China launches project to foster fish gene research

BEIJING -- China has launched a project to construct a high-quality fish genome database and foster fish gene research, according to the Chinese Academy of Science.

The project, Fish 10,000 Genomes Project, is coordinated by the Institute of Hydrobiology under the CAS, BGI Genomics Institute's Qingdao branch, Northwest Polytechnical University as well as other institutions. It aims to conduct the genome mapping of 10,000 species of fish living around the world and establish a large-scale, high-quality fish genome database.

Researchers have collected samples of 324 species of fish, completed genome sequencing of 105 species and published the genomic map of 10 species.

The project will last 10 years. It will help provide a molecular basis for fish breeding, offering a reference for aquaculture and marine ecological conservation, according to the CAS.