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Gamba BFG, Pickler KDP, Lodetti G, Farias ACSD, Teixeira AG, Bernardo HT, Dondossola ER, Cararo JH, Luchiari AC, Rosemberg DB, Rico EP. Embryonic alcohol exposure alters cholinergic neurotransmission and memory in adult zebrafish. Behav Brain Res 2024; 474:115176. [PMID: 39098400 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2024.115176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2024] [Revised: 07/19/2024] [Accepted: 08/01/2024] [Indexed: 08/06/2024]
Abstract
Alcohol is the most consumed addictive substance worldwide that elicits multiple health problems. Consumption of alcoholic beverages by pregnant women is of great concern because pre-natal exposure can trigger fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). This disorder can significantly change the embryo's normal development, mainly by affecting the central nervous system (CNS), leading to neurobehavioral consequences that persist until adulthood. Among the harmful effects of FASD, the most reported consequences are cognitive and behavioral impairments. Alcohol interferes with multiple pathways in the brain, affecting memory by impairing neurotransmitter systems, increasing the rate of oxidative stress, or even activating neuroinflammation. Here, we aimed to evaluate the deleterious effects of alcohol on the cholinergic signaling and memory in a FASD zebrafish model, using inhibitory avoidance and novel object recognition tests. Four months after the embryonic exposure to ethanol, the behavioral tests indicated that ethanol impairs memory. While both ethanol concentrations tested (0.5 % and 1 %) disrupted memory acquisition in the inhibitory avoidance test, 1 % ethanol impaired memory in the object recognition test. Regarding the cholinergic system, 0.5 % ethanol decreased ChAT and AChE activities, but the relative gene expression did not change. Overall, we demonstrated that FASD model in zebrafish impairs memory in adult individuals, corroborating the memory impairment associated with embryonic exposure to ethanol. In addition, the cholinergic system was also affected, possibly showing a relation with the cognitive impairment observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bárbara Fiorentin Giordani Gamba
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil; Department of Physiology and Behavior, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN 59072-970, Brazil; Graduate Program in Psychobiology, Biosciences Center, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN 59072-970, Brazil; Laboratory of Experimental Neuropsychobiology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Natural and Exact Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, 1000 Roraima Avenue, Santa Maria, RS 97105-900, Brazil; Graduate Program in Biological Sciences: Toxicological Biochemistry, Federal University of Santa Maria, 1000 Roraima Avenue, Santa Maria, RS 97105-900, Brazil
| | - Karolyne de Pieri Pickler
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - Guilherme Lodetti
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - Ana Caroline Salvador de Farias
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - Amanda Gomes Teixeira
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - Henrique Teza Bernardo
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Ronconi Dondossola
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - José Henrique Cararo
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil
| | - Ana Carolina Luchiari
- Department of Physiology and Behavior, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN 59072-970, Brazil; Graduate Program in Psychobiology, Biosciences Center, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN 59072-970, Brazil
| | - Denis Broock Rosemberg
- Laboratory of Experimental Neuropsychobiology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Natural and Exact Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, 1000 Roraima Avenue, Santa Maria, RS 97105-900, Brazil; Graduate Program in Biological Sciences: Toxicological Biochemistry, Federal University of Santa Maria, 1000 Roraima Avenue, Santa Maria, RS 97105-900, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Pacheco Rico
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNESC), Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
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Fernandes Y, Lovely CB. Zebrafish models of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Genesis 2021; 59:e23460. [PMID: 34739740 DOI: 10.1002/dvg.23460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Revised: 10/15/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) describes a wide range of structural deficits and cognitive impairments. FASD impacts up to 5% of children born in the United States each year, making ethanol one of the most common teratogens. Due to limitations and ethical concerns, studies in humans are limited in their ability to study FASD. Animal models have proven critical in identifying and characterizing the mechanisms underlying FASD. In this review, we will focus on the attributes of zebrafish that make it a strong model in which to study ethanol-induced developmental defects. Zebrafish have several attributes that make it an ideal model in which to study FASD. Zebrafish produced large numbers of externally fertilized, translucent embryos. With a high degree of genetic amenability, zebrafish are at the forefront of