For fish lovers, carp presents a classic culinary paradox: a prized dish for its tender in texture and nutritious, rich in protein, profile, yet notoriously difficult to eat due to more than 80 tiny, Y-shaped intermuscular bones (IBs).

The hassle of feasting on the freshwater fish is now a thing of the past, as Chinese scientists have created a new variety of the Gibel carp (Carassius gibelio) that is not only entirely free of troublesome IBs but also engineered to grow faster, stronger and in a more sustainable way.

Led by Academician Gui Jianfang, a research team from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) announced on Tuesday that they have successfully gene edited the "Zhongke No. 6" breed – a robust candidate variety designed for the dinner table. 

To achieve this, Chinese scientists first mapped the fish's complex genetic map to identify runx2b, the specific "architect" gene that tells the body to grow these tiny bones. Since the Gibel carp has multiple sets of chromosomes, the team used a technique called CRISPR/Cas9, acting as "molecular scissors," to perform a surgical strike. 

By cutting this specific code at the embryonic stage, they effectively deleted the instructions for bone growth. This ensures that while the fish's main skeleton develops normally, the biological pathway for those 80 some troublesome spines is never activated.

The "Zhongke No. 6" has been optimized for three superior traits, including its high yield, disease resistance in dense aquaculture environments, and lower feed requirements to produce the same amount of high-quality protein.

This achievement is the result of a six-year systematic effort under a CAS strategic research program called "Precision Seed Design and Creation."