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Genetic Modification Produces Mighty Mouse

Posted by Zonk on Fri Nov 02, 2007 10:15 AM
from the always-liked-danger-mouse-and-duckula-better dept.

Identity Missing writes "An Ohio laboratory has produced genetically modified mice which 'can run five to six kilometres at a speed of 20 meters per minute on a treadmill, for up to six hours before stopping,' as well as a number of other remarkable feats. An enzyme called phosphoenolypyruvate carboxykinases (PEPCK-C) is apparently responsible, and we should hope that the scientists are correct in saying that athletes won't be modifying their genes any time soon to get it, because it apparently makes the mice more aggressive. If anyone feels a super villain coming on, at least we can rely on these Mighty Mice. A video demonstrates just how much these little guys beat the competition."

+ -

What Are We Doing Tonight Brain? (Score:4, Funny)

by AmIAnAi (975049) * on Friday November 02 2007, @10:16AM (#21212167)

The Same thing we do every night Pinky. Try to take over the world.
- Re:What Are We Doing Tonight Brain? (Score:5, Funny)
  
  by ZeroExistenZ (721849) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:19AM (#21212231)
  
  But Brain, why the toga? No one's worn those in years. Except for that one really strange man in Lancaster-Shire.
  
  Parent
Well, you know the next step... (Score:5, Funny)

by NotQuiteReal (608241) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:17AM (#21212181) Journal

Someone will just have to build a better mousetrap!
- Re:Well, you know the next step... (Score:5, Funny)
  
  by salec (791463) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:31AM (#21212451)
  
  Or GM the cats same way, too!
  
  Parent
  - Re:Well, you know the next step... (Score:4, Funny)
    
    by Carthag (643047) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:23AM (#21213345) Homepage
    
    Tex Avery already explored the possibilites of the ever escalating war of ever-growing mice & cats, cf. King-Size Canary (1947) [youtube.com]. It doesn't bode well for us if we go down that line.
    
    Parent
  - - Re:Well, you know the next step... (Score:5, Funny)
      
      by Belacgod (1103921) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:58AM (#21213889)
      
      They'll be taken out by the Toyota cats and mice.
      Damn Japanese imports.
      
      Parent
20 meters to minute? Awesome! (Score:2)

by Laebshade (643478)

That's a mind-boggling 0.745645431 mph!
- Not the speed afaik (Score:2)
  
  by Xest (935314)
  
  I think the point isn't the speed, but the distance they can cover without stopping.
- Re: (Score:3, Funny)
  
  by SQLGuru (980662)
  
  Yes, but what... is the air-speed velocity of an unladen genetically modified with PEPCK-C swallow?
  
  Layne
  - Re: (Score:3, Funny)
    
    by Clanked (1156473)
    
    A european or african swallow?
I for one (Score:5, Interesting)

by WormholeFiend (674934) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:18AM (#21212199)

hope that these rodents don't escape the lab.

Ordinary mice are hard enough to control as pests...
- Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
  
  by welcher (850511)
  
  It seems unlikely that this would actually confer a selective advantage on the mouse - being able to run like crazy but need almost twice as much food doesnt sound like a good strategy to me.
- Re:I for one (Score:5, Insightful)
  
  by Daniel Dvorkin (106857) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:53AM (#21212847) Homepage Journal
  
  My suspicion is that they wouldn't do well in the wild. Aggression and strength in the natural world have to be balanced with food requirements, which is basically why not every living thing is super-strong, super-fast, and super-tough. Dire wolves are gone for a reason ... These mice "eat twice as much and weigh half as much," which sounds great to people living in the modern industrialized world, but is a pretty serious liability for a wild animal.
  
  Also, they may be amazingly tough for mice, but you know, they're still mice. No matter how big and strong they may be, there are still plenty of critters bigger and stronger than they. If their aggression translates into a lack of caution around predators, then they'd essentially be nothing but a nice lean snack for health-conscious cats. ;)
  
  Parent
So (Score:5, Funny)

by hcdejong (561314) <{ln.tensmx} {ta} {emca}> on Friday November 02 2007, @10:19AM (#21212209)

Acme Labs is at it again?
- Re:So (Score:4, Insightful)
  
  by nogginthenog (582552) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:44AM (#21213683)
  
  Sound smore like the Rats of NIMH
  
  Parent
Testosterone? (Score:2, Insightful)

by CarpetShark (865376)

More aggressive? Sounds like what this actually does is produce testosterone or something equivalent, not better muscles/hearts directly.
- RTFA much? (Score:5, Informative)
  
  by cduffy (652) <charles+slashdot@dyfis.net> on Friday November 02 2007, @10:31AM (#21212445)
  
  Ten times as many mitochondria in the muscles.
  
