ZETRIC
(Zebrafish Translational Research and Innovative Centre)
ZETRIC (Zebrafish Translational Research and Innovative Centre) is a state-of-the-art preclinical research facility established at the Anjuman-I-Islam’s Kalsekar Technical Campus (AIKTC), School of Pharmacy, New Panvel. The centre harnesses the zebrafish (Danio rerio) model system — a globally recognized alternative to rodent models — to accelerate drug discovery and translational biomedical research.
Owing to their genetic similarity to humans, rapid development, optical transparency during early life stages, and cost-effective scalability, zebrafish have emerged as an indispensable model in pharmacological and toxicological screening. ZETRIC is designed to position AIKTC at the forefront of this evolving research landscape, enabling faculty, postgraduate scholars, and industry collaborators to conduct high-quality, ethically compliant preclinical studies.
ZETRIC is proudly supported by Socomed Pvt. Ltd. through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, with a funding grant of ₹36 lakhs, reflecting a strong academia-industry partnership committed to advancing pharmaceutical research and innovation in India.
What Happens at ZETRIC?
ZETRIC serves as a dedicated platform for preclinical screening and translational research, supporting faculty-led projects, PG/PhD dissertations, and sponsored industry research. The centre focuses on five core areas of pharmacological investigation
Hepatoprotective Activity Studies
Evaluating drug/compound efficacy in protecting and regenerating liver tissue using zebrafish liver-injury models.
Teratogenicity Studie
Assessing developmental toxicity and structural abnormalities induced by test compounds during embryonic development.
Toxicity Studies
Acute and chronic toxicity screening to determine safety profiles of pharmaceutical and chemical compounds.
Neurobehavioral Studies
Investigating locomotor activity, anxiety-like behavior, and neurotoxic/neuroprotective effects using behavioural assay chambers.
Cardioprotective Activity
Screening compounds for cardioprotective potential using the zebrafish’s transparent, externally developing cardiovascular system.
Skin whitening effect
Screening compounds for skin-whitening and anti-melanogenic activity using the zebrafish’s transparent embryos, where melanin pigmentation can be directly observed and quantified in vivo.
These studies support drug discovery pipelines, reduce dependency on mammalian testing (in line with the 3Rs principle — Replacement, Reduction, Refinement), and generate high-throughput preliminary data prior to advanced preclinical/clinical evaluation.
The ZETRIC Facility
ZETRIC is equipped with advanced instrumentation to support end-to-end zebrafish-based experimentation — from breeding and husbandry to microinjection, imaging, and behavioural analysis
Zebrafish Recirculating Housing System
Maintains optimal water quality, temperature, and density for healthy zebrafish colonies, supporting breeding and long-term housing
Microinjector
Enables precise microinjection into zebrafish embryos for compound delivery, genetic manipulation, and developmental studies
Stereomicroscope
Facilitates detailed morphological observation of embryos and larvae during screening and injection procedures
Fluorescence Microscope
Enables visualization of fluorescently tagged structures, organ systems, and molecular markers in transgenic/treated zebrafish
Behavioural Chamber and maze
Records and analyzes locomotor and behavioral responses for neurobehavioral and neurotoxicity assessments
