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The mutant rodents are resistant to poison after developing a genetic mutation called L120Q, which renders many toxins useless.
Scientists fear the rats’ immunity to poison will see the population explode.
Dee Ward-Thompson, from the British Pest Control Association, said: “There could be a significant risk to public health if left unchecked.”
The shock discovery was made in a study by University of Reading experts who identified “the massive extent of L120Q resistance across the whole of central southern England”.