<p>Today the cavefish is a model to study genetics and also neuroscience and disease. As the fish's story continues today, a mystery of the past is revealed.</p>

Today the cavefish is a model to study genetics and also neuroscience and disease. As the fish's story continues today, a mystery of the past is revealed.

The Model

Understanding how the same fish could look so different is a question that scientists have been investigating since the discovery of the blind Mexican cavefish, Astyanax Mexicanus in the 1930’s. The cave fish, pale pink without eyes, lives in underground caves below its surface cousin which is silvery gray with black eyes. Today Astyanax is a model to study genetics, disease and behavior.

The story includes jungle explorers braving plane crashes and venomous snakes to find the cavefish and the scientists who studied it including a renowned German professor who fled Nazi Germany and a female Turkish scientist, Perihan Sadoglu who did some of the first genetic work in the 1950’s, but who mysteriously disappeared mid-career. The podcast follows the stories of scientists past and present revealing clues along the way to find out what had happened to Dr. Sadoglu and why it matters now.

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Understanding how the same fish could look so different is a question that scientists have been investigating since the discovery of the blind Mexican cavefish, Astyanax Mexicanus in the 1930’s. The cave fish, pale pink without eyes, lives in underground caves below its surface cousin which is silvery gray with black eyes. Today Astyanax is a model to study genetics, disease and behavior. The story includes jungle explorers braving plane crashes and venomous snakes to find the cavefish and the scientists who studied it including a renowned German professor who fled Nazi Germany and a female Turkish scientist, Perihan Sadoglu who did some of the first genetic work in the 1950’s, but who mysteriously disappeared mid-career. The podcast follows the stories of scientists past and present revealing clues along the way to find out what had happened to Dr. Sadoglu and why it matters now.

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The Model

The Model