Zebrafish

What if in the transparent bodies of these juvenile zebra fish, signs can be observed of damage to the cardiac muscle? Where do we go from here?

Dr. Wolfgang Rottbauer: "Our next step is to search for the genetic mutation in these fish that appears to be responsible for these changes, in order to establish a direct correlation between the defective gene and the onset of disease. We can test our hypothesis by comparing the results with data on human patients. Here in Heidelberg, we look after a large number of patients with cardiac complaints. We test their DNA to look for defects in the relevant genes, associated with their illness."

It all sounds perfectly logical, but in reality this approach to combating cardiac illnesses is an extremely complex exercise. In order to implement the theoretical knowledge obtained through basic research, expertise in biochemistry and genetics needs to be complemented by informatics, clinical research and other specialized fields. The National Genome Research Network provides a big pool in which small fish can make a significant contribution to medical research.

The only question is: When?

"I think it’s perfectly realistic to imagine that we will be able to develop very many new pharmaceutical products in this way over the next five to ten years, and thus provide relief to many patients." says Dr. Rottbauer.