October 22, 2025

expert reaction to study on gene-edited pigs made resistant to classical swine fever

A study published in Trends in Biotechnology looks at gene editing in pigs to make them resistant to classical swine fever (CSF).

Dr Emily Clark, Genome Analysis Team Leader at EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), said:

“Using gene editing to produce pigs that are resistant to classical swine fever is a powerful demonstration of how our vastly improved knowledge of the pig genome can directly translate into better animal health. Decades of genomic research have made it possible to pinpoint and precisely edit the genes involved in disease resistance. Research like this is helping to create healthier animals, reduce losses for farmers in areas affected by swine fever, and marks a major step forward in using genomics enabled innovation to build resilience to disease in livestock populations.”

‘DNAJC14 Gene Edited Pigs are Resistant to Classical Pestiviruses’ by Simon G. Lillico et al. was published in Trends in Biotechnology at 16:00 UK time on Wednesday 22 October 2025.

Declared interests

Dr Emily Clark: formally a Group Leader at the Roslin Institute but now a Group Leader at EMBL-EBI. Also, an honorary fellow at University of Edinburgh.

This Roundup was accompanied by an SMC Briefing.