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Apr 27, 2023 · In 1925, a sled dog named Balto made headlines around the world when he braved fierce winds, a raging blizzard, and splintering river ice to bring lifesaving serum to an isolated Alaskan town struck with diphtheria. (Although another sled dog, Togo, may deserve most of the credit.) Now, researchers have pieced together a fuller picture of the ...
Dec 28, 2023 · It's been nearly 100 years since Balto the sled dog helped save children in Nome, Alaska from a diphtheria outbreak. Now, scientists are studying his ancient DNA to reveal what made the Siberian husky so tough.
- Alex Orlando
- Sequencing Balto
- The Genes Behind The Hero
- A Perfect Storm
- Genomics of A Good Boy
The study confirms a few traits we already know about Balto as well as some others that one can’t discern by appearance alone. Researchers used the information they gleaned from his genome to predict his eye color, coat color, and standing height. “Balto represents this kind of snapshot in human and dog history because the two are obviously complet...
Balto wasn’t like the floofy, handsome Siberian husky of today. (Though he was both floofy and handsome, photographs confirm.) Bred by a musher named Leonhard Seppala, this heroic dog was built for Alaska’s harsh conditions and grueling physical labor. His genes also allowed for a particular diet. According to the researchers’ findings, Balto was a...
Part of this study’s importance, Moon says, is how it utilizes genomics to understand adaptation and selective breeding. Her team wanted to probe what sequencing a single genome could say about a group; moreover, what is revealed when that single genome is compared against dozens of others? This study compared Balto’s genome against that of 282 oth...
Moon relinquishes this data to the public, hoping that others continue to build on it. “I hope people use it for a million and one applications,” she says. Every genome sequenced immediately becomes publicly available, allowing anyone to pick up where the researchers left off. “I think one of the coolest things about genetics is that every time we ...
- Elana Spivack
He achieved fame when he led a team of sled dogs driven by Gunnar Kaasen on the final leg of the 1925 serum run to Nome, in which diphtheria antitoxin was transported from Anchorage, Alaska, to Nenana, Alaska, by train and then to Nome by dog sled to combat an outbreak of the disease.
Jul 24, 2024 · Even the most optimistic of people wagered the town’s fate was sealed. Then, a Siberian husky named Balto saved the day. At first, Balto was just one of 150 sled dogs deployed to deliver medicine to the town through gale-force winds, whiteout snow, and dangerous ice.
- All That's Interesting
Apr 28, 2023 · Now, scientists have immortalized the intrepid sled dog’s legacy in a new way—in a study published Friday in the journal Science, researchers analyzed his DNA.
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Apr 28, 2023 · In 1925, Balto led a team of sled dogs in a blizzard to deliver lifesaving medication to an Alaska town. His heroic efforts have been recognised in a statue of the dog sitting in New York...
