"The Forest Gump Gene"

Geneticists at the University of Pennsylvania have recently discovered a gene that governs the ability to run in mice. This gene is not extremely complex, but it codes for very curious behaviors in its subjects. Mice that express this gene can run for miles and miles on their exercise wheels without showing signs of exhaustion. This makes a 26.3 mile marathon for a human seem like an everyday occurrence to them. What is even more interesting is that the mice run without external stimuli.

This means that the mice run to run, but why is it this way for them. The gene that is responsible for this mutation is actually removed for the mice to run. IL-15R Alpha is a gene responsible for the synthesis of fast twitch muscles. These muscles consume large amounts of oxygen and fatigue quickly. Without the gene the muscles in the mice act more like slow twitch muscles which fatigue slowly. I found this article to be interesting and entertaining, but I don't really see the scientific value of applying this gene. But it is none the less entertaining.

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