Big Tongues and Extra Vertebrae: The Unintended Consequences of Animal Gene Editing
Scientists around the world are editing the genes of livestock to create meatier pigs, cashmere goats with longer hair and cold-weather cows that can thrive in the tropics. But amid some successes, disturbing outcomes are surfacing.
Hasnain says:
“But there was another effect on the pigs: One in five offspring who inherited the edited genes had an extra spinal bone known as thoracic vertebrae, Dr. Li found. He doesn’t know why, though he postulates that the MSTN gene somehow contributes to skeletal formation.”
Posted on 2018-12-22T20:26:33+0000