![]() |
Turquoise killifish image credit: Wikimedia Commons / Ugau (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Researchers tend to use the turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) for aging research. The reasoning behind this is the turquoise killifish has an incredibly short lifespan and maturity rate. A recent study found that Turquoise killifish reach sexual maturity in a mere two weeks. This is the fastest known maturation time of any vertebrate. The researchers pointed out how important this was since some of the seasonal pools they collected the turquoise killifish from dried up in as little as three weeks. Previous studies had shown these fish had a maximum lifespan of six months4 in captivity, so maturing quickly and producing offspring is critical to the survival of the species.To read the entire article, click on "Rapidly Reproducing Killifish Defy Evolution".
Looking for a comment area?
You can start your own conversation by using the buttons below!