Mar 14, 2010: Muscle Trout

[xoxoxoBruce]

Looks like a Rainbow Trout on steroids, but it's much more complicated than that.

A 10-year effort by a University of Rhode Island scientist to develop transgenic rainbow trout with enhanced muscle growth has yielded fish with what have been described as six-pack abs and muscular shoulders that could provide a boost to the commercial aquaculture industry.

May be hot to a lady trout, but looks ugly to me.

Terry Bradley, a URI professor of fisheries and aquaculture, said his research into the inhibition of myostatin, a protein that slows muscle growth, has obtained "stunning results" in the last two years, with trout growing 15 to 20 percent more muscle mass than standard fish.

But dude, you're messing with Mother Nature here... you sure you know what you're doin'?

Bradley and a team of graduate students spent 500 hours injecting 20,000 rainbow trout eggs with various DNA types designed to inhibit myostatin. Of the eggs that hatched, 300 carried the gene that led to increased muscle growth. After two years, most exhibited a "six-pack ab" effect, even though fish lack standard abdominal muscles. They also have increased musculature throughout, including a prominent dorsal hump that made them look like they had muscular shoulders.

The first generation of transgenic trout were subsequently spawned, and offspring carrying the gene in all of their muscle cells have been produced. Studies are under way to determine if the fish grow at a faster rate as well.

Well that answers my question, you don't.

link

[Elspode]

I am *so* not eating one of those abominations.

Cripes. What happens when these mutant motherfuckers get loose in the perfect Idaho trout stream?

[Undertoad]

Kick your ass, is what.

[jinx]

I thought it said musical trout and I thought of that annoying commercial with the singing fish.

[lumberjim]

trouser trout

[Gravdigr]

Originally Posted by jinx

I thought it said musical trout and I thought of that annoying commercial with the singing fish.

I hate that commercial.

[SPUCK]

I see a horror flick, coming soon, to a theater near you..

[ZenGum]

Probably that muscle inhibitor that these guys turned off is there for a reason. My guess is that excess muscle would out these fish at a disadvantage in the real world, so if (really, when) any escape, they won't prosper. At least I really really hope so, cause I would not eat that thing and I do NOT want them swimming about free.

[capnhowdy]

I still say they should just leave stuff the fuck alone.

[xoxoxoBruce]

I am not an animal!

[Shawnee123]

Originally Posted by capnhowdy

I still say they should just leave stuff the fuck alone.

Seriously! That is creepy and scary and just plain wrong.

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

I am not an animal!

One of my favorite lines.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by Elspode

Cripes. What happens when these mutant motherfuckers get loose in the perfect Idaho trout stream?

They will escape. We'll know soon enough.

[jinx]

Maybe they'll eat the snakeheads.

[Glinda]

If you happened to catch one of these things, would you eat it? I mean, LOOK at it.

Ok, so these freaks have 15 to 20 percent more muscle mass. What do they TASTE like, and more importantly, what will ingesting these genetically altered fish muscles do to my muscles?



Besides the ick-factor issues, there are other problems with these fish. From a related story:

Risks Involved With Transgenic Fish

More resistant to toxins

For example, transgenic fish can be more resistant to environmental toxins, which could entail the accumulation of toxins that ultimately end up in consumers. There are also misgivings that the higher level of growth hormone in the fish can affect people. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have therefore been commissioned by the EU to study the environmental effects of GMO (genetically modified organisms) within fish farming. The results of the studies show that the genetically modified fish should be treated with great care.

Simulated escapes

Sundström, PhD at the Department of Zoology, has studied transgenic salmon and rainbow trout to ascertain what ecological risks they might constitute for the natural environment. The study, which simulated escapes in a laboratory environment, shows that transgenic fish have a considerably greater effect on the natural environment than hatchery-reared non-transgenic fish when they escape. For example, genetically modified fish survive better when there is a shortage of food, and benefit more than non-transgenic fish from increasing water temperatures.

"It is probably due to the fact that genetically modified fish have a greater ability to compete and are better at converting food," says Sundström.

Natural breeds are under threat

If transgenic fish become established in natural stocks they would be able to outcompete the natural breeds. However, conducting studies in a laboratory environment that imitates nature is complicated, which makes it difficult to predict how escaped transgenic fish affect the natural environment. Sundström's conclusion is that international consensus is required before commercial farming can be permitted, and that a precautionary principle must be applied.

[squirell nutkin]

"They might just as well have come out and said, 'Hey we made cancer airborne and contagious. You're welcome.We're science: all about coulda, not shoulda.'"

--Patton Oswalt