Jellyfish DNA Can Make Glow In The Dark Pigs

When scientists from Turkey created glow in the dark Rabbits in August 2013, we wondered whether or not this interesting experiment would continue. Well it has, a team from the South China Agricultural University has been able to produce 10 glow in the dark pigs. The pigs turn a green color when exposed to black fluorescent lights. The technique was first developed at the University of Hawaii’s Manona School of Medicine. The technique involves injecting the subject animal embryo with DNA from jellyfish. The reason for the “green” glow is that the florescent genetic material from the jellyfish has successfully been incorporated into the pigs natural genetic make-up whilst the animal was still an embryo.

The reason for these color changing experiments isn’t just for fun or a giggle. Researchers hope that from the findings of these successful experiments in the future they will be able to introduce different beneficial genes into much larger animals to help create more effective and less costly medicines. Dr Stefan Moisyadi from the University of Hawaii where the technique was developed went onto explain more;

“The green color shown by the animals is just a marker to show that we can take a gene that was not originally present in the animal and now is. With this technique we can create enzymes a lot cheaper in animals rather than in a factory that will cost millions of dollars to build”.

Although there is a scientific and medical use tho this breakthrough, one would wonder when new genetic trait could be made available to the public as a new version of “designer pet”. What family petwould you like to see glow in the dark? On a final note Dr Moisyadi went onto say that the animals were not negatively affected by the florescent protein and they would have the same life span as other pigs.

Thanks to The Sydney Morning Herald for the information provided

Image Courtesy of ZDOUF