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ANIMAL MAGIC
Last Roar Of The Taiga?
The world’s largest cat, the Siberian tiger, is an elusive animal and a notoriously skilled
hunter. Increasingly provoked by sickness, hunger and injury, the tigers are coming out of the
forests and into conflict with humans.
Yuri Trush is a professional hunter in the Taiga forests of the Russian Far East. Paid by the
authorities to track down and kill tigers showing abnormal behaviour, Trush regularly puts
his life on the line in order to carry out his job. This incredible film, shot by Trush, is a
rare insight into the lives of those who live alongside one of the rarest creatures on the
planet, and an exploration of the conflicting human interests that now bear down on the
tiger's future.
A Scandinature/Siguy production.
Mutant Mouse
Man’s best friend is no longer the dog but the humble mouse. Scientists in Houston, Texas,
have attempted to create 5,000 different strains of mice by painstakingly “deleting” 5,000
mouse genes, one by one and mouse by mouse. By breeding a mouse with a particular gene
missing, and observing how this affects the mouse, scientists can hunt for a chemical
compound that mimics the effect of the missing gene. In this way, they hope new treatments
can be developed for a range of medical conditions.
But drugs that work on mice don’t always work on humans. Will “supermice” turn out to
be medical heroes or scientific red herrings?
A BBC production.
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