Culture & Life

Scientists discover why elephants rarely get cancer

Despite their big size, elephants rarely get cancer, and scientists said Thursday they have discovered the secret to the creatures' special protection. It's in the genes.

09.10.2015

(AFP) Despite their big size, elephants rarely get cancer, and scientists said Thursday they have discovered the secret to the creatures' special protection. It's in the genes.

Elephants have 38 additional modified copies of a gene that encodes p53, a compound that suppresses tumor formation.Humans, on the other hand, have only two, according to the study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).