Rare chickens brought back from the brink of extinction by Edinburgh University

R

are chickens such as the ‘Scots Dumpy’ which was used by the Picts to warn of the approach of the Roman Army, could be brought back from the brink of extinction by Edinburgh University.

Scientists have genetically engineered chickens which can act as surrogates and lay the eggs of other rare breeds.

The surrogates themselves are sterile and so cannot produce their own offspring. But when the stem cells from rare chicken breeds are implanted into their reproductive tissue, they go on to produce eggs and ultimately chicks from the threatened species.-read more