http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/editors/21909/?nlid=647
Link: Technology Review: Blogs: TR Editors' blog: Mighty Mouse is Here!.
(((Pray they don't escape into the wild by bending the bars of the cage.)))
(((Also: kids, please do not try to inject any enzymes to make yourself ultra-strong, sexually active, tireless, and able to eat anything while remaining svelte and curvaceous. Yeah. Don't do that.
Uh-uh. No.)))
http://blog.case.edu/case-news/2007/11/02/mightymouse#more
"These genetically engineered mice also eat 60 percent more than controls, but remain fitter, trimmer and live and breed longer than wild mice in a control group. Some female PEPCK-Cmus mice have had offspring at 2.5 years of age, an amazing feat considering most mice do not reproduce after they are one year old. (((So much for that "ticking biological clock" problem, ladies. But wait! You're not supposed to do this. Do not tighten up, firm up, and get sexually voracious in your sixties...
science prefers you to sag.)))
According to Hanson, the key to this remarkable alteration in energy metabolism is the over-expression of the gene for the enzyme phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK-C). (((Now available in bulk by the kilogram, cheap. NO! I'm kidding; do not eat this posthumanizing substance while mixed with Pop Rocks and Red Bull.)))
(..) (((It gets weirder, if that's possible)))
"It was evident from the beginning that these mice were very different from average mice" Hakimi commented; "from a very early age, the PEPCK-Cmus mice ran continuously in their cages."
She said she could identify which mice were from this new line by simply watching their level of activity in their home cage. ((("Hey, that new salesman is a ball of fire. I think we'd better promote him over everybody else.")))
Animal behavior studies later demonstrated that the PEPCK-Cmus mice are seven times more active in their home cages than controls; in addition, the mice were also markedly more aggressive. (((Uh-oh)))
This new mouse line also has an increased content of mitochondria and high concentrations of triglycerides in their skeletal muscles, which also contributed to the increased metabolic rate and longevity of the animals. (((Burn out? Hell no; it's the first kind of speed that makes you live long enough to bury everybody else.)))
"It is remarkable that the over-expression of a single enzyme involved in a metabolic pathway should result in such a profound alteration in the phenotype of the mouse," Hakimi and Hanson said. (((Yep.))) "Understanding the biochemical mechanisms responsible for this repatterning of energy metabolism will keep us busy for some time to come." (((After a press release like this one? Boy I bet it will.)))
"The technique used to create the animal model reported in our study is not appropriate for application to humans. The ethical implications (((ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS?! We are the mice FROM SPARTA!! Spartan mice MUST BE HARD!!)))
are such that this approach should not be used in humans, nor is it technically possible at this time (((no got; come Friday))) to efficiently introduce genes into human skeletal muscle, in order to mimic the effect seen in our mice" said Hanson.
(((Genes hell – what about the expressed enzymes? You need the enzymes, not the genes))) "Any attempt to tamper with the metabolic processes in human muscle will surely do more harm than good. (((Like steroids for instance. Never heard of the stuff. Unethical. No athlete would use that.)))
For more information contact Susan Griffith, 216.368.1004. (((Yeah, we're just sitting there staring at the phone and waiting for a call from the first aging type-A billionaire.)))
(((Oh my God there's even a web video.)))
http://blog.case.edu/case-news/2007/10/26/mouse.mov
