Colony Management at Zebrafish Facilities

Abstract

Fish facilities often maintain tens to hundreds of zebrafish lines, among transgenic, mutant and wild types. The replicability and reproducibility of the research based on these animals relies on its quality. However, keeping fish lines healthy and genetically stable across generations is not trivial. Housing space is often limited, so each stock is frequently restricted to a few tens of animals and inbreeding depression can rapidly install, causing health issues, gender bias and decreased reproductive performance. To minimise this, it is fundamental to define colony management strategies adequate to each fish line and each facility. This chapter discusses common difficulties and approaches to overcome them, including line-specific mating schemes and complementary actions to keep lines hardy. In addition, strategies to prevent genetic cross contaminations and record keeping methods are also addressed as part of a complete colony management program.