--- title: "Scientists Gene Hack Hamsters Into Hyper-Aggressive Monsters" description: "Scientists say that a little gene hacking turned adorable hamsters into vicious monstrosities. Let that be a lesson to you!" date: "2022-05-17" modified: "2022-05-17" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/gene-hacked-hamsters-aggressive" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "CRISPR" - "gene hacking" - "hamster" - "the digest" --- # Scientists Gene Hack Hamsters Into Hyper-Aggressive Monsters ![Scientists say that a little gene hacking turned adorable hamsters into vicious monstrosities. Let that be a lesson to you!]() *\Image: Universal Pictures\* ## Hamster Brawl Scientists say that a little gene hacking turned adorable hamsters into vicious monstrosities. Researchers at Georgia State University may have published the [scientific understatement of the year]() when saying that their CRISPR experiment with hamsters "found that the biology behind social behavior may be more complex than previously thought." Using the revolutionary gene editing tech, the GSU neuroscience team discovered that knocking out a receptor of vasopressin — a hormone associated with aggression, communication, and social bonding in both humans and hamsters — instead seemed to supercharge the cute rodents' worst instincts. "We anticipated that if we eliminated vasopressin activity, we would reduce both aggression and social communication," GSU neuroscience researcher H. Elliott Albers said in a statement. "But the opposite happened." ## Mr. Fluff Guy The statement that the scientists specifically chose Syrian hamsters, which are known for their aggression, because they "provide a powerful model for the studies of social behavior because their social organization is far more similar to humans than that observed in mice." The GSU team was surprised to find that their attempts to turn down the aggression in the gene-hacked hamsters made them both more aggressive *and* more social — a nightmarish-sounding scenario that evokes Gremlin-esque playground bullies. These "counterintuitive" findings have suggested "a startling conclusion," Albers said in the statement — that neural receptors and the behaviors with which they're associated may not be able to be turned on and off individually, and that attempts to do so may be fraught. "Developing gene-edited hamsters was not easy," Albers concluded in yet another understatement. Hopefully they'll do a bit more thinking before trying to do this sort of experiment on humans. **READ MORE:** [Georgia State Researchers Find CRISPR-Cas9 Gene Editing Approach Can Alter the Social Behavior of Animals]() \[Georgia State University\] **More on CRISPR:** *[Scientists Say They Might Be Able to Reverse Binge Drinking with Gene Editing]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()