Oh, BOY !
The bovine genome is decoded.
"Cows have about 22,000 genes, compared with the 20,000 or so estimated for humans, and about 80 percent of their genetic material is the same as humans’. In the way their chromosomes are organized, cows are more like people than are rats or mice.
The project was a six-year effort that involved more than 300 scientists from 25 countries and cost $53 million. Part of the work involved comparing genome of the cow, Bos taurus, with that of the human, dog, mouse, rat, opossum and platypus."
It seems that by comparing genes of different organisms with that of humans we can learn more about human genes, namely girl genes and boy genes. In the case of Cows and human comparison it is Cowboy genes...
Anyway, a year from now the milk might be from GMOs. But it will be safer. A Genetically Modified Cow (GMC) won't be an educated guess. From now on we will exactly know the damage or the benefit of the GMC product. Profit is not the only determinant.
Not a surprise that the big project is finished in United States. Oh, BOY !
Original article
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/24/science/24cow.html?ref=science
