title: Restrictions on the Importation of Zebrafish into Canada Associated with Spring Viremia of Carp Virus.
abstract: The zebrafish model system is helping researchers improve the health and welfare of people and animals and has become indispensable for advancing biomedical research. As genetic engineering is both resource intensive and time-consuming, sharing successfully developed genetically modified zebrafish lines throughout the international community is critical to research efficiency and to maximizing the millions of dollars in research funding. New restrictions on importation of zebrafish into Canada based on putative susceptibility to infection by the spring viremia of carp virus (SVCV) have been imposed on the scientific community. In this commentary, we review the disease profile of SVCV in fish, discuss the findings of the Canadian government's scientific assessment, how the interpretations of their assessment differ from that of the Canadian research community, and describe the negative impact of these regulations on the Canadian research community and public as it pertains to protecting the health of Canadians.
authors.affiliation: 1 Research Oversight and Compliance Office, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hanwell
authors.affiliation: 2 Zebrafish Genetics and Disease Models Core Facility, Hospital for Sick Children , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Sarah A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Hutchinson
authors.affiliation: 3 Division of Comparative Medicine, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Chereen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Collymore
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Ashley E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Bruce
authors.affiliation: 1 Research Oversight and Compliance Office, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Rhain
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Louis
authors.affiliation: 5 Environmental Health and Safety, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Ayoob
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ghalami
authors.affiliation: 6 Department of Biological Sciences, Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Disease, University of Alberta , Edmonton, Canada .
authors.forename: W Ted
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Allison
authors.affiliation: 7 Department of Biology, University of Ottawa , Ottawa, Canada .
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ekker
authors.affiliation: 8 Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Saskatchewan , Saskatoon, Canada .
authors.forename: B Frank
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Eames
authors.affiliation: 9 Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary, Canada .
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Childs
authors.affiliation: 10 Department of Medical Genetics, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary, Canada .
authors.forename: Deborah M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Kurrasch
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .|11 Department of Psychology, University of Toronto at Mississauga , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gerlai
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .|12 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto at Scarborough , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Tod
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Thiele
authors.affiliation: 13 Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.affiliation: 13 Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ciruna
authors.affiliation: 14 Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: James J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Dowling
authors.affiliation: 9 Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary, Canada .
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McFarlane
authors.affiliation: 9 Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary, Canada .
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: 15 Department of Medicine, Zebrafish Centre for Advanced Drug Discovery, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Xiao-Yan
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.affiliation: 7 Department of Biology, University of Ottawa , Ottawa, Canada .
authors.forename: Marie-Andrée
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Akimenko
authors.affiliation: 16 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta , Alberta, Canada .
authors.forename: Andrew J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Waskiewicz
authors.affiliation: 17 Department of Neuroscience, The University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM) , Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada .
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Drapeau
authors.affiliation: 18 Office of the Vice-President (Research), University of Alberta , Alberta, Canada .
authors.forename: Lorne A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Babiuk
authors.affiliation: 19 Risk Management Services, University of Alberta , Alberta, Canada .
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dragon
authors.affiliation: 20 Protective Services and Safety Resources, University of Saskatchewan , Saskatchewan, Canada .
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smida
authors.affiliation: 21 Office of the Vice-President (Research), University of Calgary , Calgary, Canada .
authors.forename: Andre Gerald
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Buret
authors.affiliation: 22 Environment, Health and Safety, University of Calgary , Calgary, Canada .
authors.forename: Eoin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: O'Grady
authors.affiliation: 23 Department of Biology, McMaster University , Hamilton, Canada .
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.affiliation: 24 Office of Risk Management, University of Ottawa , Ottawa, Canada .
authors.forename: Lois
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sowden-Plunkett
authors.forename: Jennifer V
authors.lastname: Robertson
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada .
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Tropepe
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002170:Canada; D003132:Commerce / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D005393:Fish Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology; D033161:Government Regulation; D012209:Rhabdoviridae / Q000502:physiology; D018353:Rhabdoviridae Infections / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D015027:Zebrafish