But many diabetics developed strong allergies to pork because of the minute quantities of pork proteins left in the insulin after it was extracted. Researchers also hope to splice a gene into cows that would cause them to secrete insulin in their milk. Biotechnology has even allowed us to transfer genes from animals into plants. Some species of fish make a protein that allows them to survive in frigid Arctic waters. Researchers have also transplanted the antifreeze gene into other species of fish so they can survive in cold waters.
Scientists also hope to use recombinant DNA technology to produce drugs other than insulin.
They are also working to genetically alter microbes found in the stomach of cows so they can digest their feed better. Animal Reproduction Tools Biotechnology also capitalizes on several techniques in animal reproduction. One technique is superovulation . Under regular circumstances, the cow would produce one or, in the case of twins, two embryos after these eggs were fertilized by a bull's sperm. These embryos can then be transferred into other less valuable cows, instantly creating numerous offspring of the same age.