Koala genome sequence Can you avoid extinction?

The koala the iconic marsupial of Australia has just revealed the secret of its genome a breakthrough that could help protect this vulnerable animal whose the population is dramatically reduced.

" koalas are threatened in Australia . sequence of the genome helped us to document and understand their genetic diversity and will be used for future conservation work, "says Rebecca Johnson of the Australian Museum of Sydney, co-author of the study 19659002] There are koalas in the forests Australia as well as in some islands of the "continent." But the Australian icon is the victim of habitat destruction and climate change: when the first British settlers arrived in 1788, the koalas had more than ten million, currently there are just over 43 000.

More than 50 researchers from seven countries collaborated in this study published this Monday in the journal Nature Genetics These discovered 26,558 genes, deciphering the genome of the marsupial "with an accuracy of 95.1%, which is comparable to that obtained with the human genome "

will tell you a little more about the unique biology of this endemic animal in Australia . In particular on a particular assemblage of genes which allows him to digest the leaves of Eucalyptus which contains toxic phenols for other animals.

Koala easily devours a kilogram of eucalyptus leaves a day, which helped him find a niche (food) to survive. But this advantage has its counterpart: this exclusive regime makes it particularly vulnerable to the disappearance of eucalyptus forests whether through deforestation or urban development.

The researchers also identified the genes related to its immune system: a step towards the development of vaccines to fight against certain diseases, such as chlamydia that devastated the populations of koalas . In addition, the human invades the territory of koalas and forces them to live closer and closer to each other, which increases the interaction between individuals and the risk of contamination. .

koalas isolated by the fragmentation of their habitat become poorer at the genetic level, which may favor problems of consanguinity.

The deciphering of the DNA of these populations "makes it possible to make recommendations to preserve the diversity", when it exists, and "to envisage displacements to improve it", concludes the researcher, if necessary,

FM