MBL March Madness: Zebrafish
Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a small freshwater fish native to southeast Asia and a popular model system for human genetic disease research as well as for studying vertebrate gene function. Zebrafish embryos are nearly transparent, which makes them an ideal organism for studying the development of internal structures. The species has a similar genetic structure to humans and has been a popular vertebrate model since the 1970s for basic biological, genetic, and biomedical research. Zebrafish is known for its amazing regenerative abilities, and can regrow parts of its brain, retina, spinal cord, heart, and other tissues. Since the advent of CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, scientists “knock-in” and “knock-out” different genes in the zebrafish to learn how the genes impact development and health.
Fun Facts:
- In 2013, scientists published the complete genome sequence of the zebrafish, which is 1,505,581,940 base pairs in length and contains 26,247 protein-coding genes!
- Zebrafish share about 71% of the human genome.
- By "knocking out" specific pigmentation genes, researchers have created a line of transparent zebrafish nicknamed "Caspers." Because of this, several internal organs as well as the female's eggs are easily viewable.
Out of Towners Division
Woods Hole is bursting with biodiversity, but it doesn't have everything. Scientists at the MBL study organisms from all over the world. Important biological models—including zebrafish, Xenopus, and some cephalopod species—are cultured at the MBL to give our researchers (and researchers around the world) access to these biological samples. Here are a few organisms that travel from far and wide to be part of MBL research.