South Korean scientists have reportedly cloned cats modified with a gene that makes them glow under ultraviolet light.
The accomplishment, announced Tuesday by South Korea's Ministry of Science and Technology, marks the first cloning of a genetically modified cat. Duplicating tweaked cats could someday allow scientists to conduct research on standardized feline models of human diseases. The techniques involved could theoretically be used to clone endangered cats, such as leopards and tigers.
Assuming the claim holds up, it'll be significant. But the stem cell fraud perpetrated by South Korean cloner Hwang Woo-Suk has -- perhaps unfairly -- made me a little skeptical. Before his disgrace, Woo-Suk was considered a national hero, and South Korea's booming biotech industry is a matter of national pride.
The country is still regaining its life science prestige, and I'd feel much better if the breakthrough had been announced in a peer-reviewed journal rather than a government press conference. Adding a glow-in-the-dark gene also rings of hucksterism -- though it's certainly worked for fish and rabbits, so perhaps I shouldn't be so dismissive of self-promotion.
Plenty of coverage out there, but the best headline goes to Reuters: Korean scientists produce kimchi-colored kitties.
Image: Agence-France Presse
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