'Tuberculosis-resistant' cattle developed in China

By Helen Briggs BBC News


1 February 2017
 
Scientists in China say they have produced cloned cattle with increased resistance to bovine tuberculosis.

Twenty calves were born, of which 11 survived for more than three months.

Bovine TB is a risk to cattle in many countries, including parts of the UK, Africa and Asia.

Researchers in China used a genome editing tool to change the genetic code of cattle. They say the technology could have widespread uses in agriculture.

A team from the College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University in Shaanxi, China, altered a gene involved in fighting infection.

"The resulting transgenic cattle exhibited increased resistance to M. bovis (bovine TB) infection," they said.

"Our study provides an avenue to develop the CRISPR/Cas9 system for agricultural applications."

The latest research, published in the journal, Genome Biology, used the new genome editing tool, which is more precise.

Tests on resistance to TB were carried out on blood samples taken from the cloned animals.

It is not clear what would happen if the transgenic cattle were exposed to tuberculosis in normal conditions.

Prof Ian McConnell, emeritus professor of veterinary science at the University of Cambridge, said TB in cattle is a complex disease.

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Scientists produce TB-resistant cows

3 March 2015 Last updated at 11:00

Scientists in China have produced a herd of genetically engineered cows that are better able to ward off bovine TB infection.

The long-term goal of the research is to avoid the need to cull livestock by breeding disease resistant cattle.

Bovine TB is a risk in many areas, including New Zealand, England and Wales, and parts of Africa and Asia.

In the UK over 26,000 cattle were slaughtered in 2013 at a cost to taxpayers of £100m.

Whether this approach protects cows against TB infection when exposed to high doses of the pathogen remains to be determined”Prof Heiner Niemann Institute of Farm Animal Genetics

Researchers at the Ministry of Agriculture in Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China, used hi-tech genetic technology to insert a mouse gene into Holstein-Friesian cattle.

The gene protected the animals against low levels of TB infection.

In research published in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists said: "Our results contribute to the control and prevention of bovine tuberculosis and provide a previously unidentified insight into breeding animals for disease resistance."

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