Animal Biotechnology Flashcards
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what is animal biotechnology
breeding combined with molecular genetics and recombinant DNA technology to produce animals with desirable traits
examples of hybrid animals (3)
zebroid (zebra + horse/donkey/pony)
liger (lion + tiger)
wholpin (killer whale + bottlenosed dolphin)
differences of lab-grown meat compared to conventional meat (5)
- grown from animal cells in vitro
- no greenhouse gas production so more environmentally friendly
- animals don’t have to be killed, just their cells are used so more ethical
- less harmful additives
- very expensive
examples of everyday animal products (5)
meat, milk, eggs, leather, wool
goals of livestock breeding (9)
- faster growth so more efficient conversion of feed to lean tissue
- increased milk production
- better food quality
- better wool quality
- lower fat content
- resistance to disease
- faster maturation
- faster reproduction and more production
- better market for livestock
limitations of conventional breeding (3)
- Long duration
- Limited to crossing within species
- Lower selection efficiency
what is artificial insemination
transfer of collected semen to a recipient female
what animals is artificial insemination used with (4)
sheep, beef cattle, turkeys, and swine
how and why are the estrous cycles of female animals regulated
with hormone injections
to synchronise their cycles for a more successful artificial insemination process
what is Embryo Transfer
harvesting of fertilized ova from a donor and implanting them into a recipient
how can Embryo Transfer be done without surgery
the embryos are flushed from the uterine horn
what is Chick sexing
method of distinguishing the sex of chicken and other hatchlings by by a chick/en sexer
what is Gender preselection
choosing the gender of a potential offspring
how does Gender Preselection work
sorting sperm, which either have an X (female) or Y (male) chromosome
what are transgenic organisms
genetically modified organisms with DNA from another source inserted into their genome
what transgenic animals have been created (8)
Mice, Cows, Pigs, Sheep, Goats, Fish, Frogs, Insects
goals of transgenic animal creation (3)
Research into animal and human disease
Improve livestock animals
Use of animals as bioreactors
what is a bioreactor
system that uses living cells or organisms to produce valuable products like proteins, pharmaceuticals, or enzymes in their milk, blood, etc.
methods of transgenic animal creation (3)
Microinjection
Recombinant Defective Retrovirus
Linker-Based Sperm-Mediated Gene Transfer (LB-SMGT)
steps of microinjection (3)
foreign gene injected into a fertilized egg’s male pronucleus > embryo develops, gene integrates into the genome > embryo implanted in surrogate mother
steps of Recombinant Defective Retrovirus (4)
modified virus carrying foreign gene is injected into unfertilized egg > virus releases genetic material which integrates into genome > after 6h, sperm is injected for fertilization > embryo implanted in surrogate mother
steps of Linker-Based Sperm-Mediated Gene Transfer
(LB-SMGT) (4)
linker binds foreign gene to sperm > sperm delivers gene into the egg during fertilization > gene integrates into genome
drawbacks of Transgenic Animal Creation methods (3)
Eggs must be harvested and fertilized in vitro
Inserted DNA randomly integrates into the genome
More than one copy of the gene may be integrated
Examples of Transgenic Animals (4)
transgenic cattle –> extra copies of casein genes, produce more milk protein
EnviroPig –> have phytase, breaks down pollutant phytic acid into P, P is absorbed into body
ANDi –> carries GFP gene, hair and toenails glow green
GloFish –> carry GFP gene, normally black-and-silver zebrafish were turned green/red
what is Knock-out technology
“knocking out” a gene to deduce its function from the defects seen in the resulting transgenics
what makes Knock-out technology different from traditional transgenic technology
the transgene is targeted at a specific site in the DNA
what does GDF8 gene stand for and what does it do
growth differentiation factor 8 (myostatin) regulates muscle growth and differentiation
what does FGF5 gene stand for and what does it do
fibroblast growth factor 5 regulates hair growth
what animals have been cloned using Embryo Splitting (Twinning) (3)
Sheep, Cattle, Primate (Rhesus)
what animals have been cloned using Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (12)
Sheep, Goat, Mouse, Rabbit, Cattle (domestic & wild), Pig, Horse, Mule, Dog, Cat (domestic & wild), Deer
steps of Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (4)
remove nucleus from donor egg > harvest somatic (2n) cell from animal wished to be cloned > fuse cell and enucleated egg with electricity to trigger cell division > embryo implanted in surrogate
steps of Embryo Splitting (Twinning) (3)
embryo split to form 2 half-embryos > transferred to unrelated surrogate mother > half-embryos develop into full, identical embryos, aka twins
what is Pharming
use of genetically modified organisms to produce pharmaceutical products (bioreactors)
examples of animal bioreactors
- PPL Therapeutics & The Roslin Institute: Tracy the sheep; produced alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) in her milk; treatment for emphysema & cystic fibrosis
- Nexia Biotechnologies: goats; produced silk protein from Orb spiders in milk; silk extracted, dried, and spun into fibers stronger and more flexible than steel
- GTC Biotherapeutics: goats; human anti-thrombin (ATryn); prevent thrombosis
why is there an interest in using rabbits for pharming
- cheaper housing costs
- faster reproduction times
what endangered or extinct animals are being cloned or considered for cloning (5)
Gaur, Banteng, Bucardo mountain goat, Mammoth, Quagga
What are some problems associated with cloning? (3)
Low success rate (1-3%), compared to 20-50% in IVF
Adult clone sudden death syndrome
At higher risk for health conditions and shortened life
failure rate of cloning mammals
98%
how was the world’s first cloned horse created
researchers fused nuclei from skin cells of good quality horses with enucleated eggs from slaughtered horses
841 successfully reconstructed embryos > 22 reached blastocyst stage > 17 inserted into surrogates > 4 pregnancies > 1 live birth
7 things to know about horse cloning
- Cloning a horse costs ~$150,000
- Polo sport uses cloning to preserve top genes
- The FEI allowed cloned horses to compete in 2012
- Clones can’t be registered with the American Quarter Horse Association
- The sample must come from a live horse
- The success rate is ~12%
- Birth defects are common in cloned foals, with some being severe or fatal
