Fish Glow Green After Genetic Engineering and other Glowing Animals: Beasts Shining for Science

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Fish Glow Green After Genetic Engineering

Zebrafish glow green under the microscope;

A genetically engineered fish that glows green from the inside out is helping illuminate what pollutants do inside the body.

Endocrine disruptors are substances found in a wide range of industrial products, including plastics, as well as in many female contraceptives.

The chemicals mimic the actions of sexual hormones, resulting in various reproductive problems in both people and animals. Previous research has shown the chemicals cause fish to change gender, and in people, endocrine disruptors have been associated with lower sperm counts and breast and testicular cancers.

Yet scientists have had difficulty tracking what endocrine disruptors do inside a person or an animal's body. So a team genetically engineered zebrafish to glow in places where an endocrine-disrupting chemical is present—and thus show where it may be harming the body.

Glowing Fish Confirm Past Findings

Tyler and team exposed the zebrafish to varying levels of chemicals known to affect the hormone estrogen, including ethinyloestradiol, found in contraceptive pills; nonylphenol, present in paints and industrial detergents; and bisphenol A (BPA), a component of many plastics.

All of these substances have become common freshwater pollutants that are connected to problems such as gender changes in fish and decreased fertility and increased cases of cancer in people. (Related: "Sex-Changing Chemicals Found in Potomac River.")

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I have a great idea for this. Every sex offender and repeated criminal should be genetically altered so they glow. This way when they're released into the public everyone will know to keep a look out for the glow in the dark people.

reply to post by Ericthenewbie


I just had an interesting thought...

The fact we are genetically engineering life is interesting because how do we know that this isn't how WE and "mammals" came about? From the perspective of the glowing crabs (if they were to reproduce their genetically modified traits) what would they believe about how their genetics make them glow? (assuming they had an opinion). Would they think it was evolution that made them adapt to "glow"? Would they realize that it was "humans" that introduced this "gene" type into their DNA? I think these are interesting questions because they quite possibly could pertain to US (humans) and how we adopted genetic traits that we ascribe to "evolution"...

History is a joke as its too difficult to catch all the details and the details could make a WORLD of difference in what the true history is. Because of this, there is a lot of room for speculation. One speculation is that because we now know that genetic engineering is possible and we are capable of doing it to other species, that its possible a higher species than humans has genetically modified our DNA to what it is today, and possibly what it will be in the future. Also keep in mind how limited our ability to "perceive" reality is. If we genetically modified deep sea creatures most of which have no eyes, would they even be aware WE modified them or that they were even modified at all??

Thanks for the thread! Stuff like this gets me thinkin!

You know, I can't help but look at these little "augmentations" or "modifications" to the genetic code of living organisms and think about something.... In just one example, Gays and TG folks say that the quality which determines that may be genetic..it may be a genetic variation created during the pregnancy. If so, the variation or change is so slight that even in today's world, is a lively debate.

In making little changes like this by design, I wonder to myself, how can they possibly account for and feel they know all the OTHER little changes that probably come down the line in relation to THIS change they make? Such tiny little things can produce such BIG changes in behavior and the whole nature of the life produced at the end......it just strikes me as playing with fire before knowing how to extinguish an accident running wild?

...I also hope they take every possible precaution imaginable to firewall this work from the natural world outside. Monsanto makes a seed...and pollutes fields all over within a few years. What happens when Neon rats and pigs get loose..just once...or an activist lets them out..and they breed? er... Color me in the Bad Idea category.

(The Bee experiments didn't stay fire-walled..and we call them 'Africanized' these days..while we hide from them)

reply to post by Sly1one


I think those are great questions to ask as there is serious validity in those possibilities. I'm glad you enjoyed



reply to post by Wrabbit2000


The concerns you have are real and should be addressed in studies like the ones above and others that could alter the very fabric of humanity and the nature around us.


Thank you both for your contributions.

Thanks OP! This is very interesting and pretty cool.

Really cool, our technology really is advancing at an alarming rate!

I also agree with a previous poster, we shouldn't rule out that a more advanced species has altered the genetics of our species in the past. It is clearly something that comes with technological progression, and the universe is a very big place!