Scuba Diving club,
Southern California
Sea Sabres
Glowing 'Frankenfish' swamp Taipei
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A green fluorescent
gene was planted into TK-1's embryo. |
TAIPEI, Taiwan
(AP) -- Their weird glowing green
color makes them look like they've been swimming in a nuclear plant's spent
fuel pond.
But the zebra fish on sale in Taipei shops have an even stranger background:
They're the latest in genetically modified fish, and their bodies contain DNA
from jellyfish, which makes them shimmer in the dark.
Shopkeepers call them "Night Pearls." Some have nicknamed them
"Frankenfish." Their makers at the Taipei-based Taikong Corp. use the
less catchy name of "TK-1" and say they are the world's first
genetically engineered fluorescent fish.
They have been on the market in Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong and Malaysia for
about three months, said Bill Kuo, a spokesman for Taikong, which owns a chain
of pet stores.
Now the fish are getting ready to cross the Pacific and swim into the U.S.
market this month.
Kuo says the company anticipated fears that the genetically modified animals
might spread uncontrollably and harm the environment, so it made sure that they
were unable to produce offspring.
In April, the company turned out 10,000 fluorescent fish, and that figure
has been doubling every month since, Kuo said. Beginning in August, monthly
production should stabilize at more than 100,000, Kuo said.
So far, only the greenish TK-1 has been on sale. But next year, they should
get the company of a red mate, the TK-2. Later, the two colors will be combined
in the TK-3, Kuo said.
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Rosy TK-2 will be on
sale next year. |
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"The original zebra fish are all
colorless," he said.
Not everyone is satisfied with the genetic engineering.
"It must be really dark to see it," said Maria Hung, who sells the
glowing fish at her Goldfish Family store in Taipei.
At 600 New Taiwan dollars ($17.40) each, the fish don't come cheap. The
goldfish in the next bowl cost only NT$10 (29 cents) a piece, Hung said.
"Since I started selling the fluorescent fish last month, I haven't
found a single buyer," Hung said.
Taikong says its project is still in its infancy.
"We spent NT$100 million ($2.9 million) developing this fish," Kuo
said, defending the relatively high cost for consumers.
He also said admiring fluorescent fish in the dark is an acquired taste.
"It's still a curiosity. We're covering new territory here," he
said.
The same type of fish were also on sale at an Azoo store at the Asiaworld
Plaza, one of Taipei's upscale shopping malls. The Azoo chain is part of
Taikong Corp.
The store attendant pulled a curtain to turn a corner of the shop dark. Then
she switched on a blue light above the tank and the fish became visible,
silvery bodies crowned by a greenish glow.
Posted July 15, 2003