h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Yesterday, I spent the day in the microbiology lab at Sheffield University, being introducing the transgenic mutant zebrafish being used to study cancer and the immune system.
- Geekgasm

The fish had been bred to be transparent (thus revealing their internal organs) and genetically engineered to express a flourescent dye in certain organs when illuminated.

So you could harvest a recently hatched zebrafish, temporaliy imobilise it, and then examine it under a hi-powered microscope.

By changing the light frequencies you would reveal different features.

In Cyan, it revealed the tumour growing behind the heart.

"Is that the big white lump?" I asked.

"Blue" corrected the biologist.

"He's colourblind." explained my friend explained on my behalf.

"Oh me too!" he said

So we switched filter into green and now the fishes cardiovascular system was illuminated.

We switched into 'red' filter which was supposed to highlight the immune cells whizzing around in the veins - very hard to pick those out - of course!

But there you go: Further Tales from The Land of the Colourblind: Excursion to the Microbiolgoly and Molecular chemistry lab - we discover that protanopia is no a bar to doing real science!!!

I so wish I'd gotten to do proper sciency things after my BSc and MSc and can I buy some of these transparent fish they'd look so in a tank... I want 42 of them