MBL March Madness: Out of Towners Division
Woods Hole is bursting with biodiversity, but it doesn't have everything. Scientists at the MBL study organisms from all over the world. Important biological models—including zebrafish, Xenopus, and some cephalopod species—are cultured at the MBL to give our researchers (and researchers around the world) access to these biological samples. Here are a few organisms that travel from far and wide to be part of MBL research.
Meet the Organisms:
Lesser Pacific Striped Octopus
The lesser Pacific striped octopus (Octopus chierchiae) lives in the Pacific waters of Central America and can often be found by small rocks, shells, and cracks in the intertidal zone. The MBL’s Cephalopod Mariculture team successfully bred O. chierchiae through multiple generations in 2019 — a global first.
Chain Catshark
Chain catshark (Scyliorhinus retifer) is a small species of shark that lives in the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean. They spend most of their time resting on the seafloor, where they attach pairs of egg cases to rocks. The eggs hatch after 8 to 12 months. Scientists at the MBL study the development of catshark eggs to better understand human growth and development.
Sea Lamprey
The sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) is an aggressive parasite that is considered a pest in many regions, including the U.S. Great Lakes. An ancient vertebrate, its lineage diverged from that of humans about 500 million years ago. Scientists study lampreys to help gain molecular understanding of human neurodegenerative disease and neurological disorders and to better understand the genetic basis of regeneration.
Zebrafish
Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a small freshwater fish native to southeast Asia and a popular model system for human genetic disease research as well as for studying vertebrate gene function. Zebrafish embryos are nearly transparent, which makes them an ideal organism for studying the development of internal structures.