China created a new boneless fish to make it easier to eat

Tired of removing bones from fish? In the effort to resolve this scourge, China He got to work to create «from scratch» a boneless fish.

The first studies offered good results in a candidate strain for consumption of carp fish call «Zhongke No. 6.».

The study led by the team Gui Jianfang at the Chinese Academy of Sciences genetically edited the fish to eliminate the problems caused by intermuscular bones, with the aim of making freshwater fish a more practical alternative for the table.

The carpa gibel It has more than 80 small Y-shaped intermuscular bones that make it difficult to consume.

To identify the pathway responsible for the development of these spines, the group mapped the complex carp genome and located the gene runx2b like the architect in charge of ordering the formation of those bones.

To intervene this mechanism, Scientists used the CRISPR/Cas9 technique.

According to verified information, by cutting the runx2b code in the embryonic state, the process prevents the biological pathway that generates intermuscular spines from being activated, while the main skeleton of the fish is formed normally.

The team noted that «Zhongke No. 6» not only lacks the problematic bones, It was optimized to grow faster, show greater resistance to disease in dense aquaculture environments, and reduce the feed requirement to produce the same amount of protein..

How they identified and blocked the gene responsible

Specifically, the researchers began by mapping the complex genome of the gibel carp to find the signals that lead to the development of intermuscular spines.

This identification work allowed us to isolate runx2bthe gene identified as responsible for instructing the formation of these bones.

An explanatory photo of the process that will be carried out. Photo: Institute of Hydrobiology (IHB) of the CAS

Because the species has multiple sets of chromosomes, the team turned to CRISPR/Cas9 to perform a precise surgical intervention on runx2b in embryos. By interrupting that code, the activation of the pathway that would give rise to spines is prevented.

The procedure described in the advertisement combined genetic mapping with targeted editingsteps that, according to the information available, allowed the rest of the fish’s skeleton and its general development to be kept intact.

Implications for the table

The creation of a carp without bones responds to a culinary and productive demand: facilitate the consumption of freshwater fish and improve efficiency in farms. The Zhongke No. 6 variant was presented as an option designed for the table and for more sustainable production systems.

The team noted that this achievement is part of a six-year strategic program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences called «Precision Seed Design and Creation«, which seeks to design seeds and varieties with precise traits.

The carp is a freshwater fish, and is among the 100 most harmful species in the world.

The same source recalls that the first carp without intermuscular bones was developed in 2023 and published in the journal Aquacultureand the new strain constitutes an evolution within that scientific effort.

As an institutional consequence, progress is inscribed on the agenda of the CAS and raises expectations about adoption in aquaculture and the impact on fish consumption.