RAW STORY
Scientists said on Friday they have genetically engineered female fruit flies that can have offspring without needing a male, marking the first time “virgin birth” has been induced in an animal.
The offspring of the flies were also able to give birth without mating, showing that the trait could be passed down generations, in another first revealed in a study in the journal Current Biology.
Virgin birth, also called parthenogenesis, is rare but not unheard of in the animal kingdom.
The females of some egg-laying animals — such as lizards and birds — are capable of giving birth without mating, usually later in life when no males are available.
“For the first time, scientists have managed to induce virgin birth in an animal that usually reproduces sexually: the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster,” Cambridge University said…
