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Lagogiannis K, Diana G, Meyer MP. Learning steers the ontogeny of an efficient hunting sequence in zebrafish larvae. eLife 2020; 9:55119. [PMID: 32773042 PMCID: PMC7561354 DOI: 10.7554/elife.55119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2020] [Accepted: 08/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Goal-directed behaviors may be poorly coordinated in young animals but, with age and experience, behavior progressively adapts to efficiently exploit the animal’s ecological niche. How experience impinges on the developing neural circuits of behavior is an open question. We have conducted a detailed study of the effects of experience on the ontogeny of hunting behavior in larval zebrafish. We report that larvae with prior experience of live prey consume considerably more prey than naive larvae. This is mainly due to increased capture success and a modest increase in hunt rate. We demonstrate that the initial turn to prey and the final capture manoeuvre of the hunting sequence were jointly modified by experience and that modification of these components predicted capture success. Our findings establish an ethologically relevant paradigm in zebrafish for studying how the brain is shaped by experience to drive the ontogeny of efficient behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Konstantinos Lagogiannis
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, MRC Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Giovanni Diana
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, MRC Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Martin P Meyer
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, MRC Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
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2
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Krzykwa JC, Jeffries MK. Development of a larval fathead minnow optomotor response assay for assessing visual function. MethodsX 2020; 7:100971. [PMID: 32642453 PMCID: PMC7334461 DOI: 10.1016/j.mex.2020.100971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2020] [Accepted: 06/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The optomotor response (OMR) is a position stabilizing reflex to whole-field visual motion, demonstrated by fish instinctually moving to follow alternating black and white stripes. The OMR assay is used to assess the visual function of fish. While researchers have been using the OMR assay for years to evaluate the visual acuity of fish, no standardized methods exist. Therefore, the goal of the present study was to develop a standardized protocol for the measurement of OMR in larval fathead minnows, a common model species in ecotoxicology. Results indicate that OMR is a potential endpoint for the assessment of vision in larval fathead minnows and can be quantified as early as 9 dpf. When running the OMR assay, a 4-min acclimation period should be implemented. There did not appear to be a learning component to response latency; however, high variation in likely impeded the ability to detect significant differences.Optomotor response of fathead minnow larvae can be quantified as early as 9 dpf. When running the assay, a 4-min acclimation period should be implemented. Due to high variation, response latency is not recommended for use as an endpoint.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie C Krzykwa
- Texas Christian University, Department of Biology, 2800 S. University Drive, Fort Worth, TX 76129, United States
| | - Marlo K Jeffries
- Texas Christian University, Department of Biology, 2800 S. University Drive, Fort Worth, TX 76129, United States
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3
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Otero Coronel S, Martorell N, Beron de Astrada M, Medan V. Stimulus Contrast Information Modulates Sensorimotor Decision Making in Goldfish. Front Neural Circuits 2020; 14:23. [PMID: 32547371 PMCID: PMC7270408 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2020.00023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2020] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal survival relies on environmental information gathered by their sensory systems. We found that contrast information of a looming stimulus biases the type of defensive behavior that goldfish (Carassius auratus) perform. Low-contrast looms only evoke subtle alarm reactions whose probability is independent of contrast. As looming contrast increases, the probability of eliciting a fast escape maneuver, the C-start response, increases dramatically. Contrast information also modulates the decision of when to escape. Although response latency is known to depend on looming retinal size, we found that contrast acts as an additional parameter influencing this decision. When presenting progressively higher contrast stimuli, animals need shorter periods of stimulus processing to initiate the response. Our results comply with the notion that the decision to escape is a flexible process initiated with stimulus detection and followed by assessment of the perceived risk posed by the stimulus. Highly disruptive behaviors as the C-start are only observed when a multifactorial threshold that includes stimulus contrast is surpassed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Santiago Otero Coronel
- Department Fisiología y Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Nicolás Martorell
