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A recent study has examined the genome of Balto, a sled dog that led a team to deliver lifesaving medicine to the Alaskan city of Nome during an outbreak of diphtheria in 1925. The study found that Balto's genome had genes that may have helped him survive the extreme Alaskan environment.
Balto was feted as a hero, the subject of books and movies, and the dog's taxidermy mount still stands on display at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
As diphtheria spread in an icebound Alaska town, antitoxin had to be delivered overland. Sled dogs were the only option. Balto and about 150 dogs travelled in a relay lasting 127 hours through temperatures of minus 45ºC.
WASHINGTON - In 1925, a handsome male sled dog named Balto led a 13-dog team that braved blizzard conditions during the grueling final 85km leg of a 1,088km dogsled relay, bringing lifesaving medicine to the Alaskan city of Nome during a diphtheria outbreak. Balto was feted as a hero, the subject of books and movies, and the dog's taxidermy mount...
In 1925, a handsome male sled dog named Balto led a 13-dog team that braved blizzard conditions during the grueling final 53-mile (85-km) leg of a 674-mile (1,088-km) dogsled relay, bringing