Week 10 Adopt-a-Species

Image courtesy of www.nwf.org

Report to Society for the Conservation of West Indian Manatees:
The main threat to the West Indian Manatee is human-kind. Manatees have no natural predators, and thus the species should have a large population. However, there are less than 3,000 of these manatees in the United States. The reason for their small population is due to human interference in the manatee habitat. It is estimated that 20-40% of manatee deaths are due to human activity such as boating, fishing and water pollution. Manatees used to be valuable for hunters, but such hunting has been outlawed since 1973.

I would like to propose extensive DNA testing of the manatee population off the shores of the United States. I believe that by understanding the DNA make-up of the manatee, we could try to keep the population from dwindling. Outside of laws that regulate human water activity, the only other solution to prevent the extinction of manatees is to ensure population growth through successful mating. This includes both mating in the manatees' natural habitat, as well as mating in captivity. Having a clear understanding of their genetic background would help ensure that healthy offspring would be born. Just as in Daniela Calcagnotto's DNA research of the Pacu, this research could also help ensure the genetic diversity of the manatees.

I propose collecting DNA samples from several manatees, and then tagging and tracking the migration of these manatees over the course of a year. This would help us to better understand their migratory pattern, and possible mating locations. Once this research was fully analyzed a plan could be developed to help increase the population growth. This may include breeding select manatees in captivity, and reintroducing them into the wild. Once there was a better understanding of mating locations, we could lobby for protection laws that may reduce the amount of boating and fishing in that area during mating season.

Report to the Society for the Genetic Modification of the West Indian Manatee:

Human boating activity is one of the biggest threats to manatees. In most cases propeller blades from boats damage the skin of the victim manatee. These injuries can lead to death due to the severity of the lacerations, or subsequent infections. I believe that if we are to look at one genetic modification that would be most helpful to this species, it have to be a thicker and tougher skin. Manatees already have one of the toughest skins of marine mammals, but it could be made even tougher.

Collagen plays an important role in skin toughness, and is the reason manatees already have very tough skin. Collagen genes in humans are located on many chromosomes. After a full DNA analysis of the West Indian manatee species, it would be possible to locate these collagen genes.

In humans, collagen expression can be enhanced by certain growth factors. If we were able to identify these growth factors in manatees, it may be possible to administer injections of these growth factors and monitor for an increased amount of collagen presence. If these injections proved to be successful further research could be done to manipulate the gene sequence of parent manatees in a manner that the new trait would be passed to their offspring through meiosis.

Such genetic modifications would have to be monitored for adverse effects such as an increase in cancer from mutations due to an increased production of collagen. If the modifications did cause severe adverse reactions, and genetically altered manatees were released back into their natural habitat, it could contaminate the gene pool of the West Indian manatee. This may be something the species could never recover from, and reverse any positive efforts to save the manatee from extinction. Furthermore, any marine life that might eat the remains of these manatees could develop genetic mutations themselves, and thus create a disastrous cycle.

Ultimately we should use extreme caution when consider altering the genetic make-up of another species. While our efforts may be good-intentioned, we could further harm those we wish to save.

References:

Wikipedia. Date unknown. Manatee. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manatee. Downloaded October 28, 2007.

Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. Date unknown. Manatee Skin. http://www.colszoo.com/animalareas/shores/manatee_coast/amazing_manatee/amazing-skin.html. Downloaded October 28, 2007.

Oulu University. 2000. Type XV Collage: Collagen Genes. http://herkules.oulu.fi/isbn9514265858/html/x678.html. Downloaded October 28, 2007.

American Musuem of Natural History. Date unknown. How to Avoid a Pacu Snafu. http://ology.amnh.org/genetics/aroundtheworld/pages/pacu.html. Downloaded October 28, 2007.