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Neziri S, Köseoğlu AE, Deniz Köseoğlu G, Özgültekin B, Özgentürk NÖ. Animal models in neuroscience with alternative approaches: Evolutionary, biomedical, and ethical perspectives. Animal Model Exp Med 2024. [PMID: 39375824 DOI: 10.1002/ame2.12487] [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: 05/27/2024] [Accepted: 08/07/2024] [Indexed: 10/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Animal models have been a crucial tool in neuroscience research for decades, providing insights into the biomedical and evolutionary mechanisms of the nervous system, disease, and behavior. However, their use has raised concerns on several ethical, clinical, and scientific considerations. The welfare of animals and the 3R principles (replacement, reduction, refinement) are the focus of the ethical concerns, targeting the importance of reducing the stress and suffering of these models. Several laws and guidelines are applied and developed to protect animal rights during experimenting. Concurrently, in the clinic and biomedical fields, discussions on the relevance of animal model findings on human organisms have increased. Latest data suggest that in a considerable amount of time the animal model results are not translatable in humans, costing time and money. Alternative methods, such as in vitro (cell culture, microscopy, organoids, and micro physiological systems) techniques and in silico (computational) modeling, have emerged as potential replacements for animal models, providing more accurate data in a minimized cost. By adopting alternative methods and promoting ethical considerations in research practices, we can achieve the 3R goals while upholding our responsibility to both humans and other animals. Our goal is to present a thorough review of animal models used in neuroscience from the biomedical, evolutionary, and ethical perspectives. The novelty of this research lies in integrating diverse points of views to provide an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of animal models in neuroscience and in discussing potential alternative methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabina Neziri
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Art and Science, Yıldız Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | | | | | - Buminhan Özgültekin
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Acıbadem University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Nehir Özdemir Özgentürk
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Art and Science, Yıldız Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey
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2
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Uribe-Salazar JM, Kaya G, Weyenberg KB, Radke B, Hino KK, Soto DC, Shiu JL, Zhang W, Ingamells C, Haghani NK, Xu E, Rosas J, Simó S, Miesfeld J, Glaser T, Baraban SC, Jao LEC, Dennis MY. Zebrafish models of human-duplicated SRGAP2 reveal novel functions in microglia and visual system development. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.09.11.612570. [PMID: 39314374 PMCID: PMC11418993 DOI: 10.1101/2024.09.11.612570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/25/2024]
Abstract
SRGAP2C has been implicated in contributing to altered brain features in the evolution of humans. However, the significance of SRGAP2 duplication beyond neocortex development has not been elucidated due to the embryonic lethality of complete Srgap2 knockout in mice. Using zebrafish, we show that srgap2 knockout results in viable offspring that phenocopy "humanized" SRGAP2C larvae. Morphometric, behavioral, and transcriptome analyses collectively suggest srgap2 impacts axonal guidance, synaptogenesis, and seizure susceptibility. Beyond neurons, Srgap2 functions in controlling membrane dynamics and maturation of microglial cells, possibly leading to altered axonogenesis in the developing retina and increased sensitivity to broad and fine visual cues. Comparing relevant transcriptomes between human and nonhuman primates suggests that SRGAP2C similarly impacts microglia and vision in modern humans. Our functional characterization of conserved ortholog Srgap2 and human SRGAP2C in zebrafish uncovered novel gene functions and highlights the strength of cross-species analysis in understanding the development of human-specific features.
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Ma J, Zhang W, Rahimialiabadi S, Ganesh NU, Sun Z, Parvez S, Peterson RT, Yeh JRJ. Instantaneous visual genotyping and facile site-specific transgenesis via CRISPR-Cas9 and phiC31 integrase. Biol Open 2024; 13:bio061666. [PMID: 39225039 PMCID: PMC11391820 DOI: 10.1242/bio.061666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2024] [Accepted: 08/01/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Here, we introduce 'TICIT', targeted integration by CRISPR-Cas9 and integrase technologies, which utilizes the site-specific DNA recombinase - phiC31 integrase - to insert large DNA fragments into CRISPR-Cas9 target loci. This technique, which relies on first knocking in a 39-basepair phiC31 landing site via CRISPR-Cas9, enables researchers to repeatedly perform site-specific transgenesis at the exact genomic location with high precision and efficiency. We applied this approach to devise a method for the instantaneous determination of a zebrafish's genotype simply by examining its color. When a zebrafish mutant line must be propagated as heterozygotes due to homozygous lethality, employing this method allows facile identification of a population of homozygous mutant embryos even before the mutant phenotypes manifest. Thus, it should facilitate various downstream applications, such as large-scale chemical screens. We demonstrated that TICIT could also create reporter fish driven by an endogenous promoter. Further, we identified a landing site in the tyrosinase gene that could support transgene expression in a broad spectrum of tissue and cell types. In sum, TICIT enables site-specific DNA integration without requiring complex donor DNA construction. It can yield consistent transgene expression, facilitate diverse applications in zebrafish, and may be applicable to cells in culture and other model organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junyan Ma
