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In order to learn more about the development of the human brain, scientists in China have added a gene from the human brain to the genome of rhesus monkeys. It is called MC HP 1 or microcephalin and participates in the regulation of fetal growth of the brain.
This addition seems to have made the monkeys smarter. The brains of transgenic animals took longer to develop – more like those of children – and they also showed better memory capabilities and shorter reaction times compared to their unmodified peers.
"This was the first attempt to understand the evolution of human cognition using a transgenic monkey model," said geneticist Bing Su of the Kunming Institute of Zoology at Technology Review.
Transgenic organisms are not new. The first was published in 1974, when Staphylococcus aureus the genes have been spliced into Escherichia coli. The first transgenic monkey, inserted with the genes of the jellyfish, was created in 2001.
Human genes were added to the monkeys to study diseases and conditions such as autism, and mice were modified with human cognition genes, including an altered microcéphaline. But researchers believe this is the first time researchers use transgenic monkeys to study the genetic origins of the human brain.
Scientists say it's an experiment concerning ethical implications.
The team exposed the monkey embryos to a virus carrying the human microcephalin. This generated 11 transgenic rhesus monkeys carrying the human gene, only five of which survived.
"Our results demonstrated that non-human transgenic primates (excluding monkey species) could provide important – and potentially unique – information on fundamental questions about what makes the human truly unique, as well as clinically relevant disorders and phenotypes, "the researchers wrote their paper.
But not everyone agrees. In fact, a 2010 article expressly condemns the whole concept of publishing great apes with genes from the human brain (though not necessarily apes), qualifying these potential studies as "unacceptable ethics" because of the high risk of damage to animals.
But using monkeys could be a step in this direction.
"The use of transgenic monkeys to study human genes related to the evolution of the brain is a very risky pathway," said James Sikela geneticist from the University of Colorado, co-author of the 2010 article, Technology Review.
"This is a classic slippery slope problem and can be expected to recur as this type of research continues."
In addition, one of the researchers in this latest study, computer scientist Martin Styner of the University of North Carolina, said that some aspects of the study would not be allowed in a countries subject to stricter regulation, such as the United States. In fact, the search did not find a publisher in the West.
Chinese genetic research is already relegated to the background after the work of geneticist He Jiankui, who claimed to have published the germ line of human twins. His American colleague, Michael Deem of Rice University, was also targeted.
It is unclear whether Su's new research would receive the same welcome if it was not in the shadow of Jiankui, but the geneticist would not let him slow it down. He is already working on the production of new transgenic monkeys.
But Styner said he was considering removing his name from the newspaper.
"Now we have created this animal that is different from what it is meant to be.When we do experiments, we need to fully understand what we are trying to learn, to help society, and this is n & rsquo; Is not the case here, "he said.
"They are trying to understand the development of the brain, and I do not think they can."
The search was published in National Science Journal.
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