Genetic manipulation of betta fish.

also known as Siamese fighting fish or "betta," is a freshwater fish species renowned for its astonishing morphological diversity and extreme aggressive behavior. Despite recent advances in our understanding of the genetics and neurobiology of betta, the lack of tools to manipulate their genome has hindered progress at functional and mechanistic levels. In this study, we outline the use of three genetic manipulation technologies, which we have optimized for use in betta: CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout, CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockin, and Tol2-mediated transgenesis.

Genetic manipulation of betta fish.

, also known as Siamese fighting fish or 'betta', are renowned for their astonishing morphological diversity and extreme aggressive behavior. Despite recent advances in our understanding of the genetics and neurobiology of betta, the lack of tools to manipulate their genome has hindered progress at functional and mechanistic levels. In this study, we outline the use of three genetic manipulation technologies, which we have optimized for use in betta: CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout, CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockin, and Tol2-mediated transgenesis.

Care and Use of Siamese Fighting Fish () for Research.

, also called Siamese fighting fish or 'betta,' are a popular species in the fishkeeping hobby. Native to South- east Asia, betta have been selectively bred for their fighting ability for hundreds of years, which has resulted in the species' characteristic male aggression. More recently, betta have been bred for a number of ornamental traits such as coloration, fin morphology, and body size.

Genomic consequences of domestication of the Siamese fighting fish.

Siamese fighting (betta) fish are among the most popular and morphologically diverse pet fish, but the genetic bases of their domestication and phenotypic diversification are largely unknown. We assembled de novo the genome of a wild and whole-genome sequenced 98 individuals across five closely related species. We find evidence of bidirectional hybridization between domesticated ornamental betta and other wild species.