Croc Unlocked: A Gene Map for the Fashion Industry
Wednesday, July 29, 2009 - 17:35
in Mathematics & Economics
Sally Isberg has a special place in her heart for a 15-foot reptile that can tear a person limb from limb. As the chief scientist at Australia's largest saltwater crocodile farm, the geneticist can gaze out the window at pens full of saltwater crocs that will one day be turned into designer handbags. This week, Isberg and her collaborators published a genetic linkage map of this type of crocodile, Crocodylus porosus, the first such map for a reptile and an important milestone in a genetically guided breeding program that promises to improve the handbag business. [More] ...