identifying and characterizing the gene-ethanol interactions that underlie FASD. Work from multiple labs has shown that embryonic ethanol exposures result in defects in craniofacial, cardiac, ocular, and neural development. In addition to structural defects, ethanol-induced cognitive and behavioral impairments have been studied in zebrafish. Building upon these studies, work has identified ethanol-sensitive loci that underlie the developmental defects. However, analyses show there is still much to be learned of these gene-ethanol interactions. The zebrafish is ideally suited to expand our understanding of gene-ethanol interactions and their impact on FASD. Because of the conservation of gene function between zebrafish and humans, these studies will directly translate to studies of candidate genes in human populations and allow for better diagnosis and treatment of FASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yohaan Fernandes
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, South Dakota, USA
| | - C Ben Lovely
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Alcohol Research Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
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Cararo JH, Rico EP. Long-lasting implications of embryonic exposure to alcohol: Insights from zebrafish research. Dev Neurobiol 2021; 82:29-40. [PMID: 34687497 DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 09/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The harmful consumption of ethanol is associated with significant health problems and social burdens. This drug activates a complex network of reward mechanisms and habit formation learning that is supposed to contribute to the consumption of increasingly high and frequent amounts, ultimately leading to addiction. In the context of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a consequence of the harmful use of alcohol during pregnancy, which affects the embryonic development of the fetus. FAS can be easily reproduced in zebrafish by exposing the embryos to different concentrations of ethanol in water. In this regard, the aim of the present review is to discuss the late pathological implications in zebrafish exposed to ethanol at the embryonic stage, providing information in the context of human fetal alcoholic spectrum disorders. Experimental FAS in zebrafish is associated with impairments in the metabolic, morphological, neurochemical, behavioral, and cognitive domains. Many of the pathways that are affected by ethanol in zebrafish have at least one ortholog in humans, collaborating with the wider adoption of zebrafish in studies on alcohol disorders. In fact, zebrafish present validities required for the study of these conditions, which contributes to the use of this species in research, in addition to studies with rodents.
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Affiliation(s)
- José Henrique Cararo
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina, Criciúma, Santa Catarina, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Pacheco Rico
- Translational Psychiatry Laboratory, Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Southern Santa Catarina, Criciúma, Santa Catarina, Brazil
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Facciol A, Gerlai R. Zebrafish Shoaling, Its Behavioral and Neurobiological Mechanisms, and Its Alteration by Embryonic Alcohol Exposure: A Review. Front Behav Neurosci 2020; 14:572175. [PMID: 33100980 PMCID: PMC7546311 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2020.572175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Accepted: 09/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Social cognition and social behaviors are complex phenomena that involve numerous brain areas and underlying neurobiological mechanisms. Embryonic alcohol exposure may lead to the development of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), a disorder that manifests with varying symptoms including abnormal social behavior and other cognitive deficits. Animal models have been utilized to mimic aspects of the disease and to study potential underlying mechanisms. The zebrafish is a relative newcomer in this field but has been suggested as an optimal compromise between system complexity and practical simplicity for modeling FASD. Importantly, due to external fertilization and development of the embryo outside the mother and subsequent lack of parental care, this species allows precise control of the timing and dose of alcohol delivery during embryonic development. Furthermore, the zebrafish is a highly social species and thus may be particularly appropriate for the analysis of embryonic alcohol-induced alterations in this context. Here, we provide a succinct review focusing on shoaling, a prominent form of social behavior, in zebrafish. We summarize what is known about its behavioral mechanisms and underlying neurobiological processes, and how it is altered by exposure to ethanol during embryonic development. Lastly, we briefly consider possible future directions of research that would help us better understand the relationship between the behavioral expression and molecular basis of embryonic ethanol-induced social deficits in fish and humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Facciol
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Robert Gerlai
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, ON, Canada
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