The signature color and skin tumors of ‘Lemon Frost’ geckos come from the same genetic mutation
A gecko named Mr. Frosty and his kin have helped scientists uncover the genetic glitch that gives these lizards their standout color — and their high risk for skin tumors.
The geckos are a variety of leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius) called Lemon Frost, which sports stark white skin that not only highlights its yellow coloring, but also tends to develop tumors.
These results suggest that Lemon Frost geckos could be used to investigate new treatments for skin cancer, researchers report online June 24 in PLOS Genetics.
“It was extremely exciting that they could link the Lemon Frost characteristics to a specific region of the genome,” says Ylenia Chiari, an evolutionary biologist at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., who wasn’t involved in the work. “Studying a gecko is not only about the gecko’s health or about understanding basic biology, but could also provide key information to further research on other organisms, including humans.”
Over the last few decades, reptile breeders have produced a wide variety of leopard geckos, ranging from vibrant orange to black or spotted to striped. “It’s just amazing that one particular species can display such a variety of different colors and patterns,” says Longhua Guo, a geneticist at UCLA. Curious about the genetics underlying this rainbow of reptiles, Guo first visited a gecko breeding facility in California in 2017.
