Cellular and molecular processes of regeneration, with special emphasis on fish fins

Abstract

The phenomenon of 'epimorphic regeneration', a complete reformation of lost tissues and organs from adult differentiated cells, has been fascinating many biologists for many years. While most vertebrate species including humans do not have a remarkable ability for regeneration, the lower vertebrates such as urodeles and fish have exceptionally high regeneration abilities. In particular, the teleost fish has a high ability to regenerate a variety of tissues and organs including scales, muscles, spinal cord and heart among vertebrate species. Hence, an understanding of the regeneration mechanism in teleosts will provide an essential knowledge base for rational approaches to tissue and organ regeneration in mammals. In the last decade, small teleost fish such as the zebrafish and medaka have emerged as powerful animal models in which a variety of developmental, genetic and molecular approaches are applicable. In addition, rapid progress in the development of genome resources such as expressed sequence tags and genome sequences has accelerated the speed of the molecular analysis of regeneration. This review summarizes the current status of our understanding of the cellular and molecular basis of regeneration, particularly that regarding fish fins.

Zebrafish development and regeneration: new tools for biomedical research

“…Adult zebrafish are capable of regenerating multiple structures including fins, optic nerve, scales, heart, and spinal cord (Becker et al, 1997;Bereiter-Hahn and Zylberberg, 1993;Bernhardt et al, 1996;Poss et al, 2002); for reviews see (Akimenko et al, 2003;Nakatani et al, 2007;Poss et al, 2003).…”

Investigation into the healing properties of walnut (Tetracarpidium conophorum) leaf and onion (Allium cepa) bulb residues in Clarias gariepinus

“…Onions contain many active compounds that appear to inhibit the growth of cancerous cells, lower blood pressure and cholesterol and stimulate immune response. Some studies have been carried out in the cyprinid species zebra fish (Danio rerio) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) (Nakatani et al 2007, Yoshinari et al 2009, Lee et al 2009, Wister albino rats, Rattus novergicus (Omale and Isaac 2010) but research studies on African catfish, Clarias gariepinus have not been properly elucidated.…”

Generation and characterization of transgenic zebrafish lines using different ubiquitous promoters

“…In addition, zebrafish have also become an attractive model for studying neurodegeneration (Grunwald et al 1988;Furutani-Seiki et al 1996;Tomasiewicz et al 2002;Vihtelic et al 2005), regeneration of various tissues and organs (Vihtelic and Hyde 2000;Poss et al 2002;Bai et al2005;Iovine et al 2005; Lee et al 2005;Whitehead et al 2005;Thummel et al 2006a;Nakatani et al 2007), adult behaviors (Orger et al 2004;Muto et al2005;Ninkovic and Bally-Cuif 2006;Bretaud et al 2007;Yu et al 2007) and aging (Gerhard 2007). To fully exploit zebrafish in these studies, great emphasis is being placed on generating fish that express desired transgenes in either specific subsets of cells or a wide range of tissues and cells.…”