The zebrafish's swim to fame as an experimental model in biology

Vascotto, Sandy G.; Beckham, Y.; Kelly, Gregory M.

doi:10.1139/bcb-75-5-479

Cited by 38 publications

(33 citation statements)

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“…The zebrafish maintain the typical complexity of vertebrate systems and accumulating evidence advocates its use in several areas of research with the prospect of extrapolating findings to other vertebrates and humans (Briggs, 2002;Parng et al, 2002;Powers, 1989;Vascotto et al, 1997). This is particularly intriguing given their small size, prolific reproductive capacity and ease of maintenance thus making it an ideal model for safety assessment of drugs de Esch et al, 2012;Knudsen et al, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acetyl l-carnitine protects motor neurons and Rohon-Beard sensory neurons against ketamine-induced neurotoxicity in zebrafish embryos

Cuevas

Trickler

Guo

et al. 2013

Neurotoxicology and Teratology

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Ketamine, a non-competitive antagonist of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) type glutamate receptors is commonly used as a pediatric anesthetic. Multiple studies have shown ketamine to be neurotoxic, particularly when administered during the brain growth spurt. Previously, we have shown that ketamine is detrimental to motor neuron development in the zebrafish embryos. Here, using both wild type (WT) and transgenic (hb9:GFP) zebrafish embryos, we demonstrate that ketamine is neurotoxic to both motor and sensory neurons. Drug absorption studies showed that in the WT embryos, ketamine accumulation was approximately 0.4% of the original dose added to the exposure medium. The transgenic embryos express green fluorescent protein (GFP) localized in the motor neurons making them ideal for evaluating motor neuron development and toxicities in vivo. The hb9:GFP zebrafish embryos (28 h post fertilization) treated with 2 mM ketamine for 20 h demonstrated significant reductions in spinal motor neuron numbers, while co-treatment with acetyl L-carnitine proved to be neuroprotective. In whole mount immunohistochemical studies using WT embryos, a similar effect was observed for the primary sensory neurons. In the ketamine-treated WT embryos, the number of primary sensory Rohon-Beard (RB) neurons was significantly reduced compared to that in controls. However, acetyl L-carnitine co-treatment prevented ketamine-induced adverse effects on the RB neurons. These results suggest that acetyl L-carnitine protects both motor and sensory neurons from ketamine-induced neurotoxicity.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acetyl l-carnitine protects motor neurons and Rohon-Beard sensory neurons against ketamine-induced neurotoxicity in zebrafish embryos

Cuevas

Trickler

Guo

et al. 2013

Neurotoxicology and Teratology

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“…Over the past decades, the zebrafish (Danio rerio) became one of the favorite model organisms in developmental biology, embryology, toxicology as well as pharmacology (Barinaga, 1990;Barros et al, 2008;Vascotto et al, 1997). In the field of behavior and behavioral neuroscience, however, it so far has received relatively little attention.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Automated visual choice discrimination learning in zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Mueller¹,

Neuhauss²

2012

J. Integr. Neurosci.

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Training experimental animals to discriminate between different visual stimuli has been an important tool in cognitive neuroscience as well as in vision research for many decades. Current methods used for visual choice discrimination training of zebrafish require human observers for response tracking, stimulus presentation and reward delivery and, consequently, are very labor intensive and possibly experimenter biased. By combining video tracking of fish positions, stimulus presentation on computer monitors and food delivery by computer-controlled electromagnetic valves, we developed a method that allows for a fully automated training of multiple adult zebrafish to arbitrary visual stimuli in parallel. Training experimental animals to discriminate between different visual stimuli has been an important tool in cognitive neuroscience as well as in vision research for many decades. Current methods used for visual choice discrimination training of zebrafish require human observers for response tracking, stimulus presentation and reward delivery and, consequently, are very labor intensive and possibly experimenter biased. By combining video tracking of fish positions, stimulus presentation on computer monitors and food delivery by computer-controlled electromagnetic valves, we developed a method that allows for a fully automated training of multiple adult zebrafish to arbitrary visual stimuli in parallel. The standardized training procedure facilitates the comparison of results across different experiments and laboratories and contributes to the usability of zebrafish as vertebrate model organisms in behavioral brain research and vision research.

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“…The zebrafish model system is becoming one of the most widely used animal models for developmental research because of its fecundity and its genetic and physiological similarities to mammals (Vascotto et al 1997, Parng et al 2002. These advantages are leading to the use of the zebrafish model in drug discovery and toxicological screening.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Larval zebrafish as a model for glucose metabolism: expression of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase as a marker for exposure to anti-diabetic compounds

Elo¹,

Villano²,

Govorko³

et al. 2007

Journal of Molecular Endocrinology

141

121

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The zebrafish model system is one of the most widely used animal models for developmental research and it is now becoming an attractive model for drug discovery and toxicological screening. The completion of sequencing the zebrafish genome and the availability of full-length cDNAs and DNA microarrays for expression analysis, in addition to techniques for generating transgenic lines and targeted mutations, have made the zebrafish model even more attractive to researchers. Recent data indicate that the regulation of glucose metabolism in zebrafish, through the production of insulin, is similar to mammalian models, and many of the genes involved in regulating blood glucose levels have been identified in zebrafish. The data presented here show that adult zebrafish respond to anti-diabetic drugs similarly to mammalian models, by reducing blood glucose levels. Furthermore, we show that the expression of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK), which catalyzes a rate-limiting step in gluconeogenesis and is transcriptionally regulated by glucagon and insulin, is regulated in larval zebrafish similarly to that seen in mammalian systems, and changes in PEPCK expression can be obtained through real-time PCR analysis of whole larval RNA. Taken together, these data suggest that larval zebrafish may be an appropriate model for the examination of glucose metabolism, using PEPCK as an indicator of blood glucose levels.

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The zebrafish's swim to fame as an experimental model in biology

Cited by 38 publications

References 0 publications

Acetyl l-carnitine protects motor neurons and Rohon-Beard sensory neurons against ketamine-induced neurotoxicity in zebrafish embryos

Acetyl l-carnitine protects motor neurons and Rohon-Beard sensory neurons against ketamine-induced neurotoxicity in zebrafish embryos

Automated visual choice discrimination learning in zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Larval zebrafish as a model for glucose metabolism: expression of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase as a marker for exposure to anti-diabetic compounds

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