Scientists have made a groundbreaking breakthrough in the fight against classical swine fever, a devastating viral disease that has ravaged pig farming worldwide for decades. A team of researchers at Edinburgh's Roslin Institute has successfully created pigs that are resistant to the highly contagious and often fatal disease.
The gene-edited animals proved immune to classical swine fever (CSF), which causes fever, skin lesions, convulsions, diarrhoea, and often death within 15 days. In contrast, control pigs exposed to CSF developed symptoms of the disease and had high levels of the virus in their blood. The research team monitored several generations of gene-edited pigs and found no adverse effects on health or fertility.
Classical swine fever has been a major threat to pig farming globally, with periodic outbreaks leading to costly vaccination programs, international trade restrictions, and even culling of thousands of pigs. In the UK alone, 75,000 pigs were culled after an outbreak in the 1960s. The disease is also endemic in countries such as China, Russia, and Brazil.
The breakthrough comes at a time when many countries are relaxing rules around gene editing in agriculture, with the UK's Precision Breeding Act paving the way for gene-edited crops. Genus, a company based in Basingstoke, has already generated pigs that are resistant to a virus causing porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome.
The research team believes that their findings have significant implications for animal welfare and productivity. "This virus has a severe effect on animal welfare and productivity," said Dr Christine Tait-Burkard, a group leader at the Roslin Institute. The team is now investigating whether the same gene edit can confer resistance to similar diseases in other species.
The development of disease-resistant pigs could help bolster the resilience of the livestock sector to CSF and other viral diseases. "In my mind there is a moral imperative that if we can make animals that are disease resistant then we probably should do," said Dr Simon Lillico, research scientist at the Roslin Institute.
The breakthrough has been hailed as a major step forward in using genomics-enabled innovation to build resilience to disease in livestock populations. "Decades of genomic research have made it possible to pinpoint and precisely edit the genes involved in disease resistance," said Dr Emily Clark of EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute.
The gene-edited animals proved immune to classical swine fever (CSF), which causes fever, skin lesions, convulsions, diarrhoea, and often death within 15 days. In contrast, control pigs exposed to CSF developed symptoms of the disease and had high levels of the virus in their blood. The research team monitored several generations of gene-edited pigs and found no adverse effects on health or fertility.
Classical swine fever has been a major threat to pig farming globally, with periodic outbreaks leading to costly vaccination programs, international trade restrictions, and even culling of thousands of pigs. In the UK alone, 75,000 pigs were culled after an outbreak in the 1960s. The disease is also endemic in countries such as China, Russia, and Brazil.
The breakthrough comes at a time when many countries are relaxing rules around gene editing in agriculture, with the UK's Precision Breeding Act paving the way for gene-edited crops. Genus, a company based in Basingstoke, has already generated pigs that are resistant to a virus causing porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome.
The research team believes that their findings have significant implications for animal welfare and productivity. "This virus has a severe effect on animal welfare and productivity," said Dr Christine Tait-Burkard, a group leader at the Roslin Institute. The team is now investigating whether the same gene edit can confer resistance to similar diseases in other species.
The development of disease-resistant pigs could help bolster the resilience of the livestock sector to CSF and other viral diseases. "In my mind there is a moral imperative that if we can make animals that are disease resistant then we probably should do," said Dr Simon Lillico, research scientist at the Roslin Institute.
The breakthrough has been hailed as a major step forward in using genomics-enabled innovation to build resilience to disease in livestock populations. "Decades of genomic research have made it possible to pinpoint and precisely edit the genes involved in disease resistance," said Dr Emily Clark of EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute.
IT'S AMAZING TO THINK THAT SCIENTISTS HAVE CREATED PIGS THAT ARE RESISTANT TO THIS DEVASTATING DISEASE THAT'S BEEN AFFECTING PIG FARMS WORLDWIDE FOR DECADES. THE FACT THAT THEY PROVED THESE GENOME-EDITED ANIMALS TO BE IMMUNE TO CSF WITH NO ADVERSE EFFECTS ON HEALTH OR FERTILITY IS TRULY INSPIRING! 
it's amazing that scientists were able to create pigs that are resistant to classical swine fever, a disease that has been causing so much devastation in the pig farming industry for decades. i mean, just think about how many animals and farmers have been affected by this disease over the years - it's heartbreaking. but now, thanks to this research team at the Roslin Institute, we might be able to help prevent all that suffering in the future.
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. Gene editing is one way we can improve our food supply and animal welfare without relying on harsh chemicals or culling. It's not just about the pigs, either - if these gene edits work for other animals too, it could make a big difference for livestock farmers worldwide.
. Now, I get to share my experiences and see positive change happen, like this breakthrough in disease-resistant pigs. It's not always easy, but it's worth it in the end 
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imagine all the poor pigs that would have died if not for these researchers saving the day 
this is gonna be a big deal in agriculture & animal welfare