- Department of Basic Medical Science, Quanzhou Medical College, Quanzhou, Fujian 362011, China
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Weiting Zhang
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Simin Rahimialiabadi
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Nikkitha Umesh Ganesh
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Zhengwang Sun
- Center for Immunology and Inflammatory Disease, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Saba Parvez
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Randall T Peterson
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Jing-Ruey Joanna Yeh
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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4
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Raghul Kannan S, Latha Laxmi IP, Ahmad SF, Tamizhselvi R. Embryonic ethanol exposure induces oxidative stress and inflammation in zebrafish model: A dose-dependent study. Toxicology 2024; 506:153876. [PMID: 38945197 DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2024.153876] [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: 05/09/2024] [Revised: 06/22/2024] [Accepted: 06/27/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024]
Abstract
Alcohol, or ethanol, is a major contributor to detrimental diseases and comorbidities worldwide. Alcohol use during pregnancy intervenes the developing embryos leading to morphological changes, neurocognitive defects, and behavioral changes known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Zebrafish have been used as a model to study FASD; however, the mechanism and the impact of ethanol on oxidative stress and inflammation in the zebrafish FASD model remain unexplored. Hence, we exposed zebrafish embryos to different concentrations of ethanol (0 %, 0.5 %, 1.0 %, 1.25 %, and 1.5 % ethanol (v/v)) at 4-96 hours post-fertilization (hpf) to study and characterize the ethanol concentration for the FASD model to induce oxidative stress and inflammation. Here, we studied the survival rate and developmental toxicity parameters at different time points and measured oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, apoptosis, and pro-inflammatory gene expression in zebrafish larvae. Our findings indicate that ethanol causes various developmental abnormalities, including decreased survival rate, spontaneous tail coiling, hatching rate, heart rate, and body length, associated with increased malformation. Further, ethanol exposure induced oxidative stress by increasing lipid peroxidation and nitric oxide production and decreasing glutathione levels. Subsequently, ethanol increased ROS generation, apoptosis, and pro-inflammatory gene (TNF-α and IL-1β) expression in ethanol exposed larvae. 1.25 % and 1.5 % ethanol had significant impacts on zebrafish larvae in all studied parameters. However, 1.5 % ethanol showed decreased survival rate and increased malformations. Overall, 1.25 % ethanol is the ideal concentration to study the oxidative stress and inflammation in the zebrafish FASD model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sampath Raghul Kannan
- School of Bio Sciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India.
| | | | - Sheikh F Ahmad
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Ramasamy Tamizhselvi
- School of Bio Sciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India.
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Firdous SM, Pal S, Khanam S, Zakir F. Behavioral neuroscience in zebrafish: unravelling the complexity of brain-behavior relationships. NAUNYN-SCHMIEDEBERG'S ARCHIVES OF PHARMACOLOGY 2024:10.1007/s00210-024-03275-5. [PMID: 38970686 DOI: 10.1007/s00210-024-03275-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/08/2024]
Abstract
This paper reviews the utility of zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model system for exploring neurobehavioral phenomena in preclinical research, focusing on physiological processes, disorders, and neurotoxicity biomarkers. A comprehensive review of the current literature was conducted to summarize the various behavioral characteristics of zebrafish. The study examined the etiological agents used to induce neurotoxicity and the biomarkers involved, including Aβ42, tau, MMP-13, MAO, NF-Кβ, and GFAP. Additionally, the different zebrafish study models and their responses to neurobehavioral analysis were discussed. The review identified several key biomarkers of neurotoxicity in zebrafish, each impacting different aspects of neurogenesis, inflammation, and neurodegeneration. Aβ42 was found to alter neuronal growth and stem cell function. Tau's interaction with tubulin affected microtubule stability and led to tauopathies under pathological conditions. MMP-13 was linked to oxidative assault and sensory neuron degeneration. MAO plays a role in neurotransmitter metabolism and neurotoxicity conversion. NF-Кβ was involved in pro-inflammatory pathways, and GFAP was indicative of neuroinflammation and astroglial activation. Zebrafish provide a valuable model for neurobehavioral research, adhering to the "3Rs" philosophy. Their neurotoxicity biomarkers offer insights into the mechanisms of neurogenesis, inflammation, and neurodegeneration. This model system aids in evaluating physiological and pathological conditions, enhancing our understanding of neurobehavioral phenomena and potential therapeutic interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sayed Mohammed Firdous
- Department of Pharmacology, Calcutta Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology & AHS, Uluberia, Howrah, 711316, West Bengal, India.
