MGene Solution announced on the 18th that it has succeeded in producing a 'super muscle pig' with dramatically increased muscle mass through gene editing technology.
This pig exhibited characteristics such as increased muscle cells and decreased fat tissue in histological examinations due to the complete knockout of the myostatin (MSTN) gene, which inhibits muscle growth.
The company's research team is conducting external validation for clear phenotypic verification and long-term monitoring. Once validation is complete, they plan to publish papers and secure intellectual property rights.
The company explained, "When used for food, it has high protein content and low fat content, making it a valuable healthy food with good meat quality," and added, "The rapid growth rate is expected to improve breeding efficiency." They also projected, "The degree of gene editing is only at the mutation level, so it is highly likely to receive approval from health authorities for food use without special side effects, making future commercialization possible."
Previously, MGene Solution developed disease-resistant pigs by completely blocking the invasion route of the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PED) virus in 2018. PED is a disease that causes massive damage to farms due to its high transmissibility and frequent mutations, making it difficult to control with vaccines or treatments.
In addition, MGene Solution has secured the super muscle generation effect this time, acquiring technology to produce multi-functional pigs with resistance to digestive diseases and high-value-added high-protein food.
Gene-edited pigs have already been approved for food use in some overseas markets and are expected to be sold commercially. Pigs with the alpha-gal sugar, which causes meat allergies, removed have received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and PRRS (Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome) resistant pigs in the UK are also awaiting FDA approval.
A company official stated, "Regarding genetically modified organisms (GMO), rapid technology development and product production are already underway in the U.S. and Japan, and Europe, which had applied strict standards, is also pushing for regulatory relaxation," adding, "Our government held a meeting on June 11 to promote advanced bio industries, where regulatory easing related to the Living Modified Organism (LMO) Act was discussed."
He continued, "We plan to conduct safety-related monitoring through mass production and breeding of super muscle pigs, which have various advantages and economic benefits such as disease resistance and meat quality improvement," and said, "We will collaborate with breeding companies to develop new breeds and distribute them domestically and throughout Asia."
MGene Solution is currently focusing on xenotransplantation development using genetically modified pigs, disease models and new breeding development, and disease diagnostic kit development. With the completion of the research center located in the Osong Bio-industry Complex, Chungbuk, imminent, the establishment of mass production systems and prototype production is expected to accelerate starting this year.
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