Transgenic animals are genetically modified to incorporate foreign genes, enhancing desirable traits for applications in agriculture and medicine. Methods for creating transgenic animals include microinjection, retrovirus-mediated gene transfer, and embryonic stem cell-mediated gene transfer. These animals serve various purposes such as increasing agricultural productivity, aiding in drug testing, and providing organs for xenotransplantation.

1. Applications of Transgenic Animals
Ahmed Madni
MS Research Scholar

2. What is Transgenic Animal?
 Animals, which are modified with insertion of foreign
gene into their genomes for developing the desired
characteristics
 This method is performed for the improvement of genetic
traits of the target animal
 Transgenic animals can be very effective for the
production of various organs, growth hormones and useful
proteins for humans
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3.  Transgenesis is a process in which a foreign gene with desired
characteristics is introduced into the genome of the target animal
 The foreign gene that is introduced is known as the transgene,
and the animal whose genome is altered is known as transgenic.
 These genes are passed on to the next and successive
generations
Transgenesis
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4. There are three methods are used for production of
transgenic animals
 Microinjection
 Retrovirus-mediated gene transfer
 Embryonic Stem cell-mediated gene transfer
Methods Used in Production of Transgenic
Animals
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5. 1.Microinjection
 In this method, the desired gene construct is transferred from
other member of same specie or different species into the
pro-nucleus of reproductive cell
 The manipulate cell is cultured in lab (in vitro condition) and
play a role for developing embryonic phase and then
transferred to the recipient female
 The first successful DNA microinjection was carried in
mouse
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6. 1.Microinjection
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7.  Retrovirus is the virus that has the ability to carry its
genetic material in the form RNA rather than DNA
 In this method, the retrovirus is used as the vector for
the transfer of genetic material into the host cell
2. Retrovirus-mediated Gene Transfer
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8. 2. Retrovirus-mediated Gene Transfer
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9.  In this method, the totipotent stem cell (that have the ability of
proliferation) is isolated from the embryos
 The gene of interest is then inserted into the stem cells
 The cells that contains the desired DNA is incorporated into the
host cells embryo
 This whole process will results in chimeric animals that requires
live transgenic offspring for testing the desired transgene
presence
3. Embryonic Stem Cell-mediated Gene
Transfer
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10. 3. Embryonic Stem Cell-mediated Gene
Transfer
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11.  Increased amount of milk, meat, insulin,
haemoglobulin, etc
 Such animals also promotes the study of gene
regulation and the their effect on routinely functions
of the body
Applications of Transgenic Animals
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12. In: Agriculture
 In livestock, when the transgenic animals start breeding
with normal animals, the generation produced from
these animals contains the healthy organs milk and
meat
 Transgenic techniques made possible the quick
production of animals while the conventional methods
of animals breeding is time taking
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13. In: Agriculture
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14.  Transgenic sheep armed with genes involved in cysteine
synthesis from dietary serine exhibited significant
positive effect on wool production
In: Agriculture
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15.  Various heterologous protein has been produced in the milk of
pigs using cDNA encoding human protein for production of
functional human haemoglobulin
 Similarly, a heterologous protein, such as a variant of human
tissue plasminogen activator has also been produced in goat
which is being used in patient suffering from thrombosis, for
dissolving blood clots
In: Agriculture
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16.  Transgenic animals are used as model organisms for
checking and testing the safety of before their
injection into the humans
In: Medicine
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17.  Transgenic animals are also used for testing of drugs or to
undertake studies which is always not possible on human
beings
In: Medicine
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18.  Transgenic animals are mostly designed for studying the role
of genes in the development of many diseases
 To cure and relief from these diseases, transgenic animals are
used for model organisms and they also helps in research for
the development of medicine
 For example, transgenic models for diseases like cancer and
Alzheimer’s
In: Medicine
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19.  Transgenic animal helps in Xenotransplantation
 Patients die every year due to lack of transplant organs like
liver, heart and kidney
 Transgenic pigs helps to resolve such problem, they provide
the transplant organs to overcome this problem
 In Xenotransplantation, the transplantation of living cells,
tissues and organs is done from one specie to another specie
In: Medicine
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20.  Increasing the yield of disease resistance in Animals
 Transgenic processes have been adopted to increase the
disease resistance in animals, such as genetic immunization
with recombinant plasmid containing gene for antigen of
interest to attempt for prevention of infectious diseases, e.g.,
rabies, pseudo rabies virus, etc
In: Medicine
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21. In: Medicine
 To study the genetic diseases
 Transgenic animals have also been produced to serve as
model to understand particular disease like cystic fibrosis
 This is caused by a defective gene which can be mimicked
in a transgenic mouse
 Such transgenic animals allow the testing of drugs or to
undertake studies not always possible on human 21

22. Till Date Reported Transgenic Animals
 Transgenic mice
 Transgenic pig
 Transgenic monkey
 Transgenic rabbit
 Transgenic fish
 Transgenic cow
 Transgenic sheep
 Transgenic goat
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23.  https://www.slideshare.net/dvanecoutinho/transgenic-
animals-and-its-applications
 https://byjus.com/biology/transgenic-animals/
 https://www.slideshare.net/shysorcerer/xenotransplantation
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References
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