? Zebrafish Biomedical Research (ZBR) Facility Core The OSU Environmental Health Sciences Core Center (EHS CC), has developed a new, integrated approach to address major elements of the NIEHS strategic plan. The environmental health sciences community is becoming increasingly aware of the value that aquatic models can provide to identify chemical hazards and to dissect the molecular pathways that influence disease. Over the last 10 years, with substantial EHS CC, NIEHS, and Institutional investments, the Zebrafish Biomedical Research (ZBR) Facility Core has pioneered the zebrafish model as an ideal vertebrate platform for discovery and translational research. The ZBR has created one of the world's largest zebrafish toxicity facilities. We can assess responses to chemicals, nanoparticles, and mixtures in over 3,000,000 animals annually. We operate the world's only certified specific pathogen-free facility. We have developed innovative software and instrumentation that enable us to identify bioactive compounds and to identify adverse outcome pathways. Our studies enable investigators to prioritize chemicals for mammalian and epidemiological studies, and they provide a path toward biomarker and therapeutic discovery. We operate the ZBR as a full-service facility for a dynamic cadre of EHS CC investigators and stakeholders. Our central goal is to remove the technical and knowledge barriers so they can advance their research programs by exploiting the unique advantages of zebrafish. The ZBR interfaces seamlessly with the Chemical Exposure Core (CXC) and the Integrated Health Sciences Facility Core (IHSFC) and the Community Engagement Core (CEC) to advance EHS research. The ZBR will specifically 1) help EHS CC investigators understand the advantages and limitations of conducting environmental health sciences research with non- human models; 2) provide technical core support and specific-pathogen-free zebrafish for short- and long-term studies; 3) provide unprecedented high-throughput research platforms to evaluate toxicity and to determine toxicity mechanisms.
