nevermind eduardo kac, here come the glofish

Some see fluorescent fish as neon signs of trouble
Mon Jan 12,11:12 AM ET
Chicago Tribune
By John Keilman, Tribune staff reporter

Past the shark lagoon and piranha tanks at a Park
Ridge pet store dart tiny fish that some consider far
more alarming.
The glowing red and green swimmers at the Living Sea
Aquarium represent the vanguard in the brave new world
of genetically engineered pets being sold across the
United States. Marketed under such names as "Night
Light Fish" and selling for up to $30 apiece, they
gleam like inch-long neon signs, thanks to DNA
transferred from sea coral and jellyfish.
The fish have existed for years and have been deemed
safe by numerous scientists and government agencies.
But their recent introduction to the American
public–and the lack of regulations covering
them–makes some people worry what other manmade
critters might follow.
"Not to make a pun, but I think it's shedding a light
on serious regulatory and safety issues that are not
getting much attention," said Art Caplan, director of
the Center for Bioethics at the University of
Pennsylvania. "This is going to be a very important
issue. The fish is just the first wave on the beach."
The species that has jump-started the debate over
genetically altered pets is the GloFish. Yorktown
Technologies, an Austin, Texas-based company, has sold
it for a month and rolled it out nationally last week
at a suggested price of $5 per fish.
The GloFish's red glimmer comes from a coral gene that
was added to the embryo of a normal zebra fish, said
Alan Blake, Yorktown's chief executive officer.
Scientists in Singapore came up with the idea to
monitor water quality, trying to get the fish to glow
in the presence of toxins.
Yorktown got the right to sell the fish in the U.S.,
but consulted with scientists and federal agencies for
two years before offering it to hobbyists, Blake said.
FDA passes on fish
Food and Drug Administration officials said they
didn't need to regulate the fish because people would
not eat them, and because there was no evidence of an
environmental threat. Scientists who reviewed research
for California's Fish and Game Commission said the
fish, if released into the wild, was unlikely to
survive in the state's relatively cold waters.
Despite those findings, the commission last month
still refused to exempt the GloFish from California's
ban on genetically engineered aquatic creatures,
imposed in May. Commissioner Sam Schuchat wrote that
"creating a novelty pet is a frivolous use of this
technology. No matter how low the risk is, there needs
to be a public benefit that is higher than this."
Blake responded that GloFish were a byproduct of
serious research, and that some of the proceeds would
fund further studies, though a company spokesman
declined to say how much.
"We absolutely recognize that genetic technology
carries with it incredible potential and incredible
responsibility," Blake said. "We take that
responsibility very seriously."
The potential environmental effects of the other
genetically engineered fish available in the U.S.–a
rice fish whose implanted jellyfish DNA causes it to
glow green–have proven worrisome elsewhere in the
world. The Japanese government last year raised
concerns that it could disrupt native species.
Fish may be the first genetically altered creatures to
reach the marketplace, but others may not be far
behind. A New York company is trying to use gene
splicing to create a cat that does not inflame
allergies.
The cloning expert doing the research, Dr. Jerry Yang
of the University of Connecticut, said funding
problems have slowed the work but that initial results
are promising. He's been able to create embryos that
are missing the allergen gene.
He said his project was different from the glowing
fish because allergen-free cats can occasionally be
found in nature.
"We don't think we're creating anything new," he said.
"We're creating existing animals."
Though Yang said his work is reviewed by university
panels and animal welfare inspectors from the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (news - web sites), critics
say the government is not paying enough attention to
genetically engineered pets.
No single federal agency regulates transgenic animals,
though USDA officials say they are evaluating whether
they should play a role. Craig Culp of the Center for
Food Safety, an advocacy group that works to curb
technologies it says are harmful to health, worries
that indifference could allow some altered species to
get loose, wreaking havoc on the environment and food
supply.
"We're buying a fish that's been genetically
engineered for our amusement and putting it into our
kids' bedrooms without thinking of the ethical
dimensions," he said. "It staggers the mind to think
of what could come down the pike."
States concerned
Such concerns prompted California to restrict
transgenic aquatic animals to research use, and
Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm has three bills on her
desk that would allow the state to outlaw certain
genetically engineered creatures.
"The GloFish is not our issue, but this technology
could conceivably create species that would threaten
our native fish stock," said spokesman Brad Wurfel of
the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is not
considering a similar step, officials said.
Some scientists fear that a public furor over
transgenic pets could harm more serious inquiries.
"There is the potential of the public not seeing the
full application of genetic research," said Richard
Winn, a University of Georgia professor who uses
genetically engineered fish to examine the effects of
pesticides and other chemicals. "If it seems trivial
or unnecessary or a Frankenfish, it makes people turn
off or be afraid of it."
The GloFish has been selling briskly around the
country, according to Yorktown Technologies. Sales of
luminous fish have been good but not overwhelming at
the Living Sea Aquarium, where a tank aglow with blue
light accentuates their blazing color.
"I see it as a popular color variation, but I don't
see it dominating," said manager Daryl Szyska. "There
are so many species, why would you limit yourself to one?"

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Hotjobs: Enter the "Signing Bonus" Sweepstakes
http://hotjobs.sweepstakes.yahoo.com/signingbonus