Sex change for fish in the Middle East

Israeli, Palestinian and German researchers want to turn freshwater females into males, a sex change that they hope to create bigger fish on the table.

Israeli and Palestinian researchers are collaborating to change the sex of the Nile tilapia females to increase food supplies.( Photo: NOAA)

The experiment was part of a project between the Hebrew University in Jerusalem with the University of Hohenheim in Germany. Accordingly, people will add compounds from plants living in the West Bank to the food of the newborn Nile tilapia fish.

"This will affect the metabolism of fish. It will turn females into males," said assistant professor Mutaz Qutob, a Palestinian researcher who participated in the experiment.

Males are bigger, grow faster and weigh about 1/3 more than females."This is a very important project. We are introducing a new food source for Palestinians," Qutob said.

Scientists at the Hebrew University previously used synthetic steroids (considered less safe) to create male fish.

Palestinians in the West Bank import most of the fish from Israel and coastal Gaza. However, their consumption of fish, especially freshwater fish, has decreased in recent years due to rising prices as well as stricter regulations on trade and travel with Israel.

Tilapia Nile Fish (Photo: noaa)

T. An