| | - Sourav Pal
- P.G. Institute of Medical Sciences, Dhurabila, Dhamkuria, Paschim Medinipur: 72:1201, Chandrakona Town, West Bengal, India
| | - Sofia Khanam
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Foziyah Zakir
- Department of B.Pharm (Ayurveda), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Delhi Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research University, New Delhi, 110017, India
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Zhao H, Chen W, Li F, Wang X, Pan X, Liu Y, Wang L, Sun W, Li F, Jiang S. Dissecting the long-term neurobehavioral impact of embryonic benz[a]anthracene exposure on zebrafish: Social dysfunction and molecular pathway activation. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 930:172615. [PMID: 38657801 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2024] [Revised: 04/11/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Benz[a]anthracene (BaA), a prevalent environmental contaminant within the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon class, poses risks to both human health and aquatic ecosystems. The impact of BaA on neural development and subsequent social behavior patterns remains inadequately explored. In this investigation, we employed the zebrafish as a model to examine the persisting effects of BaA exposure on social behaviors across various developmental stages, from larvae, juveniles to adults, following embryonic exposure. Our findings indicate that BaA exposure during embryogenesis yields lasting neurobehavioral deficits into adulthood. Proteomic analysis highlights that BaA may impair neuro-immune crosstalk in zebrafish larvae. Remarkably, our proteomic data also hint at the activation of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) and cytochrome P450 1A (CYP1A) pathway by BaA, leading to the hypothesis that this pathway may be implicated in the disruption of neuro-immune interactions, contributing to observable behavioral disruptions. In summary, our findings suggest that early exposure to BaA disrupts social behaviors, such as social ability and shoaling behaviors, from the larval stage through to maturity in zebrafish, potentially through the detrimental effects on neuro-immune processes mediated by the AHR-CYP1A pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haichu Zhao
- Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China; College of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Weiran Chen
- Ministry of Education and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China; Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatric & Child Primary Care, Brain and Behavioral Research Unit of Shanghai Institute for Pediatric Research, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
| | - Fei Li
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Xiaoyang Wang
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Xin Pan
- Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Liting Wang
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Wei Sun
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Fei Li
- Ministry of Education and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China; Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatric & Child Primary Care, Brain and Behavioral Research Unit of Shanghai Institute for Pediatric Research, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
| | - Shan Jiang
- Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China.
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McAtee D, Abdelmoneim A. A zebrafish-based acoustic motor response (AMR) assay to evaluate chemical-induced developmental neurotoxicity. Neurotoxicology 2024; 103:60-70. [PMID: 38851595 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuro.2024.06.003] [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: 08/21/2023] [Revised: 05/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/05/2024] [Indexed: 06/10/2024]
Abstract
Behavioral assays using early-developing zebrafish (Danio rerio) offer a valuable supplement to the in vitro battery adopted as new approach methodologies (NAMs) for assessing risk of chemical-induced developmental neurotoxicity. However, the behavioral assays primarily adopted rely on visual stimulation to elicit behavioral responses, known as visual motor response (VMR) assays. Ocular deficits resulting from chemical exposures can, therefore, confound the behavioral responses, independent of effects on the nervous system. This highlights the need for complementary assays employing alternative forms of sensory stimulation. In this study, we investigated the efficacy of acoustic stimuli as triggers of behavioral responses in larval zebrafish, determined the most appropriate data acquisition mode, and evaluated the suitability of an acoustic motor response (AMR) assay as means to assess alterations in brain activity and risk of chemical-induced developmental neurotoxicity. We quantified the motor responses of 120 h post-fertilization (hpf) larvae to acoustic stimuli with varying patterns and frequencies, and determined the optimal time intervals for data acquisition. Following this, we examined changes in acoustic and visual motor responses resulting from exposures to pharmacological agents known to impact brain activity (pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) and tricaine-s (MS-222)). Additionally, we examined the AMR and VMR of larvae following exposure to two environmental contaminants associated with developmental neurotoxicity: arsenic (As) and cadmium (Cd). Our findings indicate that exposure to a 100 Hz sound frequency in 100 ms pulses elicits the strongest behavioral response among the acoustic stimuli tested and data acquisition in 2 s time intervals is suitable for response assessment. Exposure to PTZ exaggerated and depressed both AMR and VMR in a concentration-dependent manner, while exposure to MS-222 only depressed them. Similarly, exposure to As and Cd induced respective hyper- and hypo-activation of both motor responses. This study highlights the efficiency of the proposed zebrafish-based AMR assay in demonstrating risk of chemical-induced developmental neurotoxicity and its suitability as a complement to the widely adopted VMR assay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Demetrius McAtee
- Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
| | - Ahmed Abdelmoneim
- Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.
