Gene editing to enhance production in developing nations

Poultry production in low to middle income nations could substantially benefit from transferring beneficial genes between breeds to produced offspring with useful characteristics, researchers claim. Sterile male and female chicken eggs have been implanted with reproductive cells from donor birds with the resulting chickens mated together to produce chicks of the donor breed. The chicks showed characteristics inherited from their real patents, the donor birds, along with the edited change to their DNA, rather than their surrogate parents. The gene editing outcome demonstrates an efficient way to introduce beneficial characteristics, the scientists claim, such as tolerance for warm climates or disease resistance. Read more