Recap with Rachel: Elephants rarely get cancer, thanks to this newly found “zombie gene”
Until recently, there was little known about why elephants so rarely get cancer. Credit: Rachel Chang / The Foothill Dragon Press
August 17, 2018
Statistically speaking, elephants should be getting a lot of cancer. But as less than 5 percent of elephants die from it, versus the 25 percent of humans, that’s clearly not what’s happening. A newly found gene, coined the “zombie gene,” gives us new clues as to why. This new information has the potential of inspiring future cancer treatments for humans. Watch this two-minute video to learn more.
Credit: Rachel Chang / The Foothill Dragon Press