  Parent
  - Re:RTFA much? (Score:5, Funny)
    
    by nomadic (141991) <nomadicworld@@@gmail...com> on Friday November 02 2007, @10:34AM (#21212531) Homepage
    
    I think you mean midichloridians.
    
    Parent
  - - Re: (Score:3, Informative)
      
      by GeckoX (259575)
      
      Again, RTFA. It's right there. They live longer, age slower. 3 year old mice having babies...as mentioned in the article, for a mouse that's like an 80 year old human having a baby.
      
      Anything else you'd like summed up from the article? ;)
- - Re: (Score:2)
    
    by provigilman (1044114)
    
    Even if it is just testosterone, the point is that it's a permanent genetic modification leading to this effect, rather than a temporary injection.
Whatever you do... (Score:5, Funny)

by lonesome_coder (1166023) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:19AM (#21212215)

...don't make them angry. You wouldn't like them when they are angry...
Cool. (Score:5, Funny)

by Stanistani (808333) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:22AM (#21212295) Homepage Journal

Overclocked mice! Do they have an overheat problem?
PEBCAK? (Score:5, Funny)

by Blakey Rat (99501) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:23AM (#21212301)

Problem Exists Between Chair and Keyboard? I had no idea it could be applied for this purpose!
I have a mighty mouse.... (Score:5, Funny)

by NPN_Transistor (844657) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:23AM (#21212303)

I have a mighty mouse, yet it can't "run five to six kilometres at a speed of 20 meters per minute on a treadmill", feel aggression, or do "a number of other remarkable feats". All it does is sit in my hand and make clicking noises when I try to pet it. It runs a lot longer than "six hours", but it doesn't seem to do anything else. It doesn't seem to have any eyes or a tail either. I think it might be defective... maybe I should return it to Apple.
PEPCK Apoplecticism (Score:2)

by digitaldc (879047) *

athletes won't be modifying their genes any time soon to get it, because it apparently makes the mice more aggressive.

Athletes? Who cares about them? We need to apply this to super-powered soldiers that can run all over the world aggressively killing anything and everything in their path!

Forget about ROID RAGE, now we have PEPCK APOPLECTICISM!
If they experimented on humans this much... (Score:5, Insightful)

by porkThreeWays (895269) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:24AM (#21212335)

I've always wondered what would be possible if humans were regularly experimented on in the same fashion. Of course it's unethical, but I bet we'd have humans that can live 300 years and run 10,000 miles at a clip if we cut out the middle man ;)
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by prelelat (201821)
  
  OR live 3 years and run 2 miles at a clip. either way it would be fun while it lasted ;)
- Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
  
  by Lord Ender (156273)
  
  Why is it unethical? If you could save thousands of lives by curing a disease, but curing the disease required potentially deadly experiments on a few people, wouldn't it be unethical NOT to proceed with the research?
  - Re:If they experimented on humans this much... (Score:5, Insightful)
    
    by Scrameustache (459504) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:07AM (#21213133) Homepage Journal
    
    Why is it unethical? If you could save thousands of lives by curing a disease, but curing the disease required potentially deadly experiments on a few people, wouldn't it be unethical NOT to proceed with the research?
    You first.
    
    Parent
    - Re:If they experimented on humans this much... (Score:4, Informative)
      
      by FleaPlus (6935) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:42AM (#21213659) Homepage Journal
      
      You first.
      
      Apparently many researchers who do muscle augmentation research have to turn down eager calls from athletes and their coaches who want to be human test subjects, looking for any way to boost their abilities.
      
      Parent
Mighty? (Score:5, Funny)

by robably (1044462) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:26AM (#21212361) Journal

So the modified mouse runs on the treadmill for six hours, while the normal mouse has a nice sit down and watches it. Maybe this modification just makes mice stupid.
Smarter mouse? (Score:5, Funny)

by oo7tushar (311912) <slash.@tushar.cx> on Friday November 02 2007, @10:26AM (#21212375) Homepage

All I see is the that the "slower" mouse realizes that they're going nowhere on the treadmill.
Pathetic! (Score:2)

by east coast (590680)

Do you really think a couple of hyperactive mice are going to stop General Zod?