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Liu Z, Luo X, Yan-Do R, Wang Y, Xie X, Li Z, Cheng SH, Shi P. Vertebrates on a Chip: Noninvasive Electrical and Optical Mapping of Whole Brain Activity Associated with Pharmacological Treatments. ACS Chem Neurosci 2024; 15:2121-2131. [PMID: 38775291 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.4c00158] [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] [Indexed: 06/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Mapping brain activities is necessary for understanding brain physiology and discovering new treatments for neurological disorders. Such efforts have greatly benefited from the advancement in technologies for analyzing neural activity with improving temporal or spatial resolution. Here, we constructed a multielectrode array based brain activity mapping (BAM) system capable of stabilizing and orienting zebrafish larvae for recording electroencephalogram (EEG) like local field potential (LFP) signals and brain-wide calcium dynamics in awake zebrafish. Particularly, we designed a zebrafish trap chip that integrates with an eight-by-eight surface electrode array, so that brain electrophysiology can be noninvasively recorded in an agarose-free and anesthetic-free format with a high temporal resolution of 40 μs, matching the capability typically achieved by invasive LFP recording. Benefiting from the specially designed hybrid system, we can also conduct calcium imaging directly on immobilized awake larval zebrafish, which further supplies us with high spatial resolution brain-wide activity data. All of these innovations reconcile the limitations of sole LFP recording or calcium imaging, emphasizing a synergy of combining electrical and optical modalities within one unified device for activity mapping across a whole vertebrate brain with both improved spatial and temporal resolutions. The compatibility with in vivo drug treatment further makes it suitable for pharmacology studies based on multimodal measurement of brain-wide physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Liu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Xuan Luo
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Richard Yan-Do
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
- Hong Kong Centre for Cerebro-Cardiovascular Health Engineering Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Yuan Wang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Xi Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Display Material and Technology School of Electronics and Information Technology, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Zhongping Li
- Institute of Environmental Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
| | - Shuk Han Cheng
- Department of Biomedical Science, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Peng Shi
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
- Hong Kong Centre for Cerebro-Cardiovascular Health Engineering Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong SAR
- Center of Super-Diamond and Advanced Films (COSDAF), City University of Hong Kong Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
- Shenzhen Research Institute, City University of Hong Kong Shenzhen, Guangdong 518057, China
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Al-Zoubi RM, Abu-Hijleh H, Zarour A, Zakaria ZZ, Yassin A, Al-Ansari AA, Al-Asmakh M, Bawadi H. Zebrafish Model in Illuminating the Complexities of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders: A Unique Research Tool. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:4895. [PMID: 38732113 PMCID: PMC11084870 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25094895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2024] [Revised: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating psychological condition that may develop in certain individuals following exposure to life-threatening or traumatic events. Distressing symptoms, including flashbacks, are characterized by disrupted stress responses, fear, anxiety, avoidance tendencies, and disturbances in sleep patterns. The enduring effects of PTSD can profoundly impact personal and familial relationships, as well as social, medical, and financial stability. The prevalence of PTSD varies among different populations and is influenced by the nature of the traumatic event. Recently, zebrafish have emerged as a valuable model organism in studying various conditions and disorders. Zebrafish display robust behavioral patterns that can be effectively quantified using advanced video-tracking tools. Due to their relatively simple nervous system compared to humans, zebrafish are particularly well suited for behavioral investigations. These unique characteristics make zebrafish an appealing model for exploring the underlying molecular and genetic mechanisms that govern behavior, thus offering a powerful comparative platform for gaining deeper insights into PTSD. This review article aims to provide updates on the pathophysiology of PTSD and the genetic responses associated with psychological stress. Additionally, it highlights the significance of zebrafish behavior as a valuable tool for comprehending PTSD better. By leveraging zebrafish as a model organism, researchers can potentially uncover novel therapeutic interventions for the treatment of PTSD and contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of this complex condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raed M. Al-Zoubi
- Department of Chemistry, Jordan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 3030, Irbid 22110, Jordan;
- Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha P.O. Box 3050, Qatar; (A.Y.); (A.A.A.-A.)
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, QU-Health, College of Health Sciences, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar
| | - Haya Abu-Hijleh
- Department of Human Nutrition, QU-Health, College of Health Sciences, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar; (H.A.-H.); (M.A.-A.)
| | - Ahmad Zarour
- Department of Surgery, Acute Care Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha P.O. Box 3050, Qatar;
| | - Zain Z. Zakaria
- Vice President for Medical and Health Sciences Office, QU-Health, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar;
| | - Aksam Yassin
- Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha P.O. Box 3050, Qatar; (A.Y.); (A.A.A.-A.)
- Center of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dresden International University, 01069 Dresden, Germany
| | - Abdulla A. Al-Ansari
- Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha P.O. Box 3050, Qatar; (A.Y.); (A.A.A.-A.)
| | - Maha Al-Asmakh
- Department of Human Nutrition, QU-Health, College of Health Sciences, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar; (H.A.-H.); (M.A.-A.)
- Biomedical Research Center, Qatar University, Doha P.O. Box 2713, Qatar
| | - Hiba Bawadi
- Department of Human Nutrition, QU-Health, College of Health Sciences, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar; (H.A.-H.); (M.A.-A.)
