Glow in the Dark Bunnies Coming to a Pet Store Near You. . . Finally

Josie Zayner and Cathy Tie promise a literal unicorn

They teach people like me not to start stories with quotations because it’s considered lazy. So, let the record show that I began this piece with these two sentences before getting to this gem from Josie Zayner.

“If you ask most academic scientists what they’d research if someone gave them $1 billion, they’ll say some bullshit like, ‘Oh, I would study what I’m currently studying’ or something like that.

“It’s like, what do you mean? You’re studying fruit or something like it. Is what you’re doing actually the pinnacle of research? Wouldn’t you rather be trying to put monkey heads on human bodies?

“To me, the pinnacle of research really is whether or not we can genetically engineer animals – and then eventually humans – to create whatever we want.”

And with that we arrive at the Los Angeles Project, the latest in a long line of controversial genetic engineering efforts from Zayner.

In this case, Zayner and co-founder Cathy Tie have started a venture-backed company to create genetically modified animals that they plan to sell to consumers. We’re talking fluorescent and hypoallergenic rabbits to start and then perhaps cats with antlers and other mammals with Pangolin-like scales. Unicorns and dragons too? Well, why not?

Tie and Zayner holding rabbits that may or may not be capable of killing knights

Zayner, who has a Ph.D. in biophysics from the University of Chicago, has been attracting attention for her biohacking exploits for more than a decade. Among many other things, she did DNA self-experimentation with CRISPR before it was cool and dosed herself with a homemade Covid vaccine during the pandemic. She also sells a variety of genetic engineering kits for home use via The ODIN. (I’ve bought them and done some experiments with my kids. They’re great.)

Zayner’s free-wheeling, uninhibited style has not always endeared her to the more traditional scientific community. And it’s doubtful that the Los Angeles Project will rectify this situation. What’s more, the general public and regulators may not take kindly to the concept of some scientists with commercial aims mucking around with the genes of bunnies, cats and dogs. Nevertheless, here we are.

The Chimera station

When dressed up right, this vein of animal genetic engineering can look legit and inspiring. Colossal Biosciences, for example, has raised hundreds of millions of dollars to try and bring animals like the woolly mammoth and dodo back from extinction. These resources have put the company at the forefront of what’s possible in regard to numerous, large gene sequence edits.

The Los Angeles Project is a smaller, younger operation with much to prove. It started in early January 2024 in Austin and has grown to about five people, according to Zayner. The company began performing gene edits in secret on fish, frogs and axolotls. “Amphibians are really great because they’ll lay clutches of eggs that are basically like embryos,” Zayner says. “That really allowed us to build out our workflow, test a bunch of different CRISPR edits and insert genes into genomes and all that good stuff.”

At the start of this year, the Los Angeles Project then began working with rabbits – lots of rabbits. “We’ve made fast progress with IVF and injecting embryos,” Zayner says. “We’ll probably implant our first genetically engineered embryos in the next month and have our first genetically engineered rabbit very soon, which will be fun.”

Those first rabbits will be the fluorescent and hypoallergenic ones with more complex traits like antlers coming by year end, Zayner says.

(Microinjecting CRISPR into embryos with tiny needles.)

From day one, the Los Angeles Project has tried to focus on automation and using robots to do as much manual biology work as possible. It’s, for example, using techniques like shocking numerous embryos with electricity to allow DNA to better pass through their membranes, which makes it possible for a robot to replace the typical step of injecting individual embryos by hand, according to Zayner.

The company has also pioneered some embryo acquisition techniques.

According to Zayner, it has developed novel hormone and antibody treatments to get the rabbits making lots of viable embryos. It’s also partnered with farmers to harvest embryos from animals heading for slaughter. “We can get like 10,000 embryos a week,” Zayner says.

At this point in our conversation, I interject that people might get quizzical looks on their faces when they hear of mass embryo harvesting. Zayner, though, counters that it’s the scale of her company’s operation that’s allowing it to move fast and make new discoveries.

“I just want to be treated the same way as everyone else,” Zayner says. “Humans kill like 70 billion chickens per year. Scientists also kill animals on a scale that’s just insane to get embryos.

“I’m using the waste streams of all this to understand living things and make life better in a way that will contribute to society. We treat our animals much better than they would be treated at another lab. We feed them fresh food, and their cages are huge. And our goal is to kill no animals in the process.”

Of course, while making dragons sounds all well and good, it remains difficult. Most of the things the Los Angeles Project is chasing would require editing more than one gene, and we’re not terribly good at multigene edits today. The edited animals would then need the requisite regulatory pathways to support the growth of things they’re not designed to grow. That said, we long ago produced glow in the dark cats meant to fight AIDS – wtf – so a horned beaver that craps Athletic Greens seems like the natural progression to me.

Or, as Zayner puts it, “Sure, there’s been green, fluorescent cats but has anybody ever seen one other than some picture on the internet? We want to take this technology and make it real to people in the real world. We want to sell them pets.”

Moving forward, Zayner thinks we could use similar technology to, for example, breed pigs that produce organs suited for humans. “This is totally being slept on,” she says. “We should be throwing money at it. That’s the answer to longevity. Not some fucking olive oil. I don’t care how many shots of olive oil you take. It’s not going to restore your liver.” (Cover Bryan Johnson’s ears, Bryan Johnson’s blood boy.)

Some people might be disturbed to read about this start-up. And that’s understandable. Other people will have massive doubts as to whether or not the Los Angeles Project can really pull off much of what it’s planning. Also, understandable. (The 1517 Fund and Andy Weissman from Union Square Ventures have invested.)

(Fluorescent tadpoles having a swim.)

Per usual, however, Zayner is expanding the gene editing Overton window in ways that can help push the bio-tech field forward. The company also appears on a path to creating a massive database of genes tied to animal traits and to be nudging lab automation techniques in new directions. Both of which feel like wins.

“CRISPR has been around for 15 years and what have we really even done with it?” Zayner says. “We’re just sitting on this technology. The only things holding us back are funding, the market traditions and the lack of enough crazy people in bio-tech.”