A researcher from New Zealand has claimed that a simple DNA could finally solve the mystery of ‘Nessie’ the Loch Ness monster.
Professor Neil Gemmell from the University of Otago, will use the forensics test to look for traces of DNA that do not match known animals that already live in the lake.
He said: “Our group uses so-called environmental DNA to monitor marine biodiversity. From a few litres of water, we can detect thousands of species ranging from whales, sharks to plankton.
“Essentially all large organism lose cells from their skin, or digestive system, or whatever, as they move through their environment.
“New genomic technology is sensitive enough to pick this up even when rare, and we can use comparisons to large sequence databases that span the majority of known living things. If there was anything unusual in the Loch, these DNA tools would likely pick up that evidence.”
The scientist said: “If there was anything unusual in the loch, these DNA tools would likely pick up that evidence.”
News of the study was welcomed by the Nessie-monitoring world.
Steve Feltham, who has spent 26 years trying to solve the mystery, said: “Bring them on.”
“If anyone thinks they can identify it – bring them on.
“Anything that gives us more knowledge is to be welcomed.”
