What will become of a wolf after long-term exposure to strong nuclear radiation?
Radiant wolves do not glow green in the dark like in science fiction movies, and their appearance is no different from that of ordinary wolves. However, radiation adds a more useful superpower than glowing to the wolves, which have evolved resistance against cancer.
Can the anti-cancer genes of radiant wolves be used in humans? Let's start at the beginning.
1986 year, the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine, due to an employee error, resulting in a reactor **, exceeded50 tonsRadioactive material enters the atmosphere, and the amount of radiation is higher than that of the atomic bomb dropped on HiroshimaMore than 400 times
This is the worst accident in the history of nuclear power plants1000 square kilometersIt became a toxic area of intense radiation, the inhabitants were evacuated, and Chernobyl became a quarantine zone that was forbidden for humans to enter. However, the quarantine area only quarantined humans, not animals. Years later, humans re-entered the restricted area and found that the area of intense radiation had become a thriving home for wildlife, and the most shocking species was the wolf in the restricted area.
First of all, there are a large number of wolves in the radiation zone, and the wolves are infested. Wolves thrive in no-man's land, and the density of wolves is 7 times that of the surrounding area.
Secondly, the wolf cubs in the radiation zone have the ability to fight cancer.
Princeton University Biology Team, in:In 2014Enter Chernobyl and put a wireless collar on the wolves in no man's land. Real-time monitoring of the wolf's activity location and recording of the radiation value received by the wolf. The team regularly collects blood samples from wolves for analysis.
Up to10 yearsThe results of the study showed that the daily radiation dose received by the wolves was:11.28 millirem, which is limited to human safety6 timesLiving in a high-radiation environment for a long time can alter the immune system of wolves. The protective genes of the father's wolves are passed on to the wolf cubs, so that their resistance to cancer is stronger than that of ordinary wolves.
Strong radiation alters the immune system, similar to how a cancer patient receives radioactivity**. However, the inheritance of anti-cancer genes in wolves is a natural selection for evolution under radiation stress.
The superpowers acquired by wolves when exposed to radiation are not simply equivalent to the wolves' sudden immunity to cancer。More likely, wolves with anti-cancer genes in their parents survive longer and reproduce more offspring. Wolves that lack anti-cancer genes die before they reproduce. Over time, passed down from generation to generation, the number of wolf cubs with anti-cancer genes in the pack has increased.
The wolf packs of Chernobyl give direct evidence at a glance, and radiation accelerates the rate of biological evolution.
Examples of accelerated evolution of the radioactive environment are not only wolves in Chernobyl, but also dogs and tree frogs.
More than 30 years agoAfter the residents around the nuclear power plant were evacuated in a hurry, a group of pet dogs were left behind, after which the pet dogs bred into a wild dog pack. The team collected DNA from 302 wild dogs living near the nuclear power plant and compared them with other wild dogs living 16 kilometers away, and found significant genetic differences.
The appearance of wild dogs in the radiation zone is no different from that of ordinary wild dogs, however, tree frogs are different. Look at a **, the green tree frog on the far right is the appearance of an ordinary oriental tree frog, and the black tree frog on the far left is the Chernobyl tree frog, they are the same species. Biologists collected tree frogs of different colors in no-man's land, and the stronger the radiation in the center, the darker the color of the tree frogs.
Oriental tree frogs are inyears oldthat is, from the nuclear power plant** to the present, the tree frogs in the radiation zone have multiplied10 15 generationsThe regular color of the Oriental tree frog is light green, and the black tree frog is found only in Chernobyl.
The melanin in the tree frog can protect it from living healthier in areas with strong radiation. After Chernobyl**, the health of the light-colored tree frog is impaired, and the dark-colored tree frog reproduces healthy offspring, and the black skin is passed on to the offspring. Experienced10 generationsLater, even though the radiation level of the black tree frog living environment is the same as that of the green tree frog, its black skin is still retained.
*The top is the regular color of the Oriental Tree Frog.
Can the anti-cancer gene of the Chernobyl wolf be used in humans?
Very promising.
Most human studies have found that genetic mutations increase the risk of cancer, such as mutations in the BRCA1 gene, which greatly increase the risk of breast cancer. BRCA1 gene is an important tumor suppressor gene in breast cancer, and the deletion of BRCA1 gene will weaken the ability of DNA to repair, lead to the accumulation of DNA damage, and eventually promote tumor formation.
So, which gene mutations reduce the risk of cancer?
This is exactly what the team is currently working on. The Princeton biology team is working with cancer experts to study the use of specific mutations in wolves for humans.
The team has identified specific areas of the wolf genome that can resist cancer risk, and the next step is to find protective mutations that can increase cancer survival
However, the study of the Chernobyl wolf pack encountered an unexpected difficulty. Since the outbreak of the war between Russia and Ukraine, the biology team has not been able to return to Chernobyl to collect the blood of the wolves, and the latest data is temporarily vacant.
It is hoped that the war will end soon, and that the biological team will find the anti-cancer genes that can be used by humans as soon as possible.
Okay, that's the secret of the radiant wolf first.
Follow the French IS bacon to explain the secrets of the natural world for you, see you next time.
References:
1、mutant chernobyl wolves evolve anti-cancer abilities 35 years after nuclear disaster
2、the dogs of chernobyl: demographic insights into populations inhabiting the nuclear exclusion zone
3、ionizing radiation and melanism in chernobyl tree frogs
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