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10
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Tal T, Myhre O, Fritsche E, Rüegg J, Craenen K, Aiello-Holden K, Agrillo C, Babin PJ, Escher BI, Dirven H, Hellsten K, Dolva K, Hessel E, Heusinkveld HJ, Hadzhiev Y, Hurem S, Jagiello K, Judzinska B, Klüver N, Knoll-Gellida A, Kühne BA, Leist M, Lislien M, Lyche JL, Müller F, Colbourne JK, Neuhaus W, Pallocca G, Seeger B, Scharkin I, Scholz S, Spjuth O, Torres-Ruiz M, Bartmann K. New approach methods to assess developmental and adult neurotoxicity for regulatory use: a PARC work package 5 project. FRONTIERS IN TOXICOLOGY 2024; 6:1359507. [PMID: 38742231 PMCID: PMC11089904 DOI: 10.3389/ftox.2024.1359507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
In the European regulatory context, rodent in vivo studies are the predominant source of neurotoxicity information. Although they form a cornerstone of neurotoxicological assessments, they are costly and the topic of ethical debate. While the public expects chemicals and products to be safe for the developing and mature nervous systems, considerable numbers of chemicals in commerce have not, or only to a limited extent, been assessed for their potential to cause neurotoxicity. As such, there is a societal push toward the replacement of animal models with in vitro or alternative methods. New approach methods (NAMs) can contribute to the regulatory knowledge base, increase chemical safety, and modernize chemical hazard and risk assessment. Provided they reach an acceptable level of regulatory relevance and reliability, NAMs may be considered as replacements for specific in vivo studies. The European Partnership for the Assessment of Risks from Chemicals (PARC) addresses challenges to the development and implementation of NAMs in chemical risk assessment. In collaboration with regulatory agencies, Project 5.2.1e (Neurotoxicity) aims to develop and evaluate NAMs for developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) and adult neurotoxicity (ANT) and to understand the applicability domain of specific NAMs for the detection of endocrine disruption and epigenetic perturbation. To speed up assay time and reduce costs, we identify early indicators of later-onset effects. Ultimately, we will assemble second-generation developmental neurotoxicity and first-generation adult neurotoxicity test batteries, both of which aim to provide regulatory hazard and risk assessors and industry stakeholders with robust, speedy, lower-cost, and informative next-generation hazard and risk assessment tools.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamara Tal
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Chemicals in the Environment Research Section, Leipzig, Germany
- University of Leipzig, Medical Faculty, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Oddvar Myhre
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health – NIPH, Department of Chemical Toxicology, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ellen Fritsche
- IUF – Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany
- DNTOX GmbH, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Swiss Centre for Applied Human Toxicology, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Joëlle Rüegg
- Uppsala University, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Kai Craenen
- European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), Helsinki, Finland
| | | | - Caroline Agrillo
- Uppsala University, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Patrick J. Babin
- Université de Bordeaux, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Maladies Rares: Génétique et Métabolisme (MRGM), Pessac, France
| | - Beate I. Escher
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Chemicals in the Environment Research Section, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Hubert Dirven
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health – NIPH, Department of Chemical Toxicology, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Kristine Dolva
- University of Oslo, Section for Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Department of Pharmacy, Olso, Norway
| | - Ellen Hessel
- Dutch Nation Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Centre for Health Protection, Bilthoven, Netherlands
| | - Harm J. Heusinkveld
- Dutch Nation Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Centre for Health Protection, Bilthoven, Netherlands
| | - Yavor Hadzhiev
- University of Birmingham, Centre for Environmental Research and Justice, Birmingham, UK
| | - Selma Hurem
- Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ås, Norway
| | - Karolina Jagiello
- University of Gdansk, Laboratory of Environmental Chemoinformatics, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Beata Judzinska
- University of Gdansk, Laboratory of Environmental Chemoinformatics, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Nils Klüver
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Chemicals in the Environment Research Section, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Anja Knoll-Gellida
- Université de Bordeaux, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Maladies Rares: Génétique et Métabolisme (MRGM), Pessac, France
| | - Britta A. Kühne
- University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Institute for Food Quality and Food Safety, Hannover, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- University of Konstanz, In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine/CAAT-Europe, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Malene Lislien
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health – NIPH, Department of Chemical Toxicology, Oslo, Norway
| | - Jan L. Lyche
- Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ås, Norway
| | - Ferenc Müller
- University of Birmingham, Centre for Environmental Research and Justice, Birmingham, UK
| | - John K. Colbourne
- University of Birmingham, Centre for Environmental Research and Justice, Birmingham, UK
| | - Winfried Neuhaus
- AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, Competence Unit Molecular Diagnostics, Center Health and Bioresources, Vienna, Austria
- Danube Private University, Faculty of Dentistry and Medicine, Department of Medicine, Krems, Austria
| | - Giorgia Pallocca
- University of Konstanz, In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine/CAAT-Europe, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Bettina Seeger
- University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Institute for Food Quality and Food Safety, Hannover, Germany
| | - Ilka Scharkin
- IUF – Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Stefan Scholz
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Chemicals in the Environment Research Section, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ola Spjuth
- Uppsala University and Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Monica Torres-Ruiz
- Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Centro Nacional de Sanidad Ambiental (CNSA), Environmental Toxicology Unit, Majadahonda, Spain
| | - Kristina Bartmann
- IUF – Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany
- DNTOX GmbH, Düsseldorf, Germany
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11
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Kaiyrzhanov R, Rad A, Lin SJ, Bertoli-Avella A, Kallemeijn WW, Godwin A, Zaki MS, Huang K, Lau T, Petree C, Efthymiou S, Karimiani EG, Hempel M, Normand EA, Rudnik-Schöneborn S, Schatz UA, Baggelaar MP, Ilyas M, Sultan T, Alvi JR, Ganieva M, Fowler B, Aanicai R, Tayfun GA, Al Saman A, Alswaid A, Amiri N, Asilova N, Shotelersuk V, Yeetong P, Azam M, Babaei M, Monajemi GB, Mohammadi P, Samie S, Banu SH, Pinto Basto J, Kortüm F, Bauer M, Bauer P, Beetz C, Garshasbi M, Issa AH, Eyaid W, Ahmed H, Hashemi N, Hassanpour K, Herman I, Ibrohimov S, Abdul-Majeed BA, Imdad M, Isrofilov M, Kaiyal Q, Khan S, Kirmse B, Koster J, Lourenço CM, Mitani T, Moldovan O, Murphy D, Najafi M, Pehlivan D, Rocha ME, Salpietro V, Schmidts M, Shalata A, Mahroum M, Talbeya JK, Taylor RW, Vazquez D, Vetro A, Waterham HR, Zaman M, Schrader TA, Chung WK, Guerrini R, Lupski JR, Gleeson J, Suri M, Jamshidi Y, Bhatia KP, Vona B, Schrader M, Severino M, Guille M, Tate EW, Varshney GK, Houlden H, Maroofian R. Bi-allelic ACBD6 variants lead to a neurodevelopmental syndrome with progressive and complex movement disorders. Brain 2024; 147:1436-1456. [PMID: 37951597 PMCID: PMC10994533 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awad380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023] Open
Abstract
The acyl-CoA-binding domain-containing protein 6 (ACBD6) is ubiquitously expressed, plays a role in the acylation of lipids and proteins and regulates the N-myristoylation of proteins via N-myristoyltransferase enzymes (NMTs). However, its precise function in cells is still unclear, as is the consequence of ACBD6 defects on human pathophysiology. Using exome sequencing and extensive international data sharing efforts, we identified 45 affected individuals from 28 unrelated families (consanguinity 93%) with bi-allelic pathogenic, predominantly loss-of-function (18/20) variants in ACBD6. We generated zebrafish and Xenopus tropicalis acbd6 knockouts by CRISPR/Cas9 and characterized the role of ACBD6 on protein N-myristoylation with myristic acid alkyne (YnMyr) chemical proteomics in the model organisms and human cells, with the latter also being subjected further to ACBD6 peroxisomal localization studies. The affected individuals (23 males and 22 females), aged 1-50 years, typically present with a complex and progressive disease involving moderate-to-severe global developmental delay/intellectual disability (100%) with significant expressive language impairment (98%), movement disorders (97%), facial dysmorphism (95%) and mild cerebellar ataxia (85%) associated with gait impairment (94%), limb spasticity/hypertonia (76%), oculomotor (71%) and behavioural abnormalities (65%), overweight (59%), microcephaly (39%) and epilepsy (33%). The most conspicuous and common movement disorder was dystonia (94%), frequently leading to early-onset progressive postural deformities (97%), limb dystonia (55%) and cervical dystonia (31%). A jerky tremor in the upper limbs (63%), a mild head tremor (59%), parkinsonism/hypokinesia developing with advancing age (32%) and simple motor and vocal tics were among other frequent movement disorders. Midline brain malformations including corpus callosum abnormalities (70%), hypoplasia/agenesis of the anterior commissure (66%), short midbrain and small inferior cerebellar vermis (38% each) as well as hypertrophy of the clava (24%) were common neuroimaging findings. Acbd6-deficient zebrafish and Xenopus models effectively recapitulated many clinical phenotypes reported in patients including movement disorders, progressive neuromotor impairment, seizures, microcephaly, craniofacial dysmorphism and midbrain defects accompanied by developmental delay with increased mortality over time. Unlike ACBD5, ACBD6 did not show a peroxisomal localization and ACBD6-deficiency was not associated with altered peroxisomal parameters in patient fibroblasts. Significant differences in YnMyr-labelling were observed for 68 co- and 18 post-translationally N-myristoylated proteins in patient-derived fibroblasts. N-myristoylation was similarly affected in acbd6-deficient zebrafish and X. tropicalis models, including Fus, Marcks and Chchd-related proteins implicated in neurological diseases. The present study provides evidence that bi-allelic pathogenic variants in ACBD6 lead to a distinct neurodevelopmental syndrome accompanied by complex and progressive cognitive and movement disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rauan Kaiyrzhanov
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Aboulfazl Rad
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar 009851, Iran
- Tübingen Hearing Research Centre, Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Eberhard Karls University, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sheng-Jia Lin
- Genes & Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | | | - Wouter W Kallemeijn
- Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, London W12 0BZ, UK
- Chemical Biology and Therapeutic Discovery Lab, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Annie Godwin
- European Xenopus Resource Centre—XenMD, School of Biological Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth PO1 2DT, UK
| | - Maha S Zaki
- Clinical Genetics Department, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, 12622 Cairo, Egypt
| | - Kevin Huang
- Genes & Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Tracy Lau
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Cassidy Petree
- Genes & Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Stephanie Efthymiou
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Ehsan Ghayoor Karimiani
- Genetics Research Centre, Molecular and Clinical Sciences Institute, St George’s University of London, London SW17 0RE, UK
- Department of Medical Genetics, Next Generation Genetic Polyclinic, Mashhad 1696700, Iran
| | - Maja Hempel
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg 69120, Germany
| | | | | | - Ulrich A Schatz
- Institute of Human Genetics, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
- Institute of Human Genetics, Technical University of Munich, Munich, 81675, Germany
| | - Marc P Baggelaar
- Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, London W12 0BZ, UK
- Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry & Proteomics Group, Utrecht University, 3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Muhammad Ilyas
- Department of BioEngineering, University of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 19130 Swat, Pakistan
- Centre for Omic Sciences, Islamia College University, 25000 Peshawar, Pakistan
| | - Tipu Sultan
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Institute of Child Health, Children Hospital, Lahore 54600, Pakistan
| | - Javeria Raza Alvi
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Institute of Child Health, Children Hospital, Lahore 54600, Pakistan
| | - Manizha Ganieva
- Department of Neurology, Avicenna Tajik State Medical University, 734063 Dushanbe, Tajikistan
| | - Ben Fowler
- Imaging Core, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Ruxandra Aanicai
- Department of Medical Genetics, CENTOGENE GmbH, 18055 Rostock, Germany
| | - Gulsen Akay Tayfun
- Department of Pediatric Genetics, Marmara University Medical School, 34722 Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Abdulaziz Al Saman
- Pediatric Neurology Department, National Neuroscience Institute, King Fahad Medical City, 49046 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdulrahman Alswaid
- King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Department of Pediatrics, King Abdullah Specialized Children’s Hospital, Riyadh 11461, Saudi Arabia
| | - Nafise Amiri
- International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD), University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9, Canada
| | - Nilufar Asilova
- Department of Neurology, Avicenna Tajik State Medical University, 734063 Dushanbe, Tajikistan
| | - Vorasuk Shotelersuk
- Center of Excellence for Medical Genomics, Department of Pediatrics, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
| | - Patra Yeetong
- Division of Human Genetics, Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
| | - Matloob Azam
- Pediatrics and Child Neurology, Wah Medical College, 47000 Wah Cantt, Pakistan
| | - Meisam Babaei
- Department of Pediatrics, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd 94149-74877, Iran
| | | | - Pouria Mohammadi
- Children’s Medical Center, Pediatrics Center of Excellence, Ataxia Clinic, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 1416634793, Iran
- Faculty of Medical Sciences, Department of Medical Genetics, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 1411944961, Iran
| | - Saeed Samie
- Pars Advanced and Minimally Invasive Medical Manners Research Center, Pars Hospital, Tehran, Iran
| | - Selina Husna Banu
- Department of Paediatric Neurology and Development, Dr. M.R. Khan Shishu (Children) Hospital and Institute of Child Health, Dhaka 1216, Bangladesh
| | - Jorge Pinto Basto
- Department of Medical Genetics, CENTOGENE GmbH, 18055 Rostock, Germany
| | - Fanny Kortüm
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Mislen Bauer
- Division of Clinical Genetics and Metabolism, Nicklas Children's Hospital, Miami, FL 33155, USA
| | - Peter Bauer
- Department of Medical Genetics, CENTOGENE GmbH, 18055 Rostock, Germany
| | - Christian Beetz
- Department of Medical Genetics, CENTOGENE GmbH, 18055 Rostock, Germany
| | - Masoud Garshasbi
- Faculty of Medical Sciences, Department of Medical Genetics, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 1411944961, Iran
| | | | - Wafaa Eyaid
- Department of Genetics and Precision Medicine, King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Science, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Ministry of National Guard-Health Affairs (NGHA), Riyadh 11426, Saudi Arabia
| | - Hind Ahmed
- Department of Genetics and Precision Medicine, King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Science, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Ministry of National Guard-Health Affairs (NGHA), Riyadh 11426, Saudi Arabia
| | - Narges Hashemi
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, 13131–99137 Mashhad, Iran
| | - Kazem Hassanpour
- Non-Communicable Diseases Research Center, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, 319 Sabzevar, Iran
| | - Isabella Herman
- Section of Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 68010, USA
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Neurology, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Pediatric Neurology, Neurogenetics and Rare Diseases, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68131, USA
| | - Sherozjon Ibrohimov
- Department of Neurology, Avicenna Tajik State Medical University, 734063 Dushanbe, Tajikistan
| | - Ban A Abdul-Majeed
- Molecular Pathology and Genetics, The Pioneer Molecular Pathology Lab, Baghdad 10044, Iraq
