🐈⬛ Genes Gonna Stop Da Kitten Boom 💥💉
Dere’s dis small kine study, yeah? It’s all about using dis gene engineering thing to try keep da stray cat population small. No matter how many cats we get in our homes, being all cuddly and whatnot, get choke stray cats out dere, and dey breeding like nobody’s business! 🐱🐱🐱
Dese stray cats get one hard life, y’know. Get all kine diseases, predators, and cars dat go too fast. Plus, dey one big kine predator themselves, taking out plenny birds and small kine critters every year. 🐈⬛🦠🚗🐦🐭
In da United States, get plenty volunteers catching these cats, bringing dem to da kine clinics for get sterilized, den sending dem back to where dey was. But trying for control all these stray cats, ho, cost plenty money and hard for manage. Get plenny places, especially outside da U.S. and Europe, where no more enough vets or money for do all dis. 🇺🇸🇪🇺💸👨⚕️🐱
Dis one oke William Swanson, he stay do animal research at da Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, say people been trying for find one alternative to surgery for decades already, but no more nothing else dat work good yet. 👨🔬🏞️🐱🚫🔪
But maybe finally get one solution coming up. In dis study dat just come out in da journal Nature Communications, dey gave cats one shot of dis gene therapy, and da cats no get pregnant for at least two years. Only was one small kine study though: six female cats dat got da shot, and three dat never. 💉🐈⬛📚🚼🚫
Da shot get dis gene, go inside da muscle cells, and make them produce dis thing called anti-Müllerian hormone, or AMH, dat stop da eggs in da ovaries from developing right. 🧬💪🥚🚫
Da researchers say still need for do more research for make sure everything okay, but if bigger studies show dat da treatment – da first gene therapy for animals – work good and stay safe for da whole life of da cat, den no need da vets for do surgery anymore. 🐈⬛🔍🏥👩⚕️🚫
Dis guy David Pépin, he one reproductive biologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, was originally studying AMH for one possible treatment for ovarian cancer, but he decide for look at what it do to ovaries. When he give da hormone to mice, their ovaries get small like baby size, so maybe AMH can work like birth control. 🏥👨🔬🐁👶💊
Dr. Pépin tink it might be good for women who cannot take birth control pills with progesterone or estrogen for medical reasons, or maybe it can help women who getting cancer treatment keep their fertility. But for use AMH in people like one gene therapy, probably not gonna happen. “But it’s actually the perfect tool to control cat overpopulation,” he say. 👨⚕️💊👩⚕️🤰🐈⬛🌍
Dr. Pépin and Dr. Swanson going plan one bigger study dat might help get approval from da Food and Drug Administration for use da therapy in cats. Dey also testing da therapy in kittens, can start treatment when dey eight weeks old, and in dogs too, cause get plenty stray dogs all over da place. 🐱🐶💉🧪📝🏢
Dis study make plenty people excited. Julie Levy, one vet at da University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in Gainesville say, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could send out a technician into the field to inject cats and then let them go?” She say da study show how da Michelson foundation throwing big bucks for find one non-surgical way for control da stray cat and dog population. 🐕🦺💰💉🐈⬛
But she say still get plenty for learn from one bigger study, like how long da shot last, if it really safe, and how many cats it really going protect from getting pregnant, cause not going be 100 percent.
Some other people say maybe no be so easy. If da shot work good, last long time, and cheaper than spay and neuter surgery, could be real valuable, say Autumn Davidson, one vet at Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, N.Y. But gotta catch da animals for give them da shot, and some cats good at dodging da traps, so still might be hard for control da population. 🐈⬛🕳️💉🙅♀️
But for now, we gotta wait and see. Who knows, maybe soon going have one new way for control da stray cat population, yeah? 🙏🐈⬛🔮
NOW IN ENGLISH
🐈⬛ Genes to Curb the Kitten Boom 💥💉
There’s this interesting study that’s all about using genetic engineering to control the population of stray cats. Despite the many pet cats in our homes, there’s a vast number of strays out there, breeding at an exponential rate! 🐱🐱🐱
These stray cats lead a tough life, facing a variety of diseases, predators, and fast-moving vehicles. Moreover, they themselves are predators, killing numerous birds and small creatures each year. 🐈⬛🦠🚗🐦🐭
In the United States, many volunteers work tirelessly to catch these cats, get them sterilized at clinics, and then release them back to where they were found. But controlling the stray cat population is an expensive and complex task. There are many areas, particularly outside of the U.S. and Europe, where there simply aren’t enough resources or funding for this. 🇺🇸🇪🇺💸👨⚕️🐱
William Swanson, an animal researcher at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, says that people have been looking for a surgical alternative for decades, but no viable solutions have been found yet. 👨🔬🏞️🐱🚫🔪
However, a potential solution might be on the horizon. In a study published in the journal Nature Communications, they gave cats a shot of gene therapy that prevented them from getting pregnant for at least two years. The study was small, involving only six female cats that received the shot and three that didn’t. 💉🐈⬛📚🚼🚫
This shot carries a gene that enters muscle cells and causes them to produce a substance called anti-Müllerian hormone, or AMH, which inhibits egg development in the ovaries. 🧬💪🥚🚫
The researchers maintain that more research is needed to ensure safety, but if larger studies show that the treatment—the first gene therapy for animals—is effective and safe throughout the cat’s lifespan, then sterilization surgeries may no longer be necessary. 🐈⬛🔍🏥👩⚕️🚫
David Pépin, a reproductive biologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, was originally studying AMH as a potential treatment for ovarian cancer, but then decided to examine its effects on ovaries. When he administered the hormone to mice, their ovaries shrunk to a prepubescent size, suggesting AMH could serve as a form of birth control. 🏥👨🔬🐁👶💊
Dr. Pépin believes it could benefit women who are unable to take birth control pills containing progesterone or estrogen due to health issues, or it might help women preserve their fertility during cancer treatments. However, using AMH in humans as a gene therapy might not be feasible. “But it’s actually the perfect tool to control cat overpopulation,” he says. 👨⚕️💊👩⚕️🤰🐈⬛🌍
Dr. Pépin and Dr. Swanson are planning a larger study that could potentially gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration for the therapy’s use in cats. They are also testing the therapy on kittens from the age of eight weeks and on dogs, as there’s a significant population of stray dogs as well. 🐱🐶💉🧪📝🏢
This study has excited many in the field. Julie Levy, a veterinarian at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in Gainesville, says, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could send out a technician into the field to inject cats and then let them go?” She points out that the study demonstrates how the Michelson Foundation is investing heavily in finding a non-surgical way to control the stray cat and dog population. 🐕🦺💰💉🐈⬛
She does note, however, that there is much to learn from a larger study, such as how long the shot lasts, if it is truly safe, and how many cats it will effectively protect from pregnancy, as it won’t be 100 percent effective.
Others express that it might not be so straightforward. If the shot proves to be effective, long-lasting, and cheaper than spaying and neutering surgeries, it could be extremely valuable, says Autumn Davidson, a vet at Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, N.Y. However, the animals must be captured to administer the shot, and some cats are quite adept at avoiding traps, making population control still a difficult task. 🐈⬛🕳️💉🙅♀️
For now, we must wait and see. Who knows, maybe soon there will be a new method to control the stray cat population? 🙏🐈⬛🔮
