Mrap2 Knockout Accelerates Animal Growth Rate
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current animal husbandry practices face challenges in reducing the time it takes for animals to mature, leading to higher costs and resource consumption, as existing methods are inefficient in promoting rapid growth without increasing feed intake.
Innovation Solution
Inhibiting the Mrap2 gene in animals to reduce its activity, allowing them to grow at a faster rate and reach mature size up to 50% quicker than wildtype animals, even on a restricted diet, through genetic modifications using CRISPR, TALENs, or ZFN nucleases, and recombinase technologies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If conventional animal husbandry methods are used to promote rapid growth, then growth rate is improved, but feed efficiency deteriorates and resource consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by modifying the Mrap2 gene to alter the animal's physiological parameters. Specifically, the Mrap2 knockout changes the animal's metabolic efficiency and growth parameters, enabling faster weight gain (up to 50% faster) and improved feed conversion ratios without proportionally increasing resource consumption. This genetic parameter modification resolves the contradiction by fundamentally changing how the animal converts feed to body mass.
2Loss of time
If animals are raised to mature size quickly, then production time is reduced, but feed intake must increase
Solution Approach 1:
The Mrap2 knockout creates parameter changes in the animal's growth physiology, allowing maturation time to be reduced by up to 50% while avoiding proportional increases in feed intake. The modified animals achieve better feed efficiency ratios, meaning they convert a higher percentage of consumed feed into body mass, thus reducing the total quantity of feed needed to reach market size.
3Productivity
If feed efficiency is increased to reduce costs, then production cost is reduced, but growth rate may be limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves this contradiction through parameter changes in the Mrap2 knockout animals, which simultaneously improve feed efficiency and accelerate growth rate. The genetic modification creates a physiological state where the animal achieves both superior feed conversion ratios and faster weight gain, breaking the traditional trade-off between these two parameters and improving overall productivity.
Data Source
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AI summary
As described herein, Mrap2 negatively regulates weight gain in animals. Accordingly, provided herein are cells, animals, and methods relating to the inhibition of Mrap2 to increase the rate of growth in cells and/or animals, e.g. animals comprising Mrap2 modifications to improve production of animal products.