A recent survey found that the radiation exposure to which Chernobyl dogs may have genetically differentiated them from other dogs in the world.
He April 26, 1986 The explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant generated a high level of radioactive contamination, which continues to show its effects to this day. The Chernobyl disaster spat into the atmosphere 400 times more radioactive material than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
The disaster caused approximately 120,000 people will quickly leave their homesin the town of Pripyat and the surrounding area, leaving behind all their belongings, including their pets.
Now, a new study has sought to better understand the populations of dogs that they live around the ruins of the nuclear power plant of Chernobyl, despite the great environmental pollution to which many are exposed daily.
The investigation
Scientists from the University of South Carolina and the National Human Genome Research Institute examined the DNA of 302 wild dogs who live inside the power station, as well as 15 to 45 kilometers (9.3 to 27.9 miles) from the disaster site.
Analysis identified two distinct dog populations with surprisingly individual genetics and little gene flow between them.
Using blood samples taken from the strays between 2017 and 2019, they genetically analyzed the dogs, trying to better understand how radiation may have altered their genomes.
Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
By examining the DNA of dogs living near Chernobyl, the new research found that this population contains 15 complex family structures that are unique from other dogs.
It is clear that the dogs move around the different areas and breed freely with each other; however, there is little gene flow between the group inhabiting the plant and the group around the city of Chernobyl, which could indicate that they rarely interbreed.
In the same way, the researchers traced the kinship relationships between the dogs, with which they were able to account for three groups present in the areas where the genetic samples were collected.
Furthermore, the results of the comparative DNA analysis showed that Chernobyl dogs are also genetically distinct from purebred and free-roaming dogs in Eastern Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
The average lifespan of dogs living in Chernobyl is only five years.
The study will continue
Researchers hope to see if the genetic differences impact their health, appearance and behavior. They even think they could shed light on genetic mutations that help animals survive radiationsay the researchers.
“Ideally, we’d like to find variants that DNA has acquired over the 15 generations since the accident that enable survival in the high radiation exposure environment,” said study author and geneticist Elaine Ostrander. at the National Institute for Human Genome Research. the NIH.
On the other hand, the dogs that live in the area are cared for by a group of veterinarians and other specialists. They are captured, neutered/neutered, vaccinated and microchipped. They are then released back to the same place they were captured “so they can live as happy and healthy a life as possible”.
However, these dogs cannot be removed from the area, says veterinarian Jennifer Betz “because they can carry significant amounts of radioactive contaminants, either on their fur or in their bones.”
Other animals also changed in Chernobyl
Scientists have been analyzing certain animals that live inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone for years, including bacteria, rodents and even birds.
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A study conducted in 2016 revealed that Oriental tree frogs (Hyla orientalis), which they are usually green, they were black inside the exclusion zone. Biologists believe the frogs underwent a beneficial mutation in melanin, the pigments responsible for skin color, which helped ionize surrounding radiation.
Right: A frog that lives beyond the exclusion zone. Left: the same species, captured in Chernobyl, near reactor number 4. Credit: Germán Orizaola.
The Chernobyl dog study is valuable for science, as they have lived and evolved in isolation for 15 generations since the disaster. It also provides a model for further research on the effects of radiation in large mammals, including humans, the researchers say.
The research has been published in Scientists progress.
References: National Geographic / BBC.
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