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Hamsters - Not always adorable bundles of fluff.

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Brictoria
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28 May 2022, 8:11 am

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Using the controversial CRISPR technology, researchers at Northwestern University were examining a hormone called vasopressin and its receptor, Avpr1a.

They opted to try and remove the latter from a group of Syrian hamsters, with the expectation it would increase bonding and co-operation between the lovable little critters.

That’s because Avpr1a is understood to regulate things like teamwork and friendship as well as dominance and bonding.

Their expectation proved to be wrong. Very wrong.

Source: https://metro.co.uk/2022/05/27/gene-editing-turns-fluffy-hamsters-into-aggressive-rage-monsters-16721041/



autisticelders
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29 May 2022, 5:46 am

somebody misunderstood the nature of hamsters and the social rules surrounding their interactions. They are little rage monsters in general to begin with. Comparing hamster behavior ( or that of mice) to humans is ridiculous to begin with.


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naturalplastic
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29 May 2022, 7:58 am

The article is not about normal hamster behavior being different than expected.


Its about the unexpected effect of tampering with their genes on hamster behavior.



Last edited by naturalplastic on 29 May 2022, 8:31 am, edited 1 time in total.

magz
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29 May 2022, 8:12 am

Syrian hamsters are very territorial. Fighting each other to death is their natural behavior when put together in small space (e.g. two in one cage).
Generally, the end line of the research is: "It didn't work the way we expected. Interesting."


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Brictoria
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29 May 2022, 8:19 am

naturalplastic wrote:
The article is not about normal hamster behavior being different than expected.


Its about the unexpected effect of a drug on hamster behavior.


Not quite - It was genome editing using CRISPR (removing the receptor Avpr1a from the genome) with the intention to affect their behaviour, and it resulted in the opposite outcome to that which was expected:

Quote:
Arginine–vasopressin (AVP) acting on V1a receptors (Avpr1as) represents a key signaling mechanism in a brain circuit that increases the expression of social communication and aggression. We produced Syrian hamsters that completely lack Avpr1as (Avpr1a knockout [KO] hamsters) using the CRISPR-Cas9 system to more fully examine the role of Avpr1a in the expression of social behaviors. We confirmed the absence of Avpr1as in these hamsters by demonstrating 1) a complete lack of Avpr1a-specific receptor binding throughout the brain, 2) a behavioral insensitivity to centrally administered AVP, and 3) an absence of the well-known blood-pressure response produced by activating Avpr1as. Unexpectedly, however, Avpr1a KO hamsters displayed more social communication behavior and aggression toward same-sex conspecifics than did their wild-type (WT) littermates.

Source: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2121037119



naturalplastic
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29 May 2022, 8:30 am

Brictoria wrote:
naturalplastic wrote:
The article is not about normal hamster behavior being different than expected.


Its about the unexpected effect of a drug on hamster behavior.


Not quite - It was genome editing using CRISPR (removing the receptor Avpr1a from the genome) with the intention to affect their behaviour, and it resulted in the opposite outcome to that which was expected:

Quote:
Arginine–vasopressin (AVP) acting on V1a receptors (Avpr1as) represents a key signaling mechanism in a brain circuit that increases the expression of social communication and aggression. We produced Syrian hamsters that completely lack Avpr1as (Avpr1a knockout [KO] hamsters) using the CRISPR-Cas9 system to more fully examine the role of Avpr1a in the expression of social behaviors. We confirmed the absence of Avpr1as in these hamsters by demonstrating 1) a complete lack of Avpr1a-specific receptor binding throughout the brain, 2) a behavioral insensitivity to centrally administered AVP, and 3) an absence of the well-known blood-pressure response produced by activating Avpr1as. Unexpectedly, however, Avpr1a KO hamsters displayed more social communication behavior and aggression toward same-sex conspecifics than did their wild-type (WT) littermates.

Source: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2121037119


Same difference.



KitLily
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29 May 2022, 10:11 am

Oh yes. No animal is an adorable bundle of fluff. They are wild and their instincts rule them. Don't ever get fooled by them.

My male Syrian hamster was still trying to bite me as he lay dying on my lap. My female Syrian nearly bit my thumb off as I grabbed her to stop her running out of the front door. Both lovely little creatures who led very happy, spoiled lives, but I was never fooled that they were gentle creatures.

Same with humans. Don't ever get fooled that they aren't top level, aggressive predators.


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Matrix Glitch
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30 May 2022, 12:52 am

Domesticated rats make the best small rodent pet. They're extremely intelligent and good natured. The pet rat I had as a boy was very affectionate. Never tried to run away. Always wanted to be near me when out of the cage. The only time she ever bit me was when I offered her some whipped cream on my finger tip. She got excited and chomped instead of licking it off as I expected. She was white with black patches, like cow.