(New Delhi) India has developed a transgenic chicken variety that is not only fleshier than normal breeds sold in poultry shops, but can also be used in the treatment of diseases, a government statement and a senior scientist said Monday.
Scientists said the transgenic chicken marks the first successful genetically modified poultry or livestock in the country. India, which is yet to allow the use of genetically modified seeds in food crops, has been trying to develop transgenic varieties of fish.
The breakthrough research could help boost production in a country that ranks among the world's top three egg producers and among the 20 biggest poultry producers. Its annual domestic consumption of poultry and poultry products is worth more than 300 billion rupees ($6.8 billion.)
The tool used to genetically modify the chicken was developed by a team of three scientists at the Hyderabad-based Project Directorate on Poultry after two years of research using a gene of jellyfish and spermatozoa of a specific variety of chicken from the institute.
"It is ready for commercial use," T.K. Bhattacharya, the senior scientist who headed the project, told Dow Jones Newswires.
Transgenic chickens have already been developed in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and China, he said.
"These chickens can enhance productivity and give a huge quantity of flesh," Mr. Bhattacharya said, adding that transgenic birds can produce up to 300 eggs over 72 weeks, more than twice the number of eggs produced by normal varieties of chickens.
The institute hatched 263 chicks in its study group, of which 16 were found to be transgenic. The efficiency of the institute's method of producing transgenic varieties is about 6%, a statement said.
Besides increasing productivity and increasing weight by genetically modifying the chickens with growth hormones, the varieties are used to treat diseases such as Hepatitis B, Haemophilia, Cancer and AIDS, Mr. Bhattacharya said, without elaborating.
By Arpan MUKHERJEE, The Wall Street Journal
Source: Truth about trade & technology
