Green Glowing Monkeys

Japanese researchers of the Central Institute for Experimental Animals, took a green fluorescent protein gene of a jellyfish, wove it into the DNA of a few marmosets embryos, then let the monkeys mate. Five of 91 baby monkeys carried the gene. This was done before to mice, pigs, cats and dogs, but the marmosets are a particularly big breakthrough for a few reasons:

Monkeys are more genetically similar to humans than any other creature engineered to shine green; Their blood, hair roots and skin give off a glow, not just one body tissue (as with previous experiments); Monkey brains are bigger and more similar to human thinking caps that those of mice, which makes them better to study for neurological disorders, like Parkinsons disease.

News about green-reflecting monkeys is cute, but at NextNature we are waiting for the first human baby to see the green light.

Via: wired.com | Related: Brainbow Mice | No Transparent Frog | New Organisms 2007