Unlocking the genes of mountain gorillas could help fight extinction
Mountain gorillas are among the world’s most endangered animals. But while they’ve captured both the public eye and the attention of primatologists, Dr. Chris Tyler-Smith of the Welcome Trust Sanger Institute says we’re just now figuring out how their unique position has shaped their genes. Tyler-Smith and a large team of other researchers have just published the results of a genome sequencing study, which sheds light on how gorillas developed, how to improve conservation, and how inbreeding works in some of humankind’s closest relatives.
On a broad scale, humans are genetic outliers among the great apes — we’re a single species that lives in huge numbers all over the world. But mountain gorillas are at the very opposite end of the…
Source:: The Verge
