Blind cavefish given gift of sight
Twenty-nine caves in Mexico's Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range are home to a species of cavefish that have been blind for the past million years. (Photo credit: Richard Borowsky)
Though blind for the past million years, cavefish can produce sighted offspring. That’s with a little help from scientists, who played matchmaker to fish that had been isolated in separate caves. The resulting hybrids, unlike their parents, could respond to visual stimuli.
Earth & Sky spoke with Richard Borowsky, an evolutionary biologist at New York University. He said that what’s unique about cavefish is that distinct populations went blind independently of each other. And although they may have the same traits, they’re incredibly different on a genetic level.
All cavefish evolved from sighted fish, who went blind soon after disappearing into caves. The reason is that eyes take a lot of energy to maintain, and sight isn’t very useful if you live in a dark cave your whole life. It’s natural selection. Scientists wanted to find out which genes were responsible for the evolutionary change.
They found that in each population, the sets of genes that affected blindness were completely different. That’s what allowed the hybrid cavefish to regain sight — the strengths of one set of genes were able to overcome blindness in the other. And these fish genes may one day help scientists find the genes responsible for the development of human eyes.
Richard Borowsky, matchmaker to blind cavefish
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The main benefit for humans I’m seeing from this is being able to tell the risks of two different people having a blind offspring by checking their genetic background. Perhaps eventually scientists could even reduce that couple’s risk of having a blind offspring if they desired.
I think it is so cool the blind fish can produce offspring that can see!!!!!!!!! Is not any thing possible.
Shaun, I asked Dr. Borowsky about this, and he said he’s not aiming for direct genetic engineering, or selection of traits. He said that it would be perhaps possible, in the future, to develop a drug that could treat a person’s existing genes. That means scientists will have to identify the gene that’s responsible for eye disease (like macular degeneration), as they’ve identified the genes responsible for cavefish blindness. And then they can target that gene for treatment.
Although it’s on the studying phase , that is a good way to explore the mystey of beings .