March 24, 2006

 

Study shows GM cattle can be made immune from mad cow disease

 

 

Researchers have combined cloning and genetic engineering to control specific genes in livestock, which could lead to the development of cattle that are resistant to mad cow disease.

 

This is the first such study in which the removal of specific genes or changes in their strength had been done on animals other than mice.

 

Researchers Mark Westhusin and Charles Long two Texas A&M University veterinary professors have successfully silenced the production of a targeted protein in a fetal goat.

 

The A&M researchers said they believe their study was also the first to combine cloning and genetic engineering.

 

The study targeted the gene coded to make prion protein, which causes the disease scrapie in goats. Scrapie is similar to mad cow disease.

 

The researchers used a genetically engineered cloned cell line to produce the goat, which was designed to inhibit the scrapie-producing protein.

 

The A&M study, combined with another study, shows that genes can be changed in the unfertilised eggs of cattle.

 

In theory, the study could change the future of livestock.

 

By changing the genes of single cells before they multiply, the scientists could "turn off" genes that allow a disease to manifest. This technology also could also lead to improvements in meat and milk products, the researchers reported in their paper.

 

Currently, genetically engineered animals cannot enter the food chain, although up to 80 percent of crops in the United States are genetically engineered.