Koalas developed a unique detox toolkit that allows them to nibble happily on a source of poisoned food avoided by their competitors, a complete genetic plan of animals showed
Unfortunately for marsupials, specializing in a Eucalyptus diet leaves left them very vulnerable to habitat loss.
Genome data could also help researchers develop better vaccines to treat animals, which are battling an epidemic of bacterial chlamydia.
19659005] Professor Rebecca Johnson with a sleeping koala. (University of Sydney / PA) ” clbad=”blkBorder img-share” />
Professor Rebecca Johnson with a sleeping koala. (University of Sydney / PA)
The genome scale of the koala is comparable to that of its human counterpart, according to the scientists involved.
A team of 54 researchers from 29 institutions in seven countries sequenced more than 3.4 billion "letters" constituting the koala genetic code with an accuracy of 95.1%.
They also identified more than 26,000 genes – segments of DNA that provide instructions for making proteins – and unveiled some of their functions
. The discovery revealed that koalas have a large number of genes active in the liver for detoxification.
The genes produce a range of cytochrome P450 enzymes that break down toxic compounds.
They are what allows the koala to live on a diet of highly toxic eucalyptus leaves, according to scientists.
Professor Rebecca Johnson, director of the Australian Museum Research Institute in Sydney, said, "It probably helped them. to find their niche to survive because they could rely on a food source that would have less competition from other species that could not detoxify as effectively.
Dr. Will Nash, of the Earlham Institute of Norwich, said: "The koala has developed an excellent toolbox for treating highly toxic eucalyptus, composed of a large number of copies of the same tools, or very similar tools. "
Other discoveries included koala-specific milk proteins as anti-bacterial role and to protect the "joey" growing in his mother's pocket.
Scientists hope that this information will help them prevent koalas from serious infectious diseases.
Koalas are particularly susceptible to chlamydial infection, which causes infertility and blindness in animals, and has severely affected populations in New South Wales and Queensland.
The genome can also help experts counter another threat, the koala retrovirus (KoRV), by revealing the strains. the most dangerous or contributing to the development of a vaccine.
The findings of the Koala Genome Consortium are published in the latest issue of Nature Genetics.
Dr. Graham Etherington, also from the Earlham Institute, said: puppy-dog appearance, the koala is an internationally recognized species. But this iconic Australian marsupial is not just a pretty face.
"The genome badembly of the Koala is by far the most complete marsupial genomic resource to date, which allows us to understand how this unique animal appeared. "This also provides us with an excellent platform for launching other marsupial genomic projects that could examine potential genetic pools of previously unknown antimicrobial genes that could be exploited for human health.
" In addition, it provides us with an incredible amount of information on genetic diversity across different populations of koalas that can be used as a reference for further studies of other endangered marsupial species. "[19659023] (function () {
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