Scientists said on Friday they have genetically engineered female fruit flies that can have offspring without needing a male, marking the first time “virgin birth” has been induced in an animal. | AFP
“For the first time, scientists have managed to induce virgin birth in an animal that usually reproduces sexually: the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster,” Cambridge University said.Scientists revealed last month that a female crocodile in a Costa Rican zoo who had never been near a male laid an egg containing a fully formed fetus, the first recorded virgin birth for the reptile.
Sexual reproduction usually involves a female’s egg being fertilized by sperm from a male. But for parthenogenesis, the female develops the egg into an embryo all on her own. Alexis Sperling, a researcher at the United Kingdom’s Cambridge University and lead author of the new study, told Agence France-Presse that she had wanted to study virgin births ever since her pet praying mantis had one.
Seeking to find a genetic cause for the phenomenon, Sperling and several US-based researchers decided to experiment on the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster.The fly, which sexually reproduces normally, is one of the most studied animals for genetic research, meaning they could take advantage of more than a century’s worth of knowledge.
First the team sequenced the genomes of two strains of another fruit fly, Drosophila mercatorum. One strain reproduces solely via virgin birth, while the other needs a male.The researchers then compared the results, aiming to pinpoint the genes behind virgin births. They then manipulated the genes of the Drosophila melanogaster to match what they saw in its close relative.The research, which took six years, involved more than 220,000 fruit flies.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Scientists engineer fruit flies capable of 'virgin birth'PARIS, France -Scientists said on Friday they have genetically engineered female fruit flies that can have offspring without needing a male, marking the first time 'virgin birth' has been induced in an animal.
Read more »
Vatican directs CBCP to cease 75th celebration of Lipa apparitionThe Vatican has ordered the Catholics Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines to stop any celebration relating to the 75th anniversary of the alleged apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lipa, Batangas.
Read more »
Khanun maintains strength, accelerates north northwestward directionTropical Storm Khanun maintained its strength as it accelerates north northwestward, PAGASA said Friday.
Read more »
This month is the planet’s hottest on record by far – and hottest in around 120,000 years, scientists sayAs vast swaths of three continents bake under blistering temperatures and the oceans heat to unprecedented levels, scientists from two global climate authorities are reporting before July has even ended that this month will be the planet’s hottest on record by far.
Read more »
A worm has been revived after 46,000 years in the Siberian permafrostScientists have revived a worm that was frozen 46,000 years ago — at a time when woolly mammoths, sabre-toothed tigers and giant elks still roamed the Earth.
Read more »
July to be hottest month on record as UN warns of 'global boiling'PARIS, France -- July is on track to be the hottest month in recorded history, scientists confirmed Thursday, as UN chief Antonio Guterres warned Earth has moved into an 'era of global boiling'.
Read more »