Tasmanian devil colony could save the species
Source: Agencies |
March 11, 2010, Thursday
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AUSTRALIAN scientists yesterday said that the discovery of a genetically distinct colony of Tasmanian devils may save the species from being wiped out by a contagious cancer.
So far, the colony in northwestern Tasmania state has proven immune to the face cancer that has ravaged the iconic animal - made famous worldwide by their Looney Tunes cartoon namesake, Taz.
"We think these devils may be able to see the cancer cells as foreign and mount an immune response against them," lead researcher Kathy Belov said. "We think more animals might survive in the wild than we initially thought."
The furry black animals spread a fast-killing cancer when they bite each other's faces. It causes grotesque facial tumors that eventually prevent them from feeding and can affect their internal organs.
Devil Facial Tumor Disease was discovered in 1996. Since then, the numbers of Tasmanian devils have plummeted by 70 percent. Last spring, Australia listed the devils as an endangered species and current estimates suggest the Tasmanian devil could be extinct within 25 years.
But Belov said the new findings buy more time for managing the disease and developing a vaccine.
While earlier studies had looked at devils in eastern Tasmania, this time researchers took a wider sampling of 400 devils across the state.
Twenty percent of those were found to be genetically different from the eastern devils, and so far have not caught the disease.
"I don't think this means that we can sit back and go, 'Everything is OK,' because we've already seen that the tumor has started to evolve," Belov cautioned. "But now we can say that we've got a glimmer of hope. There may be some animals that may survive this epidemic."
So far, the colony in northwestern Tasmania state has proven immune to the face cancer that has ravaged the iconic animal - made famous worldwide by their Looney Tunes cartoon namesake, Taz.
"We think these devils may be able to see the cancer cells as foreign and mount an immune response against them," lead researcher Kathy Belov said. "We think more animals might survive in the wild than we initially thought."
The furry black animals spread a fast-killing cancer when they bite each other's faces. It causes grotesque facial tumors that eventually prevent them from feeding and can affect their internal organs.
Devil Facial Tumor Disease was discovered in 1996. Since then, the numbers of Tasmanian devils have plummeted by 70 percent. Last spring, Australia listed the devils as an endangered species and current estimates suggest the Tasmanian devil could be extinct within 25 years.
But Belov said the new findings buy more time for managing the disease and developing a vaccine.
While earlier studies had looked at devils in eastern Tasmania, this time researchers took a wider sampling of 400 devils across the state.
Twenty percent of those were found to be genetically different from the eastern devils, and so far have not caught the disease.
"I don't think this means that we can sit back and go, 'Everything is OK,' because we've already seen that the tumor has started to evolve," Belov cautioned. "But now we can say that we've got a glimmer of hope. There may be some animals that may survive this epidemic."
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