Zebrafish - A Model Organism for Biomedical Research in Medicine

A number of animal models are being used to study variety of diseases that are relevant to Veterinary medicine. Each has its own set of benefits and is used to treat specific conditions. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is popular among scientists because it can supplement research that cannot be continued using other laboratory animals for various reasons. Especially in Veterinary medicine, Danio rerio can be a potential host for variety of pathogens that are only found in animal species. Thus Zebrafish has been used as a model organism in study of viral, bacterial, genetic, fungal, parasitic and even metabolic diseases. Zebrafish can be used in different types of biomedical research like wound healing, cancer research, genetic diseases, digestive, cardiovascular and kidney diseases along with drug discovery. This can be a model for even animal behavioural studies. This fish is easily available, easy to maintain and monitor, requires less space and is cheap in comparison to other animal models. Thus Zebrafish can be useful for Veterinary as well as human biomedical research.