Biology subjects

Houck, M. L.

Publications and source records attributed to Houck, M. L..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

First endangered black-footed ferrets, Mustela nigripes, cloned for genetic rescue

An endangered black-footed ferret female that died in 1988 with no living descendants in the current population was successfully cloned from cryopreserved cells using cross-species somatic cell nuclear transfer, producing three healthy kits. Incorporating progeny from these clones would provide an 8th founder to the breeding program and increase genetic variation to the species limited gene-pool. This marks the first time a native U.S. endangered species has been cloned.

zoology↗

bioRxiv2023

Endangered Przewalski's horse, Equus pzrewalskii, cloned from historically cryopreserved cells

Two endangered Przewalskis horse stallions were cloned from fibroblast cells cultured and cryopreserved in 1980. These stallions are clones of a male that lived from 1975-1998 that pedigree analyses identified as a genetically valuable male for present-day conservation breeding. This is the first time that multiple healthy clones have been produced for an endangered species.

zoology↗

bioRxiv2021

High-altitude adaptation and incipient speciation in geladas

Survival at high altitude requires adapting to extreme conditions such as environmental hypoxia. To understand high-altitude adaptations in a primate, we assembled the genome of the gelada (Theropithecus gelada), an endemic Ethiopian monkey, and complemented it with population resequencing, hematological, and morphometric data. Unexpectedly, we identified a novel karyotype that may contribute to reproductive isolation between gelada populations. We also identified genomic elements including protein-coding sequences and gene families that exhibit accelerated changes in geladas and may contribute to high-altitude adaptation. Our findings lend insight into mechanisms of speciation and adaptation while providing promising avenues for functional hypoxia research.

genomics↗