A hidden reservoir of red wolf DNA has been found in coyotes in southwestern Louisiana – and it could be used to help the endangered wolves grow their wild population
A genetic reservoir of red wolf “ghost DNA” has been found hidden in coyote-wolf hybrids in southwestern Louisiana. The long-lost genes represent genetic diversity that experts thought disappeared when the last 14 wild red wolves were captured and bred in the 1970s.
are critically endangered. Just over 200 live in captivity, and only one population was reintroduced to the wild in North Carolina in 1987. By 2012, that population reached 120 individuals, but today only 20 remain. The rewilded wolves are genetically homogeneous and therefore more vulnerable to harmful genetic mutations, changing environments and extinction. The genetically diverse coyote-wolf hybrids may hold the keys to the species’ survival.She and her colleagues sequenced the genomes of more than 30 coyotes from southwestern Louisiana, where red wolves last lived in the wild and where they mingled and mated with coyotes. They found that up to 69 per cent of the genomes originated from red wolves.
The canine chimeras look like intermediates between the two species, but vonHoldt says they behave more like wolves. “I don’t think we should call it a coyote anymore,” she says. “If it looks like a wolf, and it acts like a wolf, maybe we should just call it a wolf.”The wolf-like coyotes could be the key to conservation. She says that when more red wolves are ready to be reintroduced to the wild, they should be placed close to hybrid carriers of this ghost DNA.
Additionally, the researchers are developing biobanks – what vonHoldt calls “frozen zoos” – of coyote cells that could be cloned to resurrect
Indonesia Berita Terbaru, Indonesia Berita utama
Similar News:Anda juga dapat membaca berita serupa dengan ini yang kami kumpulkan dari sumber berita lain.
Run by former Uber CEO, ghost kitchen with dozens of spaces opens in downtown IndianapolisThe 8,788-square-foot facility opened with three restaurants serving breakfast, seafood, American comfort food and Indonesian cuisine.
Baca lebih lajut »
Ghost in the Shell: SAC 2045 is mostly a return to form for the franchiseI've gone on record multiple times saying 'Ghost in the Shell' is one of my favorite films of all time and 'Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex' one of my favorite anime series.
Baca lebih lajut »
Former Guardsman facing additional 'ghost gun' charges after threatening Columbus schoolFormer National Guardsman Thomas Develin appeared in U.S. District Court on Wednesday. He faces five federal charges, including illegal possession of a machine gun.
Baca lebih lajut »
Obi-Wan Kenobi Fan Edit Hilariously Imagines Jar Jar Binks As Force GhostA new ObiWanKenobi edit from Jesse McLaren hilariously imagines Jar Jar Binks as a Force Ghost in the series finale.😂 Check it out ➡️
Baca lebih lajut »
Directed evolution and selection of biostable l-DNA aptamers with a mirror-image DNA polymerase - Nature BiotechnologyMirror-image PCR and l-DNA sequencing-by-synthesis enable the directed evolution and selection of functional l-DNA aptamers.
Baca lebih lajut »