Gene knockout facts for kids

A gene knockout is a cool science trick where scientists turn off one specific gene in an organism. Sometimes, they replace it with a gene that doesn't work. This helps them learn what that gene does.

Scientists often use animals like knockout mice for this. They compare the knockout animal (with the turned-off gene) to a normal animal. By seeing the differences, they can figure out the gene's job. "Knockout" is often shortened to KO.

The opposite is called a gene knock-in. This is when a gene is turned on, or a working gene is put into an organism.

How Scientists Make a Gene Knockout

Making a gene knockout involves several steps. It usually starts in a test tube with a small piece of DNA called a plasmid. Then, scientists work with cells in a lab dish.

Individual cells are changed using the special DNA. Often, the goal is to create an animal that has this changed gene.

If they want to make an animal, scientists use special stem cells from an early embryo. They change these stem cells with the new DNA. Then, they put these changed cells into a very young embryo. If the animal grows up with the changed gene in its germline (the cells that make babies), it can pass the gene knockout to its own children.

Images for kids

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  Wild-type Physcomitrella and knockout mosses: These pictures show different types of moss. The "wild-type" is normal moss. The others are "knockout mosses" where genes have been turned off, causing them to look different.

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  A knockout mouse (left) that helps scientists study obesity, compared with a normal mouse.

See also

In Spanish: Bloqueo de genes para niños