The zebrafish (Danio rerio) has become an important model organism for the study of vertebrate development and disease, organ function, behavior, toxicology, cancer, and drug discovery. Zebrafish are popular research models because they can produce a large number of offspring at low cost, allowing performance of large genetic or molecular screens. The zebrafish genome has been sequenced, and protocols are established for transgene expression, gene expression knockdown, and other genetic manipulations. Zebrafish embryos and early larvae are optically transparent, enabling non-invasive visualization of developing organs and biological processes in vivo at high resolution.

The UAB Zebrafish Research Facility (ZRF) welcomes all UAB investigators and others interested in working with zebrafish. The Facility occupies ~ 5000 net square feet in the Research Support Building and includes a recirculating aquaria system (Aquaneering, Inc.) with central water conditioning/purification supplying 27 racks (>2200 3 L tanks). The ZRF Procedural Laboratory provides numerous embryo processing stations (each made of a dissection microscope, injector, and micromanipulator), incubators, a pipette puller, and two fluorescent microscopes, as well as other equipment needed for embryo manipulation and fish work. There is a separate zebrafish quarantine facility on the 4th floor of the RSB building.