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10th December 2024
05:31pm GMT
Stray dogs living near the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster have mutated to develop a new superpower.
The four-legged friends are said to be immune to radiation, heavy metals and pollution.
Scientists made the discovery after collecting blood samples from 116 stray dogs living in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.
They found two different populations that were both genetically distinct from other dogs in the surrounding area.
This suggests they have adapted and evolved to withstand long-term exposure to this toxic environment and would explain why they have continued to thrive in the wasteland.
If the scientists can understand how the dogs developed this genetic superpower, it could help better understand the health impacts associated with living in a highly toxic environment, not just in dogs but also in humans.
The Chernobyl disaster of 1986 was a nuclear meltdown that occurred in northern Ukraine.
It began on April 26 with the explosion of one of the power plant's reactors, and led to the largest release of radioactive material into the environment in human history.
Humans were evacuated from Chernobyl and surrounding areas to avoid extreme levels of radiation.
However, the absence of humans allowed wildlife to flourish and thrive in the CEZ, which contains 11.28 millirem of radiation – six times the allowed exposure amount for human workers.
The site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster is a radioactive wasteland. But somehow, stray dogs have managed to survive there for years, and now scientists know why.
It is estimated that 900 stray dogs live in the CEZ and many of them are likely descendants of the pets left behind following the mass evacuation.
Norman J. Kleiman, an environmental health scientist at Columbia University, led a team of researchers to investigate how living in this harsh environment impacted the dogs' genetics.
Kleiman and his team collected blood samples from 116 semi-feral dogs captured around the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and 10 miles away in Chernobyl City.
The blood samples were then transported to the US for DNA extraction and analysis, which revealed the dogs' unique genetic makeup.
Kleiman said: "Somehow, two small populations of dogs managed to survive in that highly toxic environment.
"In addition to classifying the population dynamics within these dogs . . . we took the first steps towards understanding how chronic exposure to multiple environmental hazards may have impacted these populations."
He and his colleagues published their findings in the journal Canine Medicine and Genetics in March 2023.
The researchers found nearly 400 'outlier loci,' or genomic locations that show behaviour or patterns of variation that are extremely divergent from the rest of the genome.
They identified 52 genes associated with these outlier loci that 'could be associated with exposure to the contamination of the environment at the Nuclear Power Plant,' the study states.
This means that the dogs' contaminated environment caused them to develop genetic mutations that were passed down from generation to generation, driving their adaptation to the harsh conditions.
The stray dogs are not the only animals to have developed genetic superpowers.
In January, a team of researchers presented findings that suggest mutant wolves living in this toxic habitat are uniquely resilient to cancer-causing radiation exposure.
And in May, scientists studying Eastern tree frogs with mutant black skin living near the site discovered that they live just as long as their green, non-mutant counterparts.
It may signal that the exclusion zone is fit for human habitation again.
Kleiman said: "Examining the genetic and health impacts of these chronic exposures in the dogs will strengthen our broader understanding of how these types of environmental hazards can impact humans and how best to mitigate health risks."
