Pigs being bred to have less fat - could this spell the end for bacon?

Forget the Atkins diet, there is a new way to lose weight and it doesn't involve giving up bacon. Scientists in Britain are breeding pigs that have 30% less fat than the average pig. The hope is that by reducing the amount of fat in pork, people will eat less of it and obesity rates will drop.

Already, some supermarkets are selling "fat-free" bacon, but does this mean the end of traditional bacon as we know it? Probably not. Even with less fat, these pigs will still produce plenty of juicy, succulent bacon - it just might not be quite as greasy.

So far, only a small number of pigs have been bred with the reduced-fat gene, but if the experiment is successful, scientists hope to create a breed of pig that is low in fat throughout its entire population. This could spell bad news for the bacon industry, but it would be good news for the millions of people who are struggling with obesity.

There is no doubt that reducing the amount of fat in pork would be a major step forward in the battle against obesity. However, like all diets, it is not going to be easy to change people's eating habits overnight. It may take some time for people to get used to the idea of buying "fat-free" bacon at the supermarket. But if it means fewer people are overweight or obese, then surely it is worth a try.

scientists create designer piglets with banned genes

A team of scientists in Spain have created piglets with a banned gene, using a new CRISPR-based gene-editing tool.

The researchers used CRISPR to edit the genome of pig embryos so that they would be resistant to an otherwise deadly virus. The gene-editing process was successful, and the resulting piglets were born healthy and virus-free.

The use of CRISPR in this study is controversial, as the gene that was edited is known to cause severe birth defects in humans. However, the scientists believe that the benefits of this technology outweigh the risks, and that it could be used to create animals that are resistant to other diseases.

This study is the latest in a series of breakthroughs using CRISPR, which is quickly becoming one of the most popular gene-editing tools available. CRISPR has already been used to treat diseases such as cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anaemia, and Huntington's disease.

Researchers successfully edit genes in piglets, could this lead to GM pigs?

For the first time ever, scientists have successfully edited the genes of piglets. This could pave the way for genetically modified (GM) pigs, which have been shown to be resistant to diseases like swine flu.

The gene editing process, which was carried out by a team at University of California, Davis, involved using CRISPR-Cas9 to insert a gene that makes pigs resistant to the flu into their DNA. The aim of the research is to create GM pigs that are less likely to die from the virus.

So far, the results have been promising. The GM piglets survived when they were inoculated with a strain of swine flu that killed non-GM piglets.

This breakthrough raises some ethical questions, however. Some people argue that we shouldn't be meddling with nature in this way and that we should let pigs evolve naturally. Others argue that GM pigs could be used to help prevent outbreaks of swine flu, as well as other diseases.

The debate is sure to continue, but one thing is for sure - gene editing is definitely here to stay.

China creates world's first cloned piglet

In a scientific first, a cloned piglet has been born in China. The little piglet, named Zhong Zhong, and her twin sister Hua Hua were created using the same technique that was used to clone Dolly the sheep over 20 years ago.

Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology say that Zhong Zhong and Hua Hua are healthy and normal, aside from their identical DNA. The success of this cloning project could pave the way for more cloned animals to be used in research, agriculture, and medicine.

Cloning has been around for centuries, but it wasn't until 1997 that Dolly was successfully cloned from an adult sheep's cells. Since then, scientists have cloned a number of different species, including cows, horses, goats, and pigs.

The process of cloning usually starts with taking an egg from a female animal and removing its nucleus. This leaves behind the mitochondria, which are responsible for creating energy for the cell. Next, the researchers remove the nucleus from a somatic cell (a cell other than an egg or sperm) of the animal they want to clone and replace it with the egg's nucleus. This "transplant" is then placed inside a surrogate female animal and allowed to develop into a fetus.

While cloning has been successful in a number of different species, there have been some failures along the way. For example, in 1999 researchers in Oregon attempted to clone a deer but failed when the surrogate mother rejected the fetus. And in 2006, scientists in South Korea cloned 19 embryos from differentiated cells before only three survived implantation into surrogates.

Despite these failures, Zhong Zhong and Hua Hua are seen as a major breakthrough for cloning technology. Their creation marks the first time that cloned pigs have been successfully born from Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT), which is seen as more challenging than other forms of cloning.

So far there have been no reports on how well Zhong Zhong and Hua Hua fare against non-cloned pigs in terms of intelligence or temperament, but it is certainly possible that we will see more cloned animals in our future!

Are cloned piglets the future of farming?

In a world where the population is growing at an alarming rate and figures suggest that we will reach a point where there simply won't be enough food to go around, cloning piglets could be the answer to our farming woes.

Scientists in China have successfully cloned two piglets from adult cells, and the team is optimistic that this could be the beginning of a new era in farming. The benefits of cloning are clear – it would allow us to produce more livestock with less input, meaning that we could feed more people with the same resources.

There are some concerns about cloning, of course. Some people argue that it is unnatural and that we should not be playing God. Others worry about the ethical implications – clones might not have the same quality of life as regular animals, and they could be treated poorly or even slaughtered when they are no longer useful.

Despite these concerns, it is likely that cloning will play a major role in farming in the future. With global population numbers predicted to reach 9 billion by 2050, we will need to find ways to produce more food using fewer resources. Cloning piglets is one way of doing this, and it is likely that other forms of cloning will also be developed in the coming years.