Muscle-gene edit creates buff beagles
Test of CRISPR gene-editing tool in dogs shows mixed results
Bully whippets may have competition in doggy body-building contests. Two beagles in China have been genetically engineered to be extra buff. The small hounds are the latest addition to a menagerie of gene-edited animals that also includes pigs and monkeys.
Researchers in China decided to mutate a muscle gene in beagles to test whether a powerful gene-editing technology called CRISPR/Cas9 will work in dogs. Mutations in the gene, called myostatin, give bully whippets and Belgian Blue cattle their bulky muscles, but are not known to cause health problems.