researcher working in the lab

Research

Main Content
closeup of zebrafish in a tank
Closeup of Casper (a transparent mutant strain of zebrafish) in a tank.

Zebrafish Core Facility

Aim:

The aim of the University of Mississippi Medical Center Zebrafish Core Facility is to provide the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology and the greater UMMC community with zebrafish embryos, larvae and adult zebrafish for research and be a technical resource.

Why use zebrafish as a model organism?

  • Molecular and pathological conservation with humans
  • Ability to produce a large progeny (1 breeding pair, approximately 200 embryos)
  • Imaging capacity
  • Large scale chemical and pharmacology testing in vivo
  • Ease of genetic manipulation

The Facility

The Cell and Molecular Biology Zebrafish Core Facility is a 1,200 sq.ft. space housing a state-of-the-art Tecniplast. The facility also has more lab space dedicated to animal work in an adjacent building, the Clinical Science Building. Altogether, the zebrafish facilty has an extra 1,160 square feet of space in the building. Currently, the facility has a state-of-the-art 750 Tecniplast tanks including a quarantine rack (80 tanks) and a nursery. The laboratory dedicated to the fish facility is equipped for several routine animal procedures such as: surgery, imaging, screening, euthanasia and storage. The different zebrafish lines are raised in-house at the UMMC zebrafish facility and maintained as live colonies.

Personnel

  • Director: Nicole Anderson, PhD
    Assistant Professor, Department of Cell & Molecular Biology
  • Zebrafish Technician: Jackson Boone
    Researcher II

Models

Table 1.  Zebrafish Lines Available in ZCF
NameTypeDescription
bm3c(pou4f3)-GFPLineage Markercilia marker - Green
CD41-GFPLineage Markerplatelet marker - Green
ctsk-GFPLineage MarkerOsteoclast - Green
dbh:EGFPLineage MarkerPeripheral Sympathetic Neuron Marker - Green
dbh:mCherryLineage MarkerPeripheral Sympathetic Neuron Marker - Red
dlx2b-GFPLineage MarkerTooth germ marker - Green
fli1-GFPLineage MarkerVascular Endothelium - Green
kdr1:mCherryLineage MarkerVascular Endothelium - Red
lyz-mCherry/mpeg1:GFPLineage MarkerNeurophil (Red)/Macrophage (Green)
mngf7-GFPLineage Markerperipheral nerve marker - Green
mpeg-GFPLineage MarkerMicroglia
sp7-GFPLineage MarkerOsteoblast - Green
wt1-GFPLineage Markerpronephros - Green
rag2:mCherryLineage MarkerT-cells - Red
rag2:EGFPLineage MarkerT-cells - Green
acetyl CoA cartoxylase a (ENU)MutantLoss-of-function
blvra (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
blvrt (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
CasperMutantTransparent Adult
CB1 (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
CB2 (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
coilin KO (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
coilin C-termunus (CRISPR)Mutantcoilin hypomorph
ERR Gamma a (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
higd1a (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
higd2a (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
p53mut (M214K)Mutantp53 hypomorph
PPAR gamma (CRISPR)MutantLoss-of-function
runx2b (ENU)MutantLoss-of-function
dbh:ALK_F1174LTransgenicExpression of Activated ALK in PSN
MYCN_TT (tg(dbh:EGFP);tg(dbh:Hsa.MYCN)TransgenicNeuroblastoma Model
MYCN (tg(dbhEGFP-Hsa.MYCN):tg(mitfa:mitfa)TransgenicNeuroblastoma Model
LMO1(tg(dbh:Hsa.LMO1);Tg2(dbh:mCherry)TransgenicLMOl Over Expression in PSN
AML1-ETOTransgenicAMLl ETO t(8,21) model
Tg(fabp10a:pt-beta-eatenin)TransgenicHCC model
ABWildtype Strain
TLWildtype Strain

Inquiries

For general inquiries, please contact the facility at zebrafishcore@umc.edu

For specific research-related questions, please reach out to Dr. Nicole Anderson to collaborate with us and use our in-house zebrafish strains.