New Breed of “Super Rats” have Poison-Resistant DNA

A new breed of ‘super rat’ that has poison-resistant DNA has been found in several towns across Britain, according to scientists.

Scientists have been testing samples from the local rat population and say some of the rats have a mutant gene that protects the rats from all common toxins used to kill them. They believe the resistance to poison has built up over the years when rats feed poison to their young and they have built up an immunity to it.

But the super rats have went orders of magnitude further than mere resistance and developed an entirely new strand of DNA that prevents infection and attacks from rodenticides and pesticides. Being genetic and heriditary, the gene is passed on from one generation of rats to the next, evolving with each generation.

[Source: The Daily Mail]