| | - Maria Imdad
- Centre for Human Genetics, Hazara University, 21300 Mansehra, Pakistan
| | - Maksudjon Isrofilov
- Department of Neurology, Avicenna Tajik State Medical University, 734063 Dushanbe, Tajikistan
| | - Qassem Kaiyal
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Clalit Health Care, 2510500 Haifa, Israel
| | - Suliman Khan
- Department of Medical Genetics, CENTOGENE GmbH, 18055 Rostock, Germany
| | - Brian Kirmse
- SOM-Peds-Genetics, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson MS, 39216, USA
| | - Janet Koster
- Laboratory Genetic Metabolic Diseases, Amsterdam University Medical Centers location AMC, 1100 DD Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Charles Marques Lourenço
- Faculdade de Medicina, Centro Universitario Estácio de Ribeirão Preto, 14096-160 São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Tadahiro Mitani
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Oana Moldovan
- Serviço de Genética Médica, Departamento de Pediatria, Hospital de Santa Maria, Centro Hospitalar Universitário de Lisboa Norte, 1649-035 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - David Murphy
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Maryam Najafi
- Pediatrics Genetics Division, Center for Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Freiburg University, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
- Genome Research Division, Human Genetics Department, Radboud University Medical Center, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Davut Pehlivan
- Section of Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 68010, USA
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | | | - Vincenzo Salpietro
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Miriam Schmidts
- Pediatrics Genetics Division, Center for Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Freiburg University, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
- Genome Research Division, Human Genetics Department, Radboud University Medical Center, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- CIBSS-Centre for Integrative Biological Signalling Studies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Adel Shalata
- Pediatrics and Medical Genetics, the Simon Winter Institute for Human Genetics, Bnai Zion Medical Center, 31048 Haifa, Israel
- Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, the Technion institution of Technology, 3200003 Haifa, Israel
| | - Mohammad Mahroum
- CIBSS-Centre for Integrative Biological Signalling Studies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Jawabreh Kassem Talbeya
- Pediatrics and Medical Genetics, the Simon Winter Institute for Human Genetics, Bnai Zion Medical Center, 31048 Haifa, Israel
- Department of Radiology, The Bnai Zion Medical Center, Haifa 31048, Israel
| | - Robert W Taylor
- Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research, Translational and Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK
- NHS Highly Specialised Service for Rare Mitochondrial Disorders, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4LP, UK
| | - Dayana Vazquez
- Division of Clinical Genetics and Metabolism, Nicklas Children's Hospital, Miami, FL 33155, USA
| | - Annalisa Vetro
- Neuroscience Department, Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS, 50139 Florence, Italy
| | - Hans R Waterham
- Laboratory Genetic Metabolic Diseases, Amsterdam University Medical Centers location AMC, 1100 DD Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mashaya Zaman
- Department of Paediatric Neurology and Development, Dr. M.R. Khan Shishu (Children) Hospital and Institute of Child Health, Dhaka 1216, Bangladesh
| | - Tina A Schrader
- Department of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Wendy K Chung
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
- Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Renzo Guerrini
- Neuroscience Department, Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS, 50139 Florence, Italy
- Neuroscience, Pharmacology and Child Health Department, University of Florence, 50139 Florence, Italy
| | - James R Lupski
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Neurology, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Joseph Gleeson
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, CA 92093, USA
- Department of Neurosciences, Rady Children's Institute for Genomic Medicine, San Diego, CA 92025, USA
| | - Mohnish Suri
- Clinical Genetics Service, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham NG5 1PB, UK
| | - Yalda Jamshidi
- Genetics Research Centre, Molecular and Clinical Sciences Institute, St George’s University of London, London SW17 0RE, UK
- Human Genetics Centre of Excellence, Novo Nordisk Research Centre Oxford, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Kailash P Bhatia
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Barbara Vona
- Tübingen Hearing Research Centre, Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Eberhard Karls University, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Medical Center Göttingen, 37073 Göttingen, Germany
- Institute for Auditory Neuroscience and Inner Ear Lab, University Medical Center Göttingen, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Michael Schrader
- Department of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QD, UK
| | | | - Matthew Guille
- European Xenopus Resource Centre—XenMD, School of Biological Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth PO1 2DT, UK
| | - Edward W Tate
- Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, London W12 0BZ, UK
- Chemical Biology and Therapeutic Discovery Lab, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Gaurav K Varshney
- Genes & Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Henry Houlden
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Reza Maroofian
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
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12
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Schmidt AR, Placer HJ, Muