Cloned, Glow in the Dark Cats

eldavojohn writes "Well, you can finally get genetically modified cloned animals. South Korean scientists have shown it is possible to alter a protein via therapeutic cloning to 'artificially [create] animals with human illnesses linked to genetic causes.' The images of these animals are amazing. This research was headed by Kong Il-keun, the first person in the country to clone cats in 2004." There is always the chance that this is a hoax, but far too amusing to ignore.

Comments

Black light cats

[xPsi]

Because of the red fluorescence protein in their skin cells, the three Turkish Angola kittens look reddish under ultraviolet light, the researchers said. Calling them "glow in the dark" may be overstating the case. More like black light cats. Nothing like having a 70s poster that can scratch back while listening to Dark Side of the Moon.

Re:hrmmmm

[RingDev]

The red cat is either a rather good photoshoping, or the real deal. If the cat were being lit by an external source, the fur would reflect the light. But the fur appears to be blocking the light.

My best guess for the picture though is that they used a UV/Low Light amplification filter. Then they pointed a UV light at the cats, and stuck some kind of obstruction between the light and the left cat. Thus the right cat and the tips of the left cat's ears appear green, while the left cat and the left side of the right cat's body appear black (save for the UV florescence off the left cat).

The fact that it was shot with a Low Light filter, and further compressed via JPG, means that there is a lot of noise and artifacting in the picture. That much distortion could easily mask modifications. So I would say it's either the real deal, or a fake done by someone with a lot of time and experience in producing quality fakes.

-Rick