Scientists Claim Success in Identifying Domestic Cat Genome

The road to advanced research for human beings seems to have opened up just a bit more, with scientists in the US claiming success in identifying the genome of the domestic cat. The cat thus becomes the seventh mammal to have its genome identified. Other mammals whose genomes have been identified are the rat, mouse, dog, cow, chimpanzee, and man.

Scientists in the United States have been able to identify successfully the genome of a four year old domestic cat. Cinnamon, an Abyssinian cat, became the first member of its kind to have its DNA sequenced, enabling researchers to trace its lineage all the way to Sweden.

Researchers have, in recent times, been performing comparative analyses in the field of genetic research on a number of mammalian test subjects. Cinnamon is one of these mammals. The identification of the cat genome is the culmination of an initiative of the National Human Genome Research Institute that started three years back.

Scientists had identified tremendous potential for researching on human illnesses using the cat model. According to researchers, there was huge scope for researching on human illnesses using this method. According to them, the breakthrough identification of the cat DNA sequence would definitely initiate more breakthroughs in the field of medicine.

Researchers said cats had more than 250 genetic disorders. All these disorders were naturally occurring, and a number of them bore startling resemblances to similar disorders occurring in man.

The comparative analysis the scientists were conducting, involving the genome of the cat and the other six mammals whose genome had been successfully identified provided significant results to scientists. Through this process, scientists could successfully identify 20,285 putative genes in the DNA sequence of the domestic cat.

This was not all. Scientists have also been able to detect chromosomal rearrangements numbering in the hundreds. These rearrangements have taken place over time in different lines of the mammals, ever since they all branched out from a common ancestor who lived on earth during the time of the dinosaurs about 100 million years back.

The research on the cat has been targeting specific and highly significant areas. These include research in feline immunodeficiency virus or FIV, which is related genetically to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Another research area that might offer significant insights into human illness is retinitis pigmentosa. Retinitis pigmentosa is a degenerative ailment that affects the retina and can cause blindness. One in 3,500 Americans suffer from this ailment today.

During the course of the study, scientists have been able to detect a number of genomic variants. The number runs to hundreds of thousands, and researchers say this huge body of variants could provide significant insights and help find out the genetic basis for most human diseases that we consider hereditary.