Comparative analyzes have shown that Chernobyl dogs are also genetically distinct from free-breeding dogs in Eastern Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. However, the researchers found healthy genetic material that was mixed with infected animals. They suspect that stray dogs from outside the area have traveled there to explore a space without Men.
The team would like to take their research further to understand and analyze the genetic variations that have been accumulated over 30 years of exposure to radioactivity. “The experiment we want to do next is to find out how [les chiens de Tchernobyl] survived in this harsh environment of radiation, cold temperatures and limited food“, said Elaine Ostrander, co-author of the study and a geneticist at the National Institute of Health who studies the genomes of dogs, at the New Scientist.