My Start to Research

In the past few weeks, I have been scrolling on Twitter, learning about new facts and engaging with my classmates posts.

However, this week, I have been honing in on what I want to specifically study, and which scientific articles I want to pull evidence from. I plan to study the domestication of foxes. Wild foxes are known for their adaptability and wit; I would like to see if domesticating foxes reduces that behavior. While I am still on the hunt for research, and I am not fully sure of my topic, I have come across two research papers I would like to share.

Trut, Lyudmila, et al. “Animal Evolution during Domestication: The Domesticated Fox as a Model.” BioEssays : News and Reviews in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Mar. 2009, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2763232/#:~:text=Left%3A%20a%20fox%20of%20the,years%20of%20selection%20for%20tameability. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.

This article discusses the domesticated fox. I found this through Google Scholar, as I searched up the National Institute of Health. The National Institute of Health is my preferred site - I have used this site when researching in prior classes. I am familiar with the site and I am comfortable with the format. I find that this research article - while lengthy - is easy to read as there are a plethora of headings. I used the keywords "fox" and "domestication" as I am interested in studying the change of behavior between domesticated and wild foxes. It did not take me long to find this article - the keywords helped a lot.

It was found that domesticated foxes are able to "read" human emotions and respond accordingly. Domesticated foxes have softer features and softer behaviors as well. These conclusions would help us understand how domesticating wild animals physically and mentally changes the animal. I don't think I can make a story with this article because this study is an evolutionary study - there is no "one" fox that had an enormous change.

Trut, L. N., et al. “The Fox Domestication Experiment and Dog Evolution: A View Based on Modern Molecular, Genetic, and Archaeological Data - Russian Journal of Genetics.” SpringerLink, Pleiades Publishing, 23 July 2021, link.springer.com/article/10.1134/S1022795421070140. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.

This article is also about the domesticated fox, studying the differences in DNA methyltransferase genes between domesticated and wild foxes. For this aritcle, I used Academic Search Complete to find this article. Since I am a student in the UC system, I obtain access to the UC system libraries. I used the keywords "fox" and "domestication" to find this article. This article took a bit longer to find because I am not used to the Academic Search Complete platform.

It was found that for domesticated foxes, they expressed the DNMT3A gene an increased amount compared to wild foxes. However, the levels of DNMT1 were the same across the different foxes. There was also no difference in serum methionine levels in the wild and domesticated foxes. Much like the last article, I am not sure if I can make a story out of this, because it is an evolutionary study - involving many different foxes.