Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

Apparently, the battle between blondes, brunettes, and redheads is not a phenomenon that developed just during the last century. The head of the Genetics Division at Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES), Dr. Oliver Ryder, explained how researchers have found the sequence in wooly mammoth DNA that determines whether an animal is a redhead. We have always imagined mammoths as gargantuan, dark brown-haired elephants. However, the presence of the “dark-haired” gene actually resulted in reddish brown animals and the absence of the gene led to blonde mammoths roaming the prehistoric plains, too. Whether they were less intelligent or more fiery-tempered than their brunette relatives is still a mystery, so no blonde mammoth jokes, please.

Jumping from large mammoths to small nematodes–that name calls to mind images of foul, creepy, and disgusting little worms that suck blood and thus live off a host as a parasite. Humans, with our cars, brains, and computers, are much more advanced, right? WRONG! Well, at least in the genetic sense. By sequencing the genomes of humans and nematodes, we have learned that we might not be as superior as we once thought. A genome is a complete representation of the entire DNA sequence of an organism. The entire nematode genome includes about 30,000 genes. Humans were originally thought to have 50,000 to 100,000 genes, but in reality, we have about 20,000. Furthermore, we do not know what 93 percent of our genes even do! I don’t know about you, but I just got a feeling of immense humility.

I have never liked parasites; ticks, fleas, lice, and nematodes have always made me cringe. Now, I look at them with more respect, for they likely have more genes than I do. Although I will probably never get over my feelings about blood-sucking creatures, I will do my best not to squash them when I meet them. Our meeting with Dr. Ryder has helped me realize that I am just one little part of a very complex and diverse world.

-Sarah, Real World Team

Are You Gel-ous of Us?
Dr. Oliver Ryder, division head and senior scientist in the Genetics Division at CRES, gave an in-depth analysis of the vast array of projects conducted by his genetics team. Marlys Houck and Leona Chemnick, two dedicated researchers of the Genetics Division, put us to work conducting gel electrophoresis in the well-equipped genetics lab. We pipetted DNA from a vial into a prepared agarose gel. The vials contained DNA from various species studied at CRES. After loading the wells with DNA, an electrical current was applied to the gel, driving the negatively charged pieces of DNA to the positive end of the electrode. After 20 minutes, we observed how the DNA had spread out from its origin, making a long, yellow line within the transparent gel. Jill Litschewski, a volunteer who recently completed her master’s degree, explained how larger pieces of DNA move more slowly through the gel, smaller ones go faster, creating DNA bands which cannot be seen with the naked eye. To see them, Ms. Litschewski placed the gel in a machine that emits UV light. She turned on the computer and, lo and behold, there were the DNA bands on the screen. Amazing! In the mere span of 40 minutes, we were able to view the DNA of animals from the Zoo and Wild Animal Park! This interactive activity gave us a better understanding of the daily work conducted by genetic researchers. We didn’t engage much in the analysis of these DNA bands but they did look different from one another, as you would expect a clouded leopard and a meerkat would be.

If you would like to be a geneticist, you could follow the path of Dr. Ryder, who received a bacholer’s degree at University of California, Riverside. He then went on to the University of California, San Diego, where he received his Ph.D. in biology. Now, Dr. Ryder is changing the genetic world one genome at a time!

-Melissa, Animal Careers Team

The Frozen Zoo: Too Cool for You

The Zoological Society of San Diego (ZSSD) has built a diverse collection of plants and animals over the years for visitors to see and appreciate. The primary goal that they have been working toward is to conserve and protect animals, plants, and their habitats. The main focus of the research arm of the ZSSD, however, is the conservation of endangered species. One way that the Genetics Division at CRES, Conservation and Research for Endangered Species, is attempting to do this is through the creation and ongoing maintenance of the “Frozen Zoo.”

A fascinating collection of hundreds of species, the Frozen Zoo at CRES is an irreplaceable compilation of years of work. Scientists have been collecting, growing, and storing cells of different species in the Frozen Zoo, and it is through this effort that they are attempting to conserve biodiversity. This Frozen Zoo contains viable cells, reproductive cells, and skin cells that can be used for artificial insemination, surrogacy, or even cloning. With about 8,200 samples in the Frozen Zoo, researchers can preserve gene pools within a species.

One endangered animal has already been cloned from the DNA present in the Frozen Zoo. A male banteng, which is still alive today, was cloned from another banteng that was born at the San Diego Zoo in 1974 and died in 1980. The cloned banteng is currently on exhibit at the Zoo. This was a breakthrough development in conservation genomics for the Genetics Division at CRES. Since one of their principal goals is to apply the study of genomics and how it contributes to the conservation of endangered species, the birth of a cloned animal from preserved cells is a promising sign. However, more studies still must be conducted in order to see if the banteng is able to reproduce and if its long-term health shows potential.

Sequencing genomes was merely a dream in the past, but now it generally takes researchers about three months to sequence an entire species’ genome. While it is important that we sequence our own genome to find out what our different genes are doing and how they relate to our evolution, it would be difficult to understand these different facets of genetics about ourselves if we had nothing to compare them to. Dr. Ryder explained to us that it is important to understand genetics so that it can benefit humans, but the conservation of species is something that scientists want to focus on more. They are already using genetics to save the nearly extinct ‘alala, or Hawaiian crow. The entire population of ‘alala is in captivity because every single one in the wild has been wiped out. Through genetic mapping, scientists discovered a genetic disorder that was decimating the crows. Scientists are also using genetic information to grow cells from the last female species of a local rainbow trout. All of these efforts are done in order to preserve species of animals that otherwise would now be extinct.

-Keesha, Conservation Team

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