“Being able to compare Chernobyl dogs with other village dogs and dogs of other breeds gives us a firm basis for determining where these animals came from and what their ancestors are. We can also learn how they have changed over time,” said the University of South Carolina biologist Professor Tim Musso.
The radiation claimed the lives of hundreds of people, but the animals in the danger zone were able to survive and reproduce. Home to hundreds of dogs, the focus is on 302 animals in populations that may have become genetically distinct from each other and from others in the world.
Since 2017, scientists have sterilized, vaccinated and tested many animals and the level of radiation they received, but the results are not immediately available. There are many questions to be answered, including how radiation affects fertility, skin and other internal organs.
We must also take into account the natural changes in the genome that will occur during 15 generations of dogs living in the wild in a normal environment. However, the results will help to understand how humans can survive in degraded environments and places with high radiation, including in space.
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