Allergic to cats? No problem...
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http//www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn9313&feedId=online-news_rss20
A California company has turned to conventional breeding to deliver the non-allergenic kittens it promised two years ago. But allergists warn the new cats may still be something to sneeze at.
In 2004, Allerca, then based in Los Angeles, announced plans to genetically engineer cats so they would not produce the most common cat allergen, a protein called FEL D1 (See Doubts over plan for allergen-free cats). Now based in San Diego, Allerca has abandoned genetic engineering to focus on selectively breeding cats that lack the version of the FEL D1 protein that triggers allergic reactions.
A spokeswoman says the company will deliver the first 400 to 500 "GD" (for genetically divergent) kittens in 2007.
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Allerca reports a two-year backlog of orders, with US residents paying $3950, and residents of other countries paying ?4950 to ?9950 ($6300 to $12,700, respectively). Kittens are to be shipped at 12 weeks old. "It's plausible that some people could benefit ? if they have $4000 for a cat," Wood says
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Peace Tay
Unbelievable! What will they come up with next ... I wonder if the lack of this protein would have any negative effect on the cat's health. -
I have cats myself, and although I do have a mild allergic reaction to cat dander I wouldn't trade em for the worldPeace all