This project has explored whether zebrafish can model human neurological disease, using retinal degeneration as the prototype. The retinal degenerations are a major cause of morbidity, being the commonest cause of blindness in the Western world. Age-related macular degeneration, the commonest retinal degeneration, affects 1 in 20 of the population, and is not treatable. The project began with an F2 mutagenesis screen for candidate blind fish, using an optokinetic assay. Blind fish were characterised using a variety of histological techniques and transplantation studies. Two strains of fish were then selected for more detailed genetic analysis, as they appeared to have a photoreceptor degeneration resembling human retinal degenerations. This involved further mapping of the genes responsible for the phenotype in these two mutants and candidate gene selection.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:599478 |
| Date | January 2003 |
| Creators | Goldsmith, P. |
| Publisher | University of Cambridge |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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