Farmers Association in PA Uses Genetics to Prevent CWD in Deer

 

New observations made by the PA Deer Farmers Association may have made a breakthrough as they use genetics to find a way to combat CWD, or chronic wasting disease, in different species of deer. Chronic Wasting Disease, also known as zombie deer disease that only affects species of deer and elk. It is a neurological disease that is contagious and fatal and causes a decline in many deer populations. While there is not one direct cause specifically linked to CWD, researchers believe that the disease is caused by an abnormal prion. The prion, a cellular protein that affects the central nervous system, infects the deer. The disease causes abnormal behavior such as isolation from their population, blank expressions, and excessive drooling occur, and eventually this leads to death. Minimizing this disease allows deer populations to thrive as well as minimizes contact to humans.

In Pennsylvania, CWD has been a big problem for its deer population for about 10 years, and while it has been in the Midwest for decades, it has become detrimental, and may farmers and agriculturalists want to combat this problem. Researchers have taken initiative to look at the deer who test positive for CWD and investigate how they can combat this problem. Specifically, Texas A&M has worked on using genetics as a way to help deer with CWD. They have found that a genetic component has a role in passing down the disease.

Because a link has been found where deer can pass this disease down to their offspring, the PA Farmer's Association has worked to combat this issue. They have been able to look at herds where their deer have tested positive and test them to see what their genes reveal about their susceptibility to CWD. Using biopsies of the live deer, they are able to separate the deer with high susceptibility genes and breed the ones with lower risk in order to get rid of the CWD completely. 

This is a great idea because deer and other related species are very common, especially in New Jersey. While there is not a lot of research related to CWD passing onto to humans, there are related diseases that mimic the same symptoms, and CWD can pass on to other species like birds. Deer are important for so many reasons, so it is important to take this seriously and use selective breeding and genetics to help get rid of the disease.

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Could Genes Responsible for Antler Growth Benefit Human Bone Growth?

Antlers in deer regrow quickly and efficiently as each season produces a new pair that can reach up to 50 inches long, scientists have identified the two genes that control this growth in deer DNA. Similar genes have also are believed to be located in human genetic makeup. This means that those people who have genetic conditions that relate to bone growth can hopefully receive gene therapy in the near future. The study started by collecting samples from deer antlers and discovering that they were mostly comprised of stem cells, these stem cells produce similar RNA to humans. This allowed for the RNA to be injected into mice to tinker with the genetic makeup to hopefully produce the proper DNA sequence to aid in bone growth. The study identified genes uhrf1 and s100a10 as the genes responsible for the antler growth and is currently under testing to understand how they function. Uhrf1 is a tissue promoter while s100a10 creates calcium deposits, these two genes in tandem are what creates antlers in deer. The study claims that if successful, these genes can have unrivaled potential in the health sciences fields.



I believe that such a study is key to helping out those affected with bone conditions and those that struggle with maintaining bone density such as elderly and sickly people. It seems almost obvious that the genes that cause antler growth in deer would also help produce bones in humans. Those who have held or felt an antler can notice it is strikingly similar to bones in its appearance alone but the structures of each could differ at the genetic level. However if the study can find some way to manipulate these genes than it truly would have unrivaled potential in health sciences.

References

Quenqua, D. (2018, October 31). Deer Antlers Couldn't Grow So Fast Without These  Genes. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/30/science/deer-antlers-genes.html

Deer Genes Identified in Antler Production. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/deer-genes-identified-in-antler-75926/

Deer Antlers Couldn't Grow So Fast Without These Genes

          The antlers of deer are fascinating in the world of science due to their ability to grow and even re-grow quickly and effectively. Scientists and researchers know that this appendage is an important part to the animal's life, but the question that remains is, "How do the antlers grow so quickly, and how can we use this information in order to help people?".

          The researchers in this study have discovered in fallow deer that there are two genes involved in the regrowth of the antler, and have also discovered that humans, in fact, have the same combination of genes. Bone growth in humans and antler growth in deer are similar processes, however, antler growth is at a much faster rate than human bone growth which leads researchers to believe that there is something else effecting bone growth that humans may or may not possess. By discovering what ignites the genes in deer antlers to grow so quickly, we may be able to initiate this process in humans which could cure many diseases and even make our bones a little stronger.
          Dr. Yang, the scientist involved in this project, traveled to California in order to collect stem cell samples from male red deer. Taking the stem cells back to the lab, scientists compared the deer RNA to human RNA in order to search for overlaps. Afterwards, they took their findings and inserted them into lab mice to see what would occur phenotypically and to see if it affected any of their tissue growth.
          Eventually they narrowed down the genes into the two genes mentioned previously, uhrfl and s100a10. Both of these genes are related to bone development in the human genome. Their findings were that when the uhrfl gene was shut down, bone growth slowed. When the s100a10 gene was put to work the rate of calcium deposits increased and cells mineralized more rapidly. All in all, both genes are responsible in deer for the rapid growth of antlers.
          Although these are amazing findings, there is still a lot of research to be done. As of right now, this stands as a very promising discovery for the health community, as well as the world. I thought this article was interesting because it mentions that it may be able to help people with common diseases like osteoporosis. As I was reading, I thought that this could help a lot of people with diseases that are so rare that they are only found in a few people around the world. I think this study is really promising for the health industry and I hope that we will be able to control these two genes in order to ease some symptoms or even cure the people that are really suffering with diseases related to these two genes.

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