Zebra fish facility at CCMB

Zebra fish, which has a genetic make-up similar to human beings, is now being used as an alternative animal model for doing scientific experiments.

The first exclusive research facility using the zebra fish models has been set up at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) here.

With scientific experiments on animals getting tougher due to opposition from animal rights activists and other concerns, the research facility is a boon for scientists. The Hyderabad-based national laboratory has been conducting research on zebra fish.

The new facility was inaugurated today by Prof. Samir K. Brahmachari, Director-General of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, of which the Hyderabad-based CCMB is a constituent national laboratory.

Zebra fish, a native of the Indian subcontinent, has gained prominence as a model organism as it provides access to various genetic, genomic and biological information with distinct advantages in the vertebrate systems.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Ch Mohan Rao, Director, CCMB, said the genome of zebra fish is similar to the genome of human beings. This prompted the lab to deal exclusively with this fish to investigate developmental biology in vertebrates. It is an important model to study human diseases.

The facility is located in a separate 4,000-sq-ft building in the CCMB campus. It will help in research and training on using zebra fish as model system to study modern biology.

The facility is equipped with sets of stand-alone zebra fish system, breeding/handling set in temperature and light controlled rooms along with a full-fledged micro-manipulation laboratory. Dr Rakesh Mishra, Deputy Director is in charge of the facility. It is jointly funded by CSIR and DBT under ‘Centre of Excellence in Epigenetics’ programme.

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