- Department Fisiología y Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Martín Beron de Astrada
- Department Fisiología y Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Violeta Medan
- Department Fisiología y Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE), CONICET-Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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4
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Navarro MA, Salari A, Lin JL, Cowan LM, Penington NJ, Milescu M, Milescu LS. Sodium channels implement a molecular leaky integrator that detects action potentials and regulates neuronal firing. eLife 2020; 9:54940. [PMID: 32101161 PMCID: PMC7043890 DOI: 10.7554/elife.54940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Voltage-gated sodium channels play a critical role in cellular excitability, amplifying small membrane depolarizations into action potentials. Interactions with auxiliary subunits and other factors modify the intrinsic kinetic mechanism to result in new molecular and cellular functionality. We show here that sodium channels can implement a molecular leaky integrator, where the input signal is the membrane potential and the output is the occupancy of a long-term inactivated state. Through this mechanism, sodium channels effectively measure the frequency of action potentials and convert it into Na+ current availability. In turn, the Na+ current can control neuronal firing frequency in a negative feedback loop. Consequently, neurons become less sensitive to changes in excitatory input and maintain a lower firing rate. We present these ideas in the context of rat serotonergic raphe neurons, which fire spontaneously at low frequency and provide critical neuromodulation to many autonomous and cognitive brain functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco A Navarro
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
| | - Autoosa Salari
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, United States
| | - Jenna L Lin
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
| | - Luke M Cowan
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
| | - Nicholas J Penington
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, United States
| | - Mirela Milescu
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
| | - Lorin S Milescu
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States.,Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, United States
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5
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Evidence accumulation during a sensorimotor decision task revealed by whole-brain imaging. Nat Neurosci 2019; 23:85-93. [PMID: 31792463 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-019-0535-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2019] [Accepted: 10/07/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Although animals can accumulate sensory evidence over considerable time scales to appropriately select behavior, little is known about how the vertebrate brain as a whole accomplishes this. In this study, we developed a new sensorimotor decision-making assay in larval zebrafish based on whole-field visual motion. Fish responded by swimming in the direction of perceived motion, such that the latency to initiate swimming and the fraction of correct turns were modulated by motion strength. Using whole-brain functional imaging, we identified neural activity relevant to different stages of the decision-making process, including the momentary evaluation and accumulation of sensory evidence. This activity is distributed in functional clusters across different brain regions and is characterized by a wide range of time constants. In addition, we found that the caudal interpeduncular nucleus (IPN), a circular structure located ventrally on the midline of the brain, reliably encodes the left and right turning rates.
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6
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Neural circuits for evidence accumulation and decision making in larval zebrafish. Nat Neurosci 2019; 23:94-102. [PMID: 31792464 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-019-0534-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2019] [Accepted: 10/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
To make appropriate decisions, animals need to accumulate sensory evidence. Simple integrator models can explain many aspects of such behavior, but how the underlying computations are mechanistically implemented in the brain remains poorly understood. Here we approach this problem by adapting the random-dot motion discrimination paradigm, classically used in primate studies, to larval zebrafish. Using their innate optomotor response as a measure of decision making, we find that larval zebrafish accumulate and remember motion evidence over many seconds and that the behavior is in close agreement with a bounded leaky integrator model. Through the use of brain-wide functional imaging, we identify three neuronal clusters in the anterior hindbrain that are well suited to execute the underlying computations. By relating the dynamics within these structures to individual behavioral choices, we propose a biophysically plausible circuit arrangement in which an evidence integrator competes against a dynamic decision threshold to activate a downstream motor command.
