Whole organism-based small-molecule screens have proven powerful in identifying novel therapeutic chemicals, yet this approach has not been exploited to identify new cognitive enhancers. Here we present an automated high-throughput system for measuring nonassociative learning behaviors in larval zebrafish. Using this system, we report that spaced training blocks of repetitive visual stimuli elicit protein synthesis-dependent long-term habituation in larval zebrafish, lasting up to 24 h. Moreover, repetitive acoustic stimulation induces robust short-term habituation that can be modulated by stimulation frequency and instantaneously dishabituated through cross-modal stimulation. To characterize the neurochemical pathways underlying short-term habituation, we screened 1,760 bioactive compounds with known targets. Although we found extensive functional conservation of short-term learning between larval zebrafish and mammalian models, we also discovered several compounds with previously unknown roles in learning. These compounds included a myristic acid analog known to interact with Src family kinases and an inhibitor of cyclin dependent kinase 2, demonstrating that high-throughput chemical screens combined with high-resolution behavioral assays provide a powerful approach for the discovery of novel cognitive modulators.acoustic startle response | sensorimotor gating A ll organisms, from protozoa to humans, use nonassociative habituation learning as a means to update behavioral responses to sensory input based on recent stimulation history (1). Considered a simple form of learning, habituation reflects a suppressed behavioral response to repeated inconsequential stimulation and serves as a mechanism by which the nervous system filters irrelevant stimuli. Defective habituation not only is indicative of a learning deficit, but also is prevalent in neuropsychiatric conditions, such as schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, and drug addiction (2-5). Numerous assays have shown that the parameters and rules for habituation learning are similar across phyla (6-9), suggesting conservation of the underlying molecular mechanisms. For example, training session design and stimulation frequency is predictive of the time scale of memory retention. Massed exposure to repeated stimulation at short interstimulus intervals (ISIs) elicits an acquisition of learned information with short-term recall memory, indicated by a change in behavior that does not persist for long after the repeated stimulation is terminated. In contrast, a distributed training protocol with multiple training sessions consisting of stimulation at longer ISIs and rest periods between training blocks induces the acquisition and storage of learned behavior that is capable of being recalled for a more extended period. Thus, intrasession, short-term habituation represents working memory, whereas intersession, long-term habituation includes the storage and retrieval of memory.Existing strategies to measure vertebrate lea...

In vertebrates, the peripheral nervous system has retained its regenerative capacity, enabling severed axons to reconnect with their original synaptic targets. While it is well documented that a favorable environment is critical for nerve regeneration, the complex cellular interactions between injured nerves with cells in their environment, as well as the functional significance of these interactions, have not been determined in vivo and in real time. Here we provide the first minute-by-minute account of cellular interactions between laser transected motor nerves and macrophages in live intact zebrafish. We show that macrophages arrive at the lesion site long before axon fragmentation, much earlier than previously thought. Moreover, we find that axon fragmentation triggers macrophage invasion into the nerve to engulf axonal debris, and that delaying nerve fragmentation in a Wlds model does not alter macrophage recruitment but induces a previously unknown ‘nerve scanning’ behavior, suggesting that macrophage recruitment and subsequent nerve invasion are controlled by separate mechanisms. Finally, we demonstrate that macrophage recruitment, thought to be dependent on Schwann cell derived signals, occurs independently of Schwann cells. Thus, live cell imaging defines novel cellular and functional interactions between injured nerves and immune cells.

Summary Habituation represents a fundamental form of learning, yet the underlying molecular genetic mechanisms are not well defined. Here we report on a genome-wide genetic screen, coupled with whole genome sequencing, that identified 14 zebrafish startle habituation mutants including mutants of the vertebrate specific gene pregnancy associated plasma protein-aa (pappaa). PAPP-AA encodes an extracellular metalloprotease known to increase IGF bioavailability thereby enhancing IGF receptor signaling. We find that pappaa is expressed by startle circuit neurons, and expression of wildtype, but not a metalloprotease-inactive version of pappaa restores habituation in pappaa mutants. Furthermore, acutely inhibiting IGF1R function in wild-type reduces habituation, while activation of IGF1R downstream effectors in pappaa mutants restores habituation, demonstrating that pappaa promotes learning by acutely and locally increasing IGF bioavailability. In sum, our results define the first functional gene set for habituation learning in a vertebrate, and identify PAPPAA-regulated IGF signaling as a novel mechanism regulating habituation learning.

SUMMARYNeurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a common, dominantly inherited genetic disorder that results from mutations in the neurofibromin 1 (NF1) gene. Affected individuals demonstrate abnormalities in neural-crest-derived tissues that include hyperpigmented skin lesions and benign peripheral nerve sheath tumors. NF1 patients also have a predisposition to malignancies including juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), optic glioma, glioblastoma, schwannoma and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs). In an effort to better define the molecular and cellular determinants of NF1 disease pathogenesis in vivo, we employed targeted mutagenesis strategies to generate zebrafish harboring stable germline mutations in nf1a and nf1b, orthologues of NF1. Animals homozygous for loss-of-function alleles of nf1a or nf1b alone are phenotypically normal and viable. Homozygous loss of both alleles in combination generates larval phenotypes that resemble aspects of the human disease and results in larval lethality between 7 and 10 days post fertilization. nf1-null larvae demonstrate significant central and peripheral nervous system defects. These include aberrant proliferation and differentiation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs), dysmorphic myelin sheaths and hyperplasia of Schwann cells. Loss of nf1 contributes to tumorigenesis as demonstrated by an accelerated onset and increased penetrance of high-grade gliomas and MPNSTs in adult nf1a+/−; nf1b−/−; p53e7/e7 animals. nf1-null larvae also demonstrate significant motor and learning defects. Importantly, we identify and quantitatively analyze a novel melanophore phenotype in nf1-null larvae, providing the first animal model of the pathognomonic pigmentation lesions of NF1. Together, these findings support a role for nf1a and nf1b as potent tumor suppressor genes that also function in the development of both central and peripheral glial cells as well as melanophores in zebrafish.