Zebrafish have recently become more commonly used animals for studies of vertebrate development and genetics. Powerful techniques allow efficient generation and recovery of zebrafish mutations that affect a wide range of genes, including ones that regulate developmental patterning, organogenesis, physiology, and behavior. The functions of many of these genes appear to be conserved among different vertebrate groups. Thus, analysis of zebrafish mutations provides insights to gene functions in other vertebrates, including humans. Ongoing genetic screens have identified over 7,000 mutations; the fish that carry them are distributed among more than 100 laboratories in 28 countries. The zebrafish research community would benefit from a centralized site to preserve and keep track of these stocks, and to facilitate their distribution to researchers. This application seeks funds to establish a National Resource for Zebrafish to maintain wild-type and mutant stocks of the highest possible quality and uniformity, and to take these stocks readily available to the international research community. The proposed information center will: 1) develop and maintain a computer database, accessible via the Internet; 2) publish a manual for the laboratory use of zebrafish and a periodical with news about zebrafish research and techniques; 3) facilitate communication among zebrafish researchers; and 4) host visits from researchers who wish to work with stocks or learn techniques to identify and maintain mutants. The stock center will: 1) establish standards and procedures for generating healthier and more vigorous strains; 2) characterize diseases endemic to laboratory stocks; 3) development methods for disease control and treatment; and 4) publish a manual of procedures for preventing, diagnosing, and treating zebrafish diseases.
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