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Optomotor Swimming in Larval Zebrafish Is Driven by Global Whole-Field Visual Motion and Local Light-Dark Transitions. Cell Rep 2019; 29:659-670.e3. [DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.09.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2019] [Revised: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 09/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
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8
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Randlett O, Haesemeyer M, Forkin G, Shoenhard H, Schier AF, Engert F, Granato M. Distributed Plasticity Drives Visual Habituation Learning in Larval Zebrafish. Curr Biol 2019; 29:1337-1345.e4. [PMID: 30955936 PMCID: PMC6545104 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.02.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2018] [Revised: 01/18/2019] [Accepted: 02/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Habituation is a simple form of learning where animals learn to reduce their responses to repeated innocuous stimuli [1]. Habituation is thought to occur via at least two temporally and molecularly distinct mechanisms, which lead to short-term memories that last for seconds to minutes and long-term memories that last for hours or longer [1, 2]. Here, we focus on long-term habituation, which, due to the extended time course, necessitates stable alterations to circuit properties [2-4]. In its simplest form, long-term habituation could result from a plasticity event at a single point in a circuit, and many studies have focused on identifying the site and underlying mechanism of plasticity [5-10]. However, it is possible that these individual sites are only one of many points in the circuit where plasticity is occurring. Indeed, studies of short-term habituation in C. elegans indicate that in this paradigm, multiple genetically separable mechanisms operate to adapt specific aspects of behavior [11-13]. Here, we use a visual assay in which larval zebrafish habituate their response to sudden reductions in illumination (dark flashes) [14, 15]. Through behavioral analyses, we find that multiple components of the dark-flash response habituate independently of one another using different molecular mechanisms. This is consistent with a modular model in which habituation originates from multiple independent processes, each adapting specific components of behavior. This may allow animals to more specifically or flexibly habituate based on stimulus context or internal states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Owen Randlett
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
| | - Martin Haesemeyer
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Greg Forkin
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Hannah Shoenhard
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Alexander F Schier
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Biozentrum, University of Basel, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Florian Engert
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
| | - Michael Granato
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Haesemeyer M, Robson DN, Li JM, Schier AF, Engert F. A Brain-wide Circuit Model of Heat-Evoked Swimming Behavior in Larval Zebrafish. Neuron 2018; 98:817-831.e6. [PMID: 29731253 PMCID: PMC5985529 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.04.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2017] [Revised: 03/01/2018] [Accepted: 04/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Thermosensation provides crucial information, but how temperature representation is transformed from sensation to behavior is poorly understood. Here, we report a preparation that allows control of heat delivery to zebrafish larvae while monitoring motor output and imaging whole-brain calcium signals, thereby uncovering algorithmic and computational rules that couple dynamics of heat modulation, neural activity and swimming behavior. This approach identifies a critical step in the transformation of temperature representation between the sensory trigeminal ganglia and the hindbrain: A simple sustained trigeminal stimulus representation is transformed into a representation of absolute temperature as well as temperature changes in the hindbrain that explains the observed motor output. An activity constrained dynamic circuit model captures the most prominent aspects of these sensori-motor transformations and predicts both behavior and neural activity in response to novel heat stimuli. These findings provide the first algorithmic description of heat processing from sensory input to behavioral output.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Haesemeyer
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
| | - Drew N Robson
- The Rowland Institute at Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Jennifer M Li
- The Rowland Institute at Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Alexander F Schier
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Biozentrum, University of Basel, 4056 Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Florian Engert
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
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10
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael B. Orger
- Champalimaud Research, Champalimaud Foundation, 1400-038 Lisbon, Portugal;,
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11
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Harmon TC, Magaram U, McLean DL, Raman IM. Distinct responses of Purkinje neurons and roles of simple spikes during associative motor learning in larval zebrafish. eLife 2017; 6:e22537. [PMID: 28541889 PMCID: PMC5444900 DOI: 10.7554/elife.22537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2016] [Accepted: 05/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
To study cerebellar activity during learning, we made whole-cell recordings from larval zebrafish Purkinje cells while monitoring fictive swimming during associative conditioning. Fish learned to swim in response to visual stimulation preceding tactile stimulation of the tail. Learning was abolished by cerebellar ablation. All Purkinje cells showed task-related activity. Based on how many complex spikes emerged during learned swimming, they were classified as multiple, single, or zero complex spike (MCS, SCS, ZCS) cells. With learning, MCS and ZCS cells developed increased climbing fiber (MCS) or parallel fiber (ZCS) input during visual stimulation; SCS cells fired complex spikes associated with learned swimming episodes. The categories correlated with location. Optogenetically suppressing simple spikes only during visual stimulation demonstrated that simple spikes are required for acquisition and early stages of expression of learned responses, but not their maintenance, consistent with a transient, instructive role for simple spikes during cerebellar learning in larval zebrafish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas C Harmon
- Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
| | - Uri Magaram
- Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
| | - David L McLean
- Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
| | - Indira M Raman
- Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States
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Abstract
In the last 30 years, the zebrafish has become a widely used model organism for research on vertebrate development and disease. Through a powerful combination of genetics and experimental embryology, significant inroads have been made into the regulation of embryonic axis formation, organogenesis, and the development of neural networks. Research with this model has also expanded into other areas, including the genetic regulation of aging, regeneration, and animal behavior. Zebrafish are a popular model because of the ease with which they can be maintained, their small size and low cost, the ability to obtain hundreds of embryos on a daily basis, and the accessibility, translucency, and rapidity of early developmental stages. This primer describes the swift progress of genetic approaches in zebrafish and highlights recent advances that have led to new insights into vertebrate biology.
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