- Jan 7, 2002
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Creation of 'GM' monkey heralds health revolution
Gene breakthrough offers hope of treatments for 'incurable' Parkinson's disease and MS
Scientists yesterday announced a breakthrough that could transform research into a range of incurable diseases but spark a dramatic increase in the number of monkeys used in experiments. Researchers have developed a technique to create genetically modified monkeys that suffer from human illnesses.
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Experimenting on these monkeys, they believe, will advance our understanding and treatment of incurable conditions such as Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis. However, the scientific breakthrough has caused consternation among groups opposed to animal experiments because the development will almost certainly lead to a sudden increase in the number of primates used in medical research at a time when there are calls for fewer monkeys to be used in experiments.
The development also raises the prospect that we will be able to apply the technique to humans ? another primate. This could help families affected by inherited disorders such Huntington's disease and cystic fibrosis by permenantly eradicating their defective genes from future generations.
The breakthrough was achieved by a team of scientists in Japan led by Erika Sasaki of the Central Institute of Experimental Animals in Kawasaki and Professor Hideyuki Okano of Keio University School of Medicine. Their study, published in the journal Nature, used marmoset monkeys, the smallest member of the primate group.
The "transgenic" monkeys were created by inserting a gene from a jellyfish into their embryos to make them glow under ultraviolet light ? a standard test to see if the technique worked. When the monkeys became adults they passed on this transgenic trait to a subsequent generation of offspring. This "proof of principle" suggests that other genes could also be manipulated to create animals that mimic human disorders. This is already possible in mice.
"The expression of an introduced gene was discovered not only in the first generation of common marmosets after introduction, but also in a second. This is the first case ever established in the world than an introduced gene was successfully inherited to the next generation in primates," Professor Okano said.
http://www.independent.co.uk/n...evolution-1691807.html
Gene breakthrough offers hope of treatments for 'incurable' Parkinson's disease and MS
Scientists yesterday announced a breakthrough that could transform research into a range of incurable diseases but spark a dramatic increase in the number of monkeys used in experiments. Researchers have developed a technique to create genetically modified monkeys that suffer from human illnesses.
Related articles
Experimenting on these monkeys, they believe, will advance our understanding and treatment of incurable conditions such as Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis. However, the scientific breakthrough has caused consternation among groups opposed to animal experiments because the development will almost certainly lead to a sudden increase in the number of primates used in medical research at a time when there are calls for fewer monkeys to be used in experiments.
The development also raises the prospect that we will be able to apply the technique to humans ? another primate. This could help families affected by inherited disorders such Huntington's disease and cystic fibrosis by permenantly eradicating their defective genes from future generations.
The breakthrough was achieved by a team of scientists in Japan led by Erika Sasaki of the Central Institute of Experimental Animals in Kawasaki and Professor Hideyuki Okano of Keio University School of Medicine. Their study, published in the journal Nature, used marmoset monkeys, the smallest member of the primate group.
The "transgenic" monkeys were created by inserting a gene from a jellyfish into their embryos to make them glow under ultraviolet light ? a standard test to see if the technique worked. When the monkeys became adults they passed on this transgenic trait to a subsequent generation of offspring. This "proof of principle" suggests that other genes could also be manipulated to create animals that mimic human disorders. This is already possible in mice.
"The expression of an introduced gene was discovered not only in the first generation of common marmosets after introduction, but also in a second. This is the first case ever established in the world than an introduced gene was successfully inherited to the next generation in primates," Professor Okano said.
http://www.independent.co.uk/n...evolution-1691807.html
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