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You might have heard of the glowing cats from South Korea (if not, check out this video). These cats have been genetically altered to have fluorescent skin that glows red when exposed to UV light. The scientists went a step further and cloned them, passing down the glowing gene to future generations of kitty clones. Whether it's for good or bad, genetic engineering seems to be here to stay, raising the question: How do we draw the line between scientific advancements and fundamentally altering the DNA of living beings?
If this sounds far-fetched, just take a look at these 10 astonishing cases of genetic engineering.
10. Spider Goats
Spider silk boasts nearly a million and a half potential uses, and we continue to discover more each day. Known for its remarkable strength relative to its size, it’s been explored for applications in bulletproof vests, artificial tendons, bandages, even computer chips and fiber optic cables in surgeries. However, gathering enough silk requires tens of thousands of spiders and a lot of patience, not to mention the fact that spiders often kill each other in their territories, making them hard to farm like bees.
So researchers are now turning to goats, the only animal on Earth that might actually benefit from incorporating spider DNA. Professor Randy Lewis of the University of Wyoming has isolated the genes responsible for producing dragline silk, the strongest silk that spiders use to anchor their webs (spiders actually produce six different types of silk). He then combined those genes with the genes that allow goats to produce milk, bred the goats, and confirmed that three out of seven of their offspring had inherited the silk-producing gene.
The next step is simple: milk the goats and extract the spider silk, perhaps while saving the day in a superhero-like fashion. And Professor Lewis embraces the irony—his office is decorated with Spiderman posters.
9. Singing Mice
Typically, scientists approach an experiment with a clear goal in mind. But sometimes, they simply inject a mix of genes into a mouse and observe the outcome. That’s how we ended up with this mouse that chirps like a bird. It’s part of the Evolved Mouse Project, a Japanese research initiative that’s taking a bold, experimental approach to genetic engineering—they modify mice, let them breed, and simply record what happens.
One morning, while checking a new batch of mice, the researchers were surprised to find a baby mouse “singing like a bird.” They focused on this mouse, and now they have over 100 mice capable of singing. Even more fascinating, when regular mice were raised among the singing mice, they began to adopt different sounds and tones, much like how a dialect might spread through a human population. Here’s a video of one of the singing mice.
What purpose will the singing mice serve? That’s unclear. But the project’s aim is to artificially accelerate evolution, and it seems to be leading to some unexpected outcomes. Professor Takeshi Yagi also claims that they have a mouse with “short limbs and a tail like a dachshund.” Bizarre, right?
8. Super Salmon
This genetically modified Atlantic salmon might soon be on the shelves of US supermarkets: engineered to grow twice as large and at twice the speed of regular salmon. Developed by AquaBounty and named the “AquaAdvantage salmon,” it has two specific genetic modifications: The first is a gene from Chinook salmon, a species that isn’t as commonly used for food as the Atlantic salmon, but grows much faster when young.
The second modification is a gene from an eelpout, a bottom-dwelling, eel-like fish that grows continuously throughout the year—unlike salmon, which generally only grow during the summer months. The result is a super-growing salmon that can grow all year, and it’s quickly on its way to being the first genetically engineered animal approved for human consumption. In fact, the FDA already granted its approval in December 2012.
7. Viral Bananas
In 2007, a research team from India published their findings on creating a strain of bananas that can inoculate people against Hepatitis B. They also successfully modified carrots, lettuce, potatoes, and tobacco to carry the vaccine, but they believe bananas are the most reliable delivery system for the vaccine.
In simple terms, vaccines work by injecting a weakened version of a virus or germ into the body. It’s not strong enough to make you sick, but just potent enough to trigger your immune system to produce antibodies, which then protect you in case the full-strength virus tries to invade your body.
However, there are many ways vaccinations can go wrong, ranging from allergic reactions to just not working at all. And why is it necessary to get a flu shot every year? Because viruses adapt in response to the vaccine—which means new strains of vaccinated bananas would need to be developed constantly to keep pace with the genetic arms race. And if you don’t want the vaccine? It’s easy enough to avoid a doctor’s office, but much harder to avoid it in your food, especially since GMO foods don’t have to be labeled.
6. Environmentally Friendly Pigs
Mother Nature can be a bit cruel. First, she hid all our meat inside animals that can run away, and then she turned these animals into environmental pollutants. Thankfully, science is stepping in to help. Enter the Enviropig, a pig that has been genetically modified to absorb more phytic acid, which helps reduce the amount of phosphorous waste the pig produces.
