科学家研发出了新的鸡,下的蛋可以抗癌
The eggs laid by a group of "pampered" hens in the UK contain something special in their whites. After researchers from the University of Edinburgh spliced a human gene into the chickens' DNA, the animals began laying eggs boasting a significant amount of two proteins used to treat diseases including cancer in humans - and the process, they say, is far cheaper than current methods of protein production. "Production from chickens can cost anywhere from 10 to 100 times less than the factories," researcher Lissa Herron told the BBC. "So hopefully we'll be looking at at least 10 times lower overall manufacturing cost." The human body naturally produces the proteins found in the new hen eggs - IFNalpha2a and macrophage-CSF, if you're wondering - and they each play an important role in the immune system. Drugs containing both proteins are widely used by doctors to treat cancers and other diseases, but producing the proteins in the lab is difficult and expensive. The genetically modified chickens, which live "pampered" lives in large pens, are none the wiser either, according to Herron. "As far as the chicken knows, it's just laying a normal egg," she told the BBC. "It doesn't affect its health in any way, it's just chugging away, laying eggs as normal." Though their research yielded promising results, the team believes it'd take between 10 and 20 years before regulatory agencies would approve for human use any drugs developed from their genetically modified chickens. |