You guys really need to check your definition of what a super villain is.
coming on? (Score:2)

by TrippTDF (513419)

"If anyone feels a super villain coming on"

Like in a bar? should I be worried about getting touched by evil people? Are genetically modified mice really my only line of defense?
This might overturn the old adage ... (Score:2)

by schwit1 (797399)

"The early bird gets the worm, bit it's the second mouse that gets the cheese."

These mice may be quick enough to not only get the cheese but also leave a tip. And if you piss them off they will move the loaded mousetrap onto your bedroom floor.
Watch out (Score:2)

by Daimanta (1140543)

Superior abilities breed superior ambition.

Watch your cheese!
Steroids make people more agressive, too. (Score:5, Interesting)

by mr_mischief (456295) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:31AM (#21212457) Journal

I see little reason to think that we'll see any social arguments about this genetic modification that we don't already see about a) steroids, hormones, and precursors or b) genetic modifications in general.

Isn't this linked to the Wired article from over three years ago [wired.com] about experiments at Howard Hughes Medical Institute [hhmi.org] in which researchers were messing with PPAR-delta and got similar results? Where's the reference to earlier work on the subject?
This has me worried (Score:5, Insightful)

by rbanzai (596355) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:35AM (#21212541)

Originally genetic modification was just things like making mice glow. Now they're creating results that would be appealing to exactly the wrong people: the military.

As soon as a science has military application it gets billions poured into it. Even if there are beneficial offshoots to the research that follows the repercussions are usually awful. Think atom bombs and biological weapons.

It is not unreasonable at this point to wonder where we're going to end up as a species. If we can genetically create human beings with abilities that far outpace anything an unmodified can do will that become the norm?

In my lifetime (40 years) genetic modification has gone from theory to fact. I am worried that it will be horribly abused.
- Re:This has me worried (Score:4, Insightful)
  
  by TheMeuge (645043) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:03AM (#21213047) Homepage
  
  As soon as a science has military application it gets billions poured into it. Even if there are beneficial offshoots to the research that follows the repercussions are usually awful. Think atom bombs and biological weapons.
  
  You have a twisted view of the world, my friend.
  
  I think a far more rational way of interpreting what happens is that the offshoots are awful (atom bombs, biological weapons), while the repercussions are beneficial (infectious disease research, nuclear power). Far more people are living longer, and better lives because of military-driven advancements in science, then the number of people that have been harmed or killed by the inventions that follow.
  
  Parent
- - Re: (Score:3, Funny)
    
    by C0rinthian (770164)
    
    Simple. You can tie little packages of Freedom to their backs and drop them into the Middle East.
    
    Of course, by "Freedom" I mean "High-Power Explosives"
  - - Re: (Score:3, Informative)
      
      by cyphercell (843398)
      
      give them the plague, it will be way more mobile than before.
Spidey sense? (Score:3, Informative)

by SpuriousLogic (1183411) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:51AM (#21212813)

Anyone else remember this from SpiderMan? The serum that is used on Norman Oswald was first used on mice to turn them into super mice, but had the side effect of making them incredibly aggressive....
The first thing I thought of was... (Score:3, Interesting)

by Faw (33935) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:52AM (#21212825)

Captain America and the super-soldier serum.
They need to create "Bunny" version (Score:5, Funny)

by denis-The-menace (471988) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:57AM (#21212923)

The Energizer battery company would pay big $ for such a LIVING mascot.
With all that $, they'll be able to fund future research...
Mighty Mouse (Score:3, Funny)

by Arancaytar (966377) <arancaytar.ilyaran@gmail.com> on Friday November 02 2007, @11:07AM (#21213123) Homepage

Does it come with two buttons?
Site not Slashdotted? (Score:4, Funny)

by JJRRutgers (595466) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:12AM (#21213201)

A direct link to a Quicktime movie on the headline and the host server didn't get slashdotted? I wonder if they applied the same genetic modification to the server?
unethical? get over it! (Score:3, Insightful)

by m2943 (1140797) on Friday November 02 2007, @11:44AM (#21213687)

But Professor Hanson played this down. "Right now, this is impossible to do - putting a gene into muscle. It's unethical.

