MONITORING BEHAVIORAL RESPONSES OF ZEBRAFISH (Danio rerio) AS A BIOMARKER FOR IDENTIFYING CADMIUM AND DELTAMETHRIN IN WATER

Abstract Zebrafish or Danio rerio is an established model organism for studying the genetic, neuronal and behavioral bases of diseases and for toxicology and drug screening. The embryonic and larval stages of zebrafish have been used extensively in fundamental and applied research due to advantages offered such as body transparency, small size, low cost of cultivation and high genetic homology with humans. However, the manual experimental methods used for handling and investigating this organism are limited due to their low throughput, labor intensiveness and inaccuracy in delivering external stimuli to the zebrafish while quantifying various neuronal and behavioral responses. Microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip devices have emerged as ideal technologies to overcome these challenges. In this review paper, the current microfluidic approaches for investigation of behavior and neurobiology of zebrafish at embryonic and larval stages will be reviewed. Our focus will be to provide an overview of the microfluidic methods used to manipulate (deliver and orient), immobilize and expose or inject zebrafish embryos or larvae, followed by quantification of their responses in terms of neuron activities and movement. We will also provide our opinion in terms of the direction that the field of zebrafish microfluidics is heading toward in the area of biomedical engineering.

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Dioclea altissima seed lectin (DAL) prevents anxiety-like behavioral responses in adult zebrafish (Danio rerio): Involvement of GABAergic and 5-HT systems

CNS & Neurological Disorders - Drug Targets ◽

10.2174/1871527320666210212112651 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 20 ◽

Author(s):

João Ronielly Campêlo Araújo ◽

Adriana Rolim Campos ◽

Maria Kueirislene Amâncio Ferreira ◽

Sacha Aubrey Alves Rodrigues Santos ◽

Marina de Barros Mamede Vidal Damasceno ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Danio Rerio ◽

Structural Integrity ◽

Behavioral Responses ◽

Preference Test ◽

The Novel ◽

Latency Time ◽

Adult Zebrafish ◽

Plant Lectins ◽

Gabaergic Receptors ◽

Tank Test

Background: Plant lectins has shown promising neuropharmacological activities in animal models. Objective: This study evaluated the effect of Dioclea altissima seed lectin (DAL) on adult zebrafish behavior. Method: Zebrafish (n=6/group) were treated (i.p.; 20 µL) with DAL (0.025; 0.05 or 0.1 mg/mL), vehicle or diazepam (DZP) and submitted to several tests (open field, light/dark preference or novel tank). Flumazenil, pizotifen or granisetron were administered 15 min before DAL (0.05 mg/mL), and the animals were evaluated on light/dark preference test. It was also verified whether the DAL effect depended on its structural integrity and ability to interact with carbohydrates. Results: DAL decreased the locomotor activity of adult zebrafish (0.025; 0.05 or 0.1 mg/mL), increased the time spent in the upper region of the aquarium (0.025 mg/mL), and decreased the latency time of adult zebrafish to enter the upper region on the novel tank test. DAL (0.05 mg/mL) also increased their permanence in the light zone of the light/dark preference test. The effect of DAL was dependent on carbohydrate interaction and protein structure integrity and was prevented by pizotifen, granizetron and flumazenil. Conclusion: DAL was found to have an anxiolytic-like effect mediated by the 5-HT and GABAergic receptors.

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Chronic fluoxetine treatment of juvenile zebrafish (Danio rerio) does not elicit changes in basal cortisol levels and anxiety-like behavior in adulthood

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.6407 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. e6407 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Maureen L. Petrunich-Rutherford

Keyword(s):

Young Adult ◽

Danio Rerio ◽

Behavioral Responses ◽

The Novel ◽

Adult Zebrafish ◽

Juvenile Period ◽

Basal Cortisol ◽

Tank Test ◽

Developmental Window

Exposure to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) during development may elicit long-term neuroadaptive changes that could alter the basal regulation of stress-associated physiological and behavioral processes later in life. Currently, the effects of juvenile fluoxetine exposure in rodent models appear to be dependent on the developmental window targeted as well as the duration of drug exposure. The zebrafish (Danio rerio) model is rapidly becoming a useful tool in pharmacological research and can be used to help elucidate some of the long-term effects of fluoxetine exposure prior to sexual maturation on neuroendocrine and behavioral stress markers. In the current study, juvenile zebrafish were chronically exposed to fluoxetine hydrochloride (0 or 100 μg/L) for 14 days (31–44 days post-fertilization (dpf)), then were left untreated until young adulthood. Starting at 90 dpf, basal neuroendocrine stress and behavioral responses of zebrafish were assessed. Cortisol was extracted from the young adult zebrafish body (trunk) and quantified via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Anxiety-like behaviors were assessed in response to introduction to the novel tank test. It was expected that juvenile exposure to fluoxetine would (1) reduce basal cortisol levels and (2) elicit anxiolytic effects in the novel tank test in adulthood. However, fluoxetine exposure during the juvenile period was not associated with alterations in basal levels of cortisol nor were there any significant changes in anxiety-like behavior in the young adult zebrafish. Thus, in zebrafish, it does not appear that SSRI exposure during the juvenile period has a long-term adverse or maladaptive impact on the basal expression of cortisol and anxiety-like behavior in adulthood. Further studies are needed to determine if SSRI exposure during this developmental window influences neuroendocrine and behavioral responses to acute stress.

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