Interesting notes about zebrafish

Scientific name: Danio rerio

Origin: India

Adult size: 4 to 5cm in length

Life span: 3.5 to 5.5 years

As a model organism: 

• Pioneer work on zebrafish as a model organism for vertebrate embryology studies was initiated by Streisinger et al., 1981.

• Dedicated online databases such as Zebrafish Information Network (ZFIN) - http://zfin.org/, have been established to provide comprehensive information in genomics, molecular tools, developmental stages and publications (Bradford et al., 2011). 

Small fish, big science:

• The whole zebrafish genome has also been successfully sequenced by Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute - https://www.sanger.ac.uk/resources/zebrafish/, through a project which was initiated in year 2001.  

• The zebrafish genome is about half the size of human genome, and it shares a lot of similarity with human genome in various developmental as well as disease associated genes (Howe et al., 2013).

Transparency:

• Unlike mammals, zebrafish develops externally. It develops from a fertilized egg into an adult outside of its mother.

• Enable easy observations of developing anatomical structures under the microscope.

• We could observe how a single cell develops into a multicellular organism.

• Even the larvae are transparent during the first few days of their lives.

Zebrafish embryogenesis 

Fast embryonic development:

• All major organs develop in the first 24 hours after fertilization.

• The larvae will hatch and start to look for food within 3 days.

• They become sexually matured adults after 3 to 4 months.

• An adult female zebrafish can lay up to 700 eggs per week.

Regeneration abilities:

• Zebrafish can regenerate its organs and tissues (fins, heart, brain, pigment cells, barbels, liver, pancreas and skin).

• Help to elucidate disorders related to human beings such as neurodegenerative and heart diseases.    

Hope you enjoy reading these notes!

Cheers,

Cutie Xing