OVERVIEW

The mission of the Zebrafish Genetics Laboratory is to exploit many advantages of zebrafish to discern the molecular mechanisms of human cardiac diseases. Zebrafish embryos are transparent and develop ex utero, which allows one to study cardiogenesis processes at single cell resolution. To complement its proven track record for novel gene discovery through mutagenesis screens, the zebrafish is amenable to investigate functions of any gene using reverse genetic tools such as morpholino, TILLING and Zinc Finger Nuclease (ZFN) technology. With the zebrafish genomic project nearing completion, this vertebrate model organism brings tremendous novel research opportunities to address questions in the field of molecular cardiology.

The major research focus of the Zebrafish Genetics Lab is the molecular mechanisms of sarcomere-based cardiac diseases, such as cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure. We are interested in both developmental defects during cardiogenesis and age-related abnormalities in an adult zebrafish heart.