Zebrafish “Glo-Fish” breeding–babies available to SWAP
Yorktown has an agreement giving it worldwide marketing rights to the Glo-fish. Though I was not able to pin it down, in a quick search, I am sure that a part of the price of each fish goes to the National University of Singapore who developed the fish. Another company has the right to market another fluorescent fish, a medeka that fluoresces green.
The fish is patented, by the person who came up with the procedure to insert the gene into the genome of the fish (see http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PTXT&s1=7,135,613&OS=7,135,613&RS=7,135,613) and as such, a royalty should be paid.
One would hope that the monies thus generated are being used to further the research to reach the original goal of producing fish that will glow when exposed to toxins in the water.
As has been mentioned several times in this thread, these fish have not been hybridized. They are zebra danios through an through with just a genetic modification that allows them to glow under the right conditions. In reality, they are no different than the koi people keep in their ponds, the goldfish that people raise in tanks, the guppies that so many people keep, the bettas, and so on. I would agree with your distain for the parrot cichlids, and the “painted” fish, but if you have kept any of the other fish, or ever do, I am afraid that you will need to dismount your high horse, and come down here with the rest of us.
Oh, here is a thought. What about the long finned varieties? I really don’t care for the long finned zebra, but if others like them, so be it. Just a natural mutation that was bred and developed. I would need to judge them when entered in a show, unlike the parrot cichlids, which would never make it past the rules committee.
Amanda is using the fish to get students interested in fish studies and genetics, not a bad thing. I would take issue with a couple of the fish on her list, and I think enough people here have said so, in so many words.
\Steve//
Category: Philippines Internet Koi Society
