Creating A Transgenic Animal

Question 1

What is a Transgenic Animal ?

Answer 1

Animals which have had their DNA altered by the addition of a gene which is not normally found in that species.

Question 2

What are the most common ways of creating transgenic animals ?

Answer 2

Micro injection (transfection) of recombinant DNA construct into a fertilised egg. 
Genes can be transferred to embryonic stem cells

Question 3

What is gene integration ?

Answer 3

Some but not all of the eggs will assimilate the new DNA with their original DNA. Any embryos that are made from these will the modified DNA.
The DNA of resulting offspring is tested using a PCR technique to see which animals have the modified DNA.

Question 4

What is Gene Expression?

Answer 4

When the promotor gene is active and the cell will carry out the instructions of the modified DNA. This could be the production of proteins which might influence how the animals look or how it functions.

Question 5

Why are transgenic animals often inbreed for many generations?

Answer 5

The inheritance of modified DNA is not guaranteed so by inbreeding the propagation of modified DNA is encouraged .