Insights on Human Disease From Dolphins

  • Researchers think dolphins can give them insights into some cervical cancers. (Photo courtesy of USFWS)

New research on diseases in dolphins could help us understand more about cancer in humans. Samara Freemark reports:

Transcript

New research on diseases in dolphins could help us understand more about cancer in humans. Samara Freemark reports:

Cervical cancer can be caused by human papilloma virus, or HPV.

There are a lot of different strains of HPV. And the more strains a person gets at one time, the higher the chance of developing cancer.

Other animals get papilloma too. But up until now, researchers thought only humans could host multiple strains at once.

Hendrik Nollen studies marine animal diseases at the University of Florida.

His team has now found multiple papilloma strains in the dolphins they’ve been studying, but they also found one very important difference between dolphins and people.

“There are no reports of cervical cancer in dolphins. So here we have an
opportunity to look at the same setting, the same situation, and see why does one species develop disease and another one doesn’t.”

Understanding why dolphins don’t get cervical cancer could mean a step towards a cure for humans.

For The Environment Report, I’m Samara Freemark.

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