Abstract:

The schizothoracinae fishes, commonly known as mountain carp, which belong to Schizothoracinae, Cyprinidae and Cypriniforme, comprise 90 species (subspecies) and 12 genera. Almost all species in Schizothoracinae are the wild species of big to middle size with highly scientific and economic value. The group of fishes are mainly distributed in the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau and its adjacent area. Especially, most of the species in Schizothoracinae live in China and many are endemic to China. The germplasm resources, also called genetic resources, means the gene pool of species. The germplasm resources can be studied by the methods of morphology, cell biology, biochemistry and molecular biology. With the development of study on the germplasm resources of fishes, the germplasm resources of the schizothoracinae fishes has become one of research foci today. This paper reviews the progress of study on the germplasm resources of the schizothoracinae fishes, including the researches in the classification, species diversity, geographic distribution, cell biology, biochemistry and molecular biology of the group, so as to supply scientific data for the conservation and utilization of the schizothoracinae fishes.