Aquatic facilities for research animals

温莎大学为合作研究提供了肥沃的土壤，这对我们这些使用鱼类作为实验动物的人来说尤其如此。 鱼类既用于那些使用选定的物种来回答生态学和进化中的基本问题，也用于那些使用斑马鱼（Danio rerio）作为脊椎动物发育模型系统的研究人员。 目前，温莎的每一位研究人员都设计了适合他们需求的拘留设施，但随着我们的扩张，这些资源正在被过度使用。 我们正在申请资金，以便更精确地控制我们实验物种的饲养和保存。 由于不同的具体要求，要求为三个不同的物种提供拘留设施，但这项提案的许多调查人员将参与对一个以上物种的研究。 所要求的设施将允许可变的光周期控制，以检查入侵物种的生殖机制，并允许分离不同的品系和家系，以进行进化和遗传分析。 具体的问题要问的范围从进化和生态学到细胞信号和分子生物学。 所要求的基础设施将允许更好地饲养和安置圆虾虎鱼（Neogobius melanostomus），这是一种在加拿大沃茨引起极大关注的入侵物种。 这将有助于确定对繁殖和生存的环境控制，以制定缓解战略。 其他研究人员将使用所要求的基础设施的一部分开始对特立尼达孔雀鱼（Poecilia reticulata）的研究，这是一种具有巨大潜力的物种，可以回答温莎许多人感兴趣的进化问题。 最后，还需要第三个基础设施来支持斑马鱼的研究工作。 斑马鱼是一种功能强大的模式生物，由于其快速的繁殖率，良好的基因组特征，以及大量的突变体的分子生物学。为了适当地扩大我们在斑马鱼方面的合作研究，我们需要更高密度的斑马鱼养殖设施，如本文所述。 这将进一步促进感官生物学，生态学和分子生物学研究人员之间的合作，以回答科学前沿的问题。

The University of Windsor provides fertile ground for collaborative research and this is especially true of those of us that use fish as experimental animals.  Fish are used both for those using selected species to answer fundamental questions in ecology and evolution and for those researchers using the zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model system for vertebrate development.  Currently, each researcher at Windsor has designed holding facilities to suit their needs but, as we expand, these resources are being overtaxed.  We are requesting funds to allow more precisely controlled rearing and holding of our experimental species.  Holding facilities are being requested for three separate species, due to different specific requirements, but many of the investigators on this proposal will be involved in research on more than one species.  The requested facilities will allow variable photoperiod control for examination of reproductive mechanisms in an invasive species, and also allow separation of different strains and families for evolutionary and genetic analyses.   The specific questions to be asked range across evolution and ecology down to cell signalling and molecular biology.  The requested infrastructure will allow better rearing and housing of the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), an invasive species of great concern in Canadian waters.  This will aid determination of environmental controls on breeding and survival in an effort to develop mitigation strategies.  Other researchers will use a portion of the requested infrastructure to begin work on the Trinidadian guppy (Poecilia reticulata), a species that has great potential for answering evolutionary questions of interest to many at Windsor.  Finally,  a third piece of infrastructure is being requested to support work on zebrafish.  Zebrafish are a powerful model organism due to their rapid reproductive rate, well characterized genome, and plethora of mutants for molecular biology. To properly expand our collaborative research in zebrafish we need higher density zebrafish culture facilities, as described herein.  This will further foster collaboration between researchers in sensory biology, ecology, and molecular biology to answer questions at the forefront of science.