A SRCF cell line from snowtrout, Schizothorax richardsonii: Development and characterization

Schizothorax richardsonii, commonly called snowtrout, is an important indigenous coldwater fish of the Himalayas, India with high commercial values as food and game fish. A cell line named as SRCF was developed from the caudal fin tissue of S. richardsonii. The cell line has been maintained in Leibovitz's L-15 medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS) at 24 °C. The cells showed fibroblastic morphology, high plating efficiency and cell doubling time of 48 h. Chromosomal analysis of SRCF cells revealed a diploid count of 98 chromosomes. The origin of the cell line was confirmed by the amplification of 655 and 578 bp of cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and 16S rRNA of mitochondrial DNA (mt-DNA) genes, respectively. Transfection of SRCF cells with pEGFP-C1 plasmid resulted in bright fluorescent signals, suggesting the application of cell line in transgenic and genetic improvement programme. In addition, genotoxicity assessment illustrated the utility of the cell line as an in vitro model for aquatic toxicological studies.