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From: chiaraviglio@husc2.UUCP (lucius)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: Virgin births
Message-ID: <1088@husc2.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 17-Dec-86 22:53:02 EST
Article-I.D.: husc2.1088
Posted: Wed Dec 17 22:53:02 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 18-Dec-86 06:46:55 EST
References: <2849@bu-cs.BU.EDU> <1261@cybvax0.UUCP> <9@bcsaic.UUCP> <9088MIQ@PSUVMA>
Organization: Harvard Univ. Science Ctr., Cambridge, MA
Lines: 28
Summary: Parthogenesis in mammals?

In article <9088MIQ@PSUVMA>, MIQ@PSUVMA.BITNET writes:
[First, quotes stuff about artificially-induced parthogenesis by stimulating
unfertilized eggs to divide]
>      I've heard about these experiments too.  The most advanced animal
> its worked with so far (as far as I know) is rabbits.  The stimulation
> took the form of placing the female in water & applying a small electric
> current.

	Did it actually produce live newborns, or did the stimulated eggs
degenerate into teratocarcinomas as they have in all the experiments with
mammalian eggs that I have read about?  Do you have any more details?  When
was this done (Molecular Biology of the Cell (1983) says that while such
procedures work on many things up to and including reptiles, mammalian eggs
stimulated to divide without fertilization only form teratocarcinomas).

	By the way, even in non-parthogenetic species, germ cells (including
but not limited to eggs -- this can happen in males also) will attempt to
develop an embryo without first being fertilized and without any artificial
stimulation.  That is why mammals, including humans, occasionally get
teratocarcinomas.

-- 
	-- Lucius Chiaraviglio
	   lucius@tardis.harvard.edu
	   seismo!tardis!lucius

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