of researchers from MU, Kansas State University and Genus plc—a global leader in animal genetics— has succeeded in breeding pigs that are resistant to the virus by means of gene editing.
"Previous research had identified an enzyme called ANPEP as a potential receptor for the virus, meaning it could be an important factor in allowing the virus to take hold in pigs," said Randall Prather, distinguished professor of animal sciences in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. "We were able to breed a litter of pigs that did not produce this enzyme, and as a result, they did not get sick when we exposed them to the virus."
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @09:49AM (1 child)
These days I need to buy "organic" chicken meat because there is something seriously wrong with the "standard" stuff. Perhaps its a gmo thing, they knocked out the tasty enzyme to get longer shelf life or something.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday October 17 2018, @05:04PM
"Standard" chicken has been bred (GMO or otherwise) to grow FAST, time is money.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 3, Touché) by Gaaark on Wednesday October 17 2018, @10:25AM (3 children)
Researchers build unsinkable ship: it runs into an iceberg
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday October 17 2018, @05:07PM
The Titanic couldn't reproduce in the wild... Wild pigs are already problematic, now they can't get sick from viruses too? That _will_ be a problem when the variant goes feral.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Wednesday October 17 2018, @05:11PM
Monsanto makes weed-killer-resistant plants, ends up with weed-killer-resistant weeds.
People invent bacteria-killing drugs, bacteria says "hold my yeast" and develops drug resistance.
Some guy makes a trace-buster, runs into a trace-buster-buster.
Researcher make virus-proof pig, how long before they end up with virus-proof-pig virus ?
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday October 17 2018, @05:57PM
Researchers build unsinkable ship: it runs into an iceberg
Blame it on marketing. "Sinking resistant" just doesn't sell tickets!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:20PM (2 children)
Convincing people that GMO pigs are safe to eat. For a lot of people the negativity in "GMO" is right up there with "nuclear".
(Score: 3, Interesting) by HiThere on Wednesday October 17 2018, @04:26PM
That's a problem. From my point of view the serious question is "What did the deleted section of code do?" I understand that deleting it solves one problem, but it may well have evolved for a reason. In fact it almost certainly did. So are you making the pigs susceptible to some other disease? Removing the ability to digest some food? What? And how sure are you?
As long as this change is only in a few strains of pig there's no problem, but if it becomes universally adopted...we are already experiencing some crops that will probably go extinct because of changes we've bred into them that were universally adopted. Many strains of coffee are under threat, and chocolate may become extinct. (Chocolate isn't a good model though because of all the specialized processing needed to produce it.) The banana that was most popular in the 1930's has gone extinct, and the currently most popular line is under threat. (Bananas are another bad example, of course, because each strain is as genetically identical as a naval orange.)
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @10:32PM
Since your typical American lardass doesn't know that bacon comes from pigs this won't be a problem. Mmmm.... cheaper bacon.