The aim is to reduce phosphorus pollution caused by spreading pig manure on fields, one of the methods used by hog farms to manage excess waste. The extra phosphorus in regular pig manure accumulates in the soil and leeches into nearby water sources, creating a serious issue. The elevated phosphorus levels in water lead to faster algae growth, which consumes all the oxygen, suffocating the fish.
The project continued for 10 generations of Enviropigs but ran out of funding in 2012.
5. Chicken Egg Drugs
If you have cancer, eating more eggs could one day help in your treatment. But not just any eggs—these would be eggs from chickens genetically modified with human genes. British researcher Helen Sang has created chickens with human DNA that produce proteins capable of fighting skin cancer.
When the chickens lay their eggs, half of the usual protein found in the egg whites will be replaced with drug proteins designed to combat cancer. These drug proteins can then be extracted and administered to patients. The goal is to make drug production more cost-effective and efficient, avoiding the need for the pricey bio-reactors commonly used in the industry today.
While this approach has many potential advantages, some have raised concerns about whether chickens used for drug production would be reclassified as “medical equipment” rather than “animals,” potentially circumventing animal rights laws.
4. Humanized Cow Milk
As if humanized chickens weren’t odd enough, scientists in China have already incorporated human genes into over 200 cows, with the aim of having them produce human breast milk. And it worked. According to Ning Li, who is leading the research, all 200 cows are now producing milk that is identical to that of a lactating human mother.
Their approach involved cloning human genes and combining them with the DNA of a cow embryo. The modified embryo was then implanted into a female cow. The ultimate goal is to create a genetically modified version of baby formula that could be used for infants, though there are valid concerns regarding the safety of providing genetically modified breast milk to babies.
3. DARPA’s Supersoldiers
For years, the US defense company DARPA has been delving into the human genome, and as you might guess from an organization responsible for creating 99% of the world’s lethal robots, their interest isn’t purely academic. While it’s tricky to navigate the Human Chimera Prohibition Act, they appear to be testing different methods to engineer a 'super soldier' using human genome research.
One of their projects, as outlined in their 2013 budget projection, earmarks $44.5 million to develop “biological systems that span various levels of biological structure and function, from molecular to genetic.” The aim is to enhance soldiers' capabilities in combat zones.
Here’s another project that’s, quite frankly, downright terrifying: DARPA’s Human Assisted Neural Devices program (found on page 70 of the budget if you’re curious). The goal is to 'Determine whether networks of neurons can be differentially modulated through optogenetic neural stimulation in animal models.' Optogenetics is a niche field in neuroscience that, we kid you not, aims to 'manipulate neuronal activity and control animal behavior.'
The budget further clarifies that they aim to have a functional demonstration of this technology on a 'non-human primate' within the year, which suggests that they’re already making significant progress. And it’s pretty clear where they’re aiming with this technology—zombie human supersoldiers.
My God, what have we done?
2. Pigs With Human Organs
Perhaps the furthest anyone has ventured in merging human and animal genetics, various research teams have started breeding pigs with organs that are suitable for human transplantation. Xenotransplantation—transplanting organs from one species to another—has faced a challenge in pig-to-human transplants due to a specific enzyme that pigs produce, but which is rejected by human bodies.
Randall Prather, a researcher from the University of Missouri, has successfully cloned four pigs that no longer carry the gene that produces the problematic enzyme. A Scottish company—the same one that was behind the cloning of Dolly the sheep—has also managed to clone five pigs that lack this gene.
It’s very likely that, in the near future, genetically modified pigs like these will be bred as 'organ factories.' Another possibility is that actual human organs will be grown inside pigs. While this research is still speculative, a rat pancreas has already been successfully grown inside a mouse.
1. Scorpion Cabbages
Androctonus australis is among the deadliest scorpions on the planet. Its venom is as potent as that of a black mamba and can lead to severe tissue damage, hemorrhaging, and the death of several people each year. Cabbage, however, is a vegetable commonly used in soups and sauerkraut. In 2002, researchers at the College of Life Sciences in Beijing merged the two and declared the result safe for human consumption.
They isolated a specific toxin from the scorpion’s venom and altered the cabbage’s genetic code so that it would produce this toxin as it grew. The idea behind developing a poisonous cabbage? The toxin, AaIT, is only harmful to insects—not humans. Essentially, it acts as a natural pesticide, paralyzing any insect like a caterpillar that tries to consume it, causing it to convulse violently and die from the spasms.
The concern lies in how an organism’s genetic structure evolves with each new generation. With the foundation for highly toxic venom already in place, how long will it take for the genes to mutate into something that could potentially be harmful to humans?
