Development of a Modified Three-Day T-maze Protocol for Evaluating Learning and Memory Capacity of Adult Zebrafish

Abstract

A T-maze test is an experimental approach that is used in congenital research. However, the food reward-based protocol for the T-maze test in fish has low efficiency and a long training period. The aim of this study is to facilitate the T-maze conditions by using a combination of the principles of passive avoidance and a spatial memory test. In our modified T-maze settings, electric shock punishment (1–2 V, 0.3–0.5 mA) is given at the left arm, with a green cue at the right arm. Also, the depth of both arms of the T-maze was increased. The parameters measured in our T-maze design were latency, freezing time, and time spent in different areas of the T-maze. We validated the utility of our modified T-maze protocol by showing the consistent finding of memory impairment in ZnCl2−treated fish, which has been previously detected with the passive avoidance test. In addition, we also tested the spatial memory performance of leptin a (lepa) mutants which displayed an obesity phenotype. The results showed that although the learning and memory performance for lepa KO fish were similar to control fish, they displayed a higher freezing behavior during the training phase. In conclusion, we have established a modified T-maze protocol that can be used to evaluate the anxiety, learning, and memory capacity of adult zebrafish within three days, for the first time.

Evaluation of the Adverse Effects of Chronic Exposure to Donepezil (An Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitor) in Adult Zebrafish by Behavioral and Biochemical Assessments

“…To observe the effects of donepezil on the memory of zebrafish, we used the T-maze test, referring to a previous publication reported by Ngoc Hieu et al [29]. The T-Maze apparatus used in this study consisted of two deep-water arms and one straight long arm, which divided the inner space into a T-way intersection.…”

Early Mistreatment Contributes to Social Behavior Disorders in Zebrafish

“…These results could be interpreted as reduced motivation for social interaction, a behavioral feature that is characteristic of the zebrafish, a species considered highly social (Silva et al, 2019). The social avoidance response could be discussed in terms of the memory of the stressful situation experienced earlier, but there is no evidence supporting the idea that zebrafish retains memory for such a long time (Blank et al, 2009;Hieu et al, 2020). The formation of the adult aggressor-juvenile pairs was carried out randomly each day, thus avoiding that possible habituation among the individuals could reduce stress, once there was recognition among the individuals (Madeira and Oliveira, 2017).…”

Review of Copper and Copper Nanoparticle Toxicity in Fish

“…In addition, unified behavior test conditions and model fish species have to be set up in order to reduce intraand intervariation. To reach this goal, our research group invented several versatile setups that are suitable for conducting multiple behavior tests on zebrafish for three-dimensional locomotion [127], novel tank exploration, mirror biting, predator avoidance, social interaction, shoaling [128], circadian rhythm [129], and short-term memory assessments [130].…”