The scientists believe it is possible they will discover this capability in more animals and insects they research, which they postulate could be used to reduce invasive species overtaking natural habitats and other infestations.
Deeply fascinated by creatures that can reproduce children without the aid of a male counterpart, scientists Alexis L. Sperling and his team were able to genetically modify a fruit fly in a laboratory to produce offspring asexually, the first time this has ever been clinically demonstrated.
The British evolutionary biologist at the University of Cambridge was able to bioengineer “Drosophila melanogaster,” the fancy name for the fruit fly, to have the ability to perform “parthenogenesis,” which refers to a “virgin birth.”
Sperling’s observations were published in the journal Current Biology; writing that the offspring is “completely healthy and despite having inherited the power to carry out parthenogenesis, they also retain their ability to reproduce sexually…
