Free Republic

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Two public interest groups that want to block sales of fluorescent zebra fish — the nation's first biotech household pet — sued the federal government Wednesday. The lawsuit asks a federal judge to order the Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) and the Department of Health and Human Services (news - web sites) to halt sales of the trademarked GloFish until the government regulates the genetically modified animal. The normally black-and-silver zebra fish glow bright red under black or ultraviolet light thanks to a gene transplanted from a sea anemone. Sales of the Florida-grown fish...

Genetically modifying zebra danios does not pose risk, aficionados say Genetically modified and trademarked, these aren’t your typical household pets. Then again, the ethical questions swirling around the fluorescent Glo-Fish aren’t typical pet issues either. The fish have been banned in California because of objections to genetically altering fish just for the pleasure of pet owners. But the early word from local pet stores is that GloFish are making a splash with fish enthusiasts. "People are excited to see something new," said Ed Soja, manager of Aquarium Adventures on Dublin-Granville Road. "But they act just like normal fish." Aquarium Adventures...

<p>Pet stores across most of America are set to begin selling a transgenic — or genetically modified — fish capable of lighting up fish tanks with its ability to glow in the dark. The GloFish, as it is called, is a tropical zebra fish containing a gene from a sea coral that makes the fish bright red under normal light and fluorescent under ultraviolet light. The GloFish is making history by being the first transgenic pet sold to consumers in the United States. From many accounts, the GloFish sound harmless; they're just like their conventional cousins with some new genes that make them glow in the dark.</p>