I'm tired of people claiming that it's "unethical" to enhance one's body--or destroy it for that matter. What substances I ingest or what modifications I make to my body is my own business. Even genetic modifications to one's own children aren't automatically "unethical".

Genetic engineering on humans is going to happen. Get over it.
20 (meters per minute) = 0.745645431 mph (Score:3, Informative)

by John Sokol (109591) on Friday November 02 2007, @02:48PM (#21216507) Homepage Journal

20 (meters per minute) = 0.745645431 mph
that doesn't seem very fast for a mouse. Maybe running for 6 hours is amazing though.

Mice can run up to 4 Kilometers per hour this is around 2.48548477 mph
See: http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/content/figsonly/207/22/3839 [biologists.org]

So they are running at around 30% of there maximum speed.

To put that into some perspective humans walk at around 3mph. and sprint for short distances at 20 Mph.
A 4 Minute mile is 15 Mph, this is considered very good for a runner.

The Marathon world record time running a 42.195 kilometers distance is 2 hours 4 minutes and 26 seconds, set in the Berlin Marathon by Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia on September 30, 2007.
This required an average speed of 13 Miles per hour for 2 hours. Just amazing really.

For regular humans in a Marathon the average time is more like to 4 hours or around 6.5 Mph.
http://www.marathonguide.com/features/Articles/2005RecapOverview.cfm [marathonguide.com]

So to compare this with mice a humans peak is 15Mph (4 minute Mile) so 30% of peak is is 4.5 Mph.

This accomplishment for mice is roughly equal to humans running at 4.5 Mph for 6 hours. for 27 miles or 43.452 kilometers just over a marathon distance. 6 Hour times are well below average and would be the slow runners in a marathon.

So the mice are running a slow Marathon! Well below a human average.
- obligatory response (Score:5, Funny)
  
  by ByOhTek (1181381) on Friday November 02 2007, @10:19AM (#21212229) Journal
  
  In Soviet Russia, meme botches you!
  
  Parent
- Re: (Score:3, Funny)
  
  by $RANDOMLUSER (804576)
  
  Here I come to save the day!

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What Are We Doing Tonight Brain? (Score:4, Funny)

Re:What Are We Doing Tonight Brain? (Score:5, Funny)

Well, you know the next step... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Well, you know the next step... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Well, you know the next step... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Well, you know the next step... (Score:5, Funny)

20 meters to minute? Awesome! (Score:2)

Not the speed afaik (Score:2)

Re: (Score:3, Funny)

Re: (Score:3, Funny)

I for one (Score:5, Interesting)

Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

Re:I for one (Score:5, Insightful)

So (Score:5, Funny)

Re:So (Score:4, Insightful)

Testosterone? (Score:2, Insightful)

RTFA much? (Score:5, Informative)

Re:RTFA much? (Score:5, Funny)

Re: (Score:3, Informative)

Re: (Score:2)

Whatever you do... (Score:5, Funny)

Cool. (Score:5, Funny)

PEBCAK? (Score:5, Funny)

I have a mighty mouse.... (Score:5, Funny)

PEPCK Apoplecticism (Score:2)

If they experimented on humans this much... (Score:5, Insightful)

Re: (Score:2)

Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

Re:If they experimented on humans this much... (Score:5, Insightful)

Re:If they experimented on humans this much... (Score:4, Informative)

Mighty? (Score:5, Funny)

Smarter mouse? (Score:5, Funny)

Pathetic! (Score:2)

coming on? (Score:2)

This might overturn the old adage ... (Score:2)

Watch out (Score:2)

Steroids make people more agressive, too. (Score:5, Interesting)

This has me worried (Score:5, Insightful)

Re:This has me worried (Score:4, Insightful)

Re: (Score:3, Funny)

Re: (Score:3, Informative)

Spidey sense? (Score:3, Informative)

The first thing I thought of was... (Score:3, Interesting)

They need to create "Bunny" version (Score:5, Funny)

Mighty Mouse (Score:3, Funny)

Site not Slashdotted? (Score:4, Funny)

unethical? get over it! (Score:3, Insightful)

20 (meters per minute) = 0.745645431 mph (Score:3, Informative)

obligatory response (Score:5, Funny)

Re: (Score:3, Funny)

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