# Scientists experimenting with gene splicing in hamsters turned them into vicious little monsters **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 6, 2022, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783 "2022-06-06T22:33:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/1 "2022-06-06T22:33:28Z")
Scientists at Georgia State University were trying to study how to turn hamsters into socially nonaggressive, but the result was the exact opposite. They turned into hyper aggressive demons. > **[Scientists accidentally turn gene-edited hamsters into hyper aggressive...](https://screenshot-media.com/the-future/science/hyper-aggressive-hamsters/)** > > In a gene-editing experiment meant to raise the animals’ cooperation, scientists have found that it actually makes them hyper aggressive. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/2 "2022-06-06T22:40:49Z")
This sounds like the start of many horror movies in the 70s. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/3 "2022-06-06T22:43:09Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Scientists at Georgia State University were trying to study how to turn hamsters into socially nonaggressive, but the result was the exact opposite. They turned into hyper aggressive demons. Is this the overarching plot of _Firefly_ except with hamsters? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/U-NVs68X_S4/hqdefault.jpg "Serenity, Origin of the Reavers") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-NVs68X_S4) Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/4 "2022-06-06T22:44:40Z")
Great. Scientists have learned how to make Reavers. Did they learn nothing from _Serenity_? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/5 "2022-06-06T22:59:05Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > the result was the exact opposite Joking aside, the opposite of what’s expected sounds like an important result. It shows that the gene is involved in the pathway they are seeking to target, and working out why it does the opposite of what they expect is likely to improve their model for how the pathway operates. It might be more interesting than the expected result, and it’s certainly more interesting than nothing happening. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/6 "2022-06-06T23:01:27Z")
Maybe they should target the genes that control size. A bigger hamster is likely to be a calmer hamster. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/7 "2022-06-06T23:04:25Z")
Huh. Sort of like what happened in _Firefly_ and _Serenity_ where an attempt to make very passive people resulted in some of them turning into monsters that would kill you, rape you, and turn your skin into clothing. And if you were very lucky they would do it in that order. … and… ninja’d. Multiple times. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/8 "2022-06-06T23:07:48Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Maybe they should target the genes that control size. A bigger hamster is likely to be a calmer hamster. Have you never seen [The Killer Shrews](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Killer_Shrews) ? or [Night of the Lepus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_of_the_Lepus)? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/9 "2022-06-06T23:08:09Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/CGJeUv5Jqpk/maxresdefault.jpg "Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters from a Planet Near Mars") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGJeUv5Jqpk) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/10 "2022-06-06T23:10:30Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > > [@running\_coach](#): > > > > Maybe they should target the genes that control size. A bigger hamster is likely to be a calmer hamster. > > Have you never seen [The Killer Shrews](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Killer_Shrews) ? or [Night of the Lepus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_of_the_Lepus)? - Are you saying that trick never works? ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/11 "2022-06-06T23:30:55Z")
Meanwhile when I hear about gene splicing in rodents, the first thing I think is “So, Brain, what do you want to do tonight?” ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/12 "2022-06-06T23:34:31Z")
It wasn’t ethical but it was the only way to save the SDMB servers… ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/13 "2022-06-06T23:36:45Z")
That would make for a Rodent Of Unusual Size. Not really known for calmness, either. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/14 "2022-06-06T23:38:21Z")
> [@Twoflower](#): > > That would make for a Rodent Of Unusual Size. Not really known for calmness, either. - I’ve seen video of those. They look much more like shrews than hamsters. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/15 "2022-06-06T23:42:56Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Maybe they should target the genes that control size. A bigger hamster is likely to be a calmer hamster. Are you sure about that?: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/fkmYQ1dZsVU/maxresdefault.jpg "Capybara vs dog") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkmYQ1dZsVU) Stranger ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/16 "2022-06-06T23:46:56Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > > [@running\_coach](#): > > > > Maybe they should target the genes that control size. A bigger hamster is likely to be a calmer hamster. > > Are you sure about that?: > [https://youtu.be/fkmYQ1dZsVU](https://youtu.be/fkmYQ1dZsVU) > > Stranger - That’s an oversize guinea pig, not a hamster. Besides, it looks like it’s playing. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/17 "2022-06-06T23:51:00Z")
Every species loves capybaras, it is known. And I’m questioning whether or not these mad scientists had ever previously _met_ a hamster because those little fuckers are mean as shit just as they are. How the hell one would be able to tell you made them any meaner I do not know. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/18 "2022-06-06T23:51:49Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Besides, it looks like it’s playing. Do these guys look like they’re playing? [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhb1Q1kdmaI) Stranger ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2022, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/19 "2022-06-06T23:55:40Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > > [@running\_coach](#): > > > > Besides, it looks like it’s playing. > > Do these guys look like they’re playing? > [https://youtu.be/jhb1Q1kdmaI](https://youtu.be/jhb1Q1kdmaI) > > Stranger From the comments, it sounds like the dog was the aggressor. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2022, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783/20 "2022-06-07T00:04:13Z")
A number of outlets of…variable quality (including the N.Y. Post and Business Insider) have run with the hamster story as creating “hyper-aggressive” hamsters, but the actual report from Georgia State University researchers is a bit more nuanced. Basic conclusions: “…the hamsters without the receptor showed much higher levels of social communication behavior than did their counterparts with intact receptors. Even more interesting, the typical sex differences observed in aggressiveness were eliminated with both male and female hamsters displaying high levels of aggression towards other same-sex individuals.” > **[Georgia State Researchers Find CRISPR-Cas9 Gene Editing Approach Can Alter...](https://news.gsu.edu/2022/05/13/georgia-state-researchers-find-crispr-cas9-gene-editing-approaches-can-alter-the-social-behavior-of-animals/)** > > New gene editing techniques are shedding light on how hormones impact social behavior in animals and possibly, humans. The research was led by Dr. Elliott Albers, Director of the Georgia State Center for Behavioral Neuroscience. I’m not seeing the “super-bully” hamster meme confirmed there, but that sex-related differences in aggressive behavior were considered to be eliminated in these hamsters. Whether that made the rodents super-aggressive overall is unclear from the news release. On the other hand, if the secret C.I.A. lab working on creating a race of violent capybaras is successful, they could be deployed in Ukraine, causing a panicked stampede of Russian troops. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scientists-experimenting-with-gene-splicing-in-hamsters-turned-them-into-vicious-little-monsters/965783.md?page=2)