NEWS

As politicians debate the significance of climate change evidence, the world and its habitats are changing. Several species face extinction by 2050 due to various consequences of human activities, and scientists have spent a great deal of time and research on finding and perfecting intervention techniques to prevent total extinction of some species. One of those techniques, "facilitated adaptation" was the focus of a commentary recently published in the science journal Nature. The commentary is based on a manuscript that came out of a New Mexico EPSCoR Tri-State Innovation Working Group (IWG) last March, led by Dr. Gary Roemer of New Mexico State University. The article, "Gene Tweaking for Conservation" was published in the September 26, 2013 issue (Vol. 501) of Nature Journal of Science and was written by Dr. Roemer and his team (also IWG participants): Dr. Michael Thomas of Idaho State University, Dr. Josh Donlan of Advanced Conservation Strategies; Dr. Brett Dickson of Conservation Science Partners, Inc.; and Dr. Marjorie Matocq and Dr. Jason Malaney of the University of Nevada, Reno.

Roemer and his colleagues state that while several options exist for preserving biodiversity and preventing extinctions, some species would benefit tremendously by using what is called facilitated adaptation. According to the research group, facilitated adaptation uses genetic engineering to give certain gene modifications to specific species or populations that allow them to adapt to and survive in the changing environment. In the article, Thomas lists three ways to prevent extinction through facilitated adaptation:

First, animals or plants from a threatened population could be crossed or hybridized with individuals of the same species from better adapted populations... Second, specific alleles [alternative forms of the same gene] drawn from a well-adapted population could be directly transferred into the genomes of threatened populations of the same species. And third, genes taken from a well-adapted species could be incorporated into the genomes of endangered individuals of a different species.

The authors is also quick to point out that each of these options carry its own risks, challenges, and pitfalls. The article continues with an in-depth look at each option and the accompanying problems, including stating that the second approach - direct transfer of alleles from a well-adapted population to threatened populations - carries the least amount of risk since it involves movement of genes between the same species.

One of the problems that each option faces, however, is that the reaction of a species to the introduction of genes is ultimately hard to predict. For facilitated adaptation to be successful, researchers and conservationists must work hand-in-hand with Natural History museums and independent projects like the Global Genome Initiative. In fact, the authors state, "Ultimately, successful facilitated adaptation will require unprecedented collaboration between organismal, ecological, and molecular biologists and climate scientists. Biorepositories... will need to be integrated with advances in biotechnology [as well as] efforts to explore the genomic mechanisms... associated with climate change."

Public opinion on genetic modification is also a significant hurdle for facilitated adaptation, and Roemer and his colleagues are also concerned that the use of genetic engineering to save species from extinction will result in apathy towards combating climate change. Still, as time goes on and the climate continues to change, the best hope for many species to escape extinction may very well be facilitated adaptation.

New Mexico EPSCoR is committed to supporting collaboration across disciplines and will continue to offer IWGs through the new RII Energize New Mexico grant. Make sure to "like" our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter, or join our listserv to stay up-to-date with the latest announcements and calls for proposals.

View the original IWG report written by Activity Lead Dr. Gary Roemer here.
View the full Nature article, and listen to the podcast, on their website.