This article is more than 1 year old

Boffins invent LUMINOUS PIGS again, glow-in-dark bacon sarnies presumably imminent

Something's not quite kosher

Chinese scientists have created a pair of glow-in-the-dark pigs which shine with an eery green luminous light.

Dr Zhenfang Wu and Dr Zicong Li of the South China Agricultural University injected the porkers' embryos with jellyfish DNA, so they shone when exposed to UVA light.

The addition of luminous genetic material does not harm the pigs, although they run the risk of looking a bit silly.

It is hoped that the technique could one day be used to inject useful DNA into human embryos and mitigate the effects of congenital diseases like haemophilia.

Dr Stefan Moisyadi, a bioscientist at the University of Hawaii's Institute for Biogenesis Research, said: "Patients who suffer from haemophilia and need the blood-clotting enzymes in their blood, we can make those enzymes a lot cheaper in animals rather than a factory that will cost millions of dollars to build."

This is not the first time luminous pigs have been unleashed upon the world. According to a story by Chris Hogg (sic) on the Beeb, Taiwanese scientists were the first to make pigs glow.

A number of animals have also previously been blessed with the gift of luminosity, including sheep, kittens and, erm, pocket "supermodel" monkeys. ®

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like