Federal regulations mandate the minimization of both pain and distress in laboratory animals. That no clear definition exists for 'distress' complicates its recognition, quantification, and alleviation. Koch argues that IACUCs and investigators should shift their focus from pain to distress, and that in doing so both problems will be better dealt with. She discusses criteria for defining 'significant' distress, and offers suggestions for the conduct of studies to determine levels of distress. See
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The zebrafish has been a favorite model of developmental biologists and geneticists, but only recently have investigators begun to appreciate its usefulness in behavioral genetics. Papers focusing on the behavior or brain function of this species were once extremely rare, but during the past decade rapid growth has taken place. Despite the increased interest, however, the number of studies devoted to the analysis of the behavior of this species is still orders of magnitude less than that of those conducted on more traditional laboratory subjects including the rat and the mouse. Sison et al. review selected literature and demonstrate that the zebrafish is an excellent subject for behavior genetics research, especially in the area of forward genetics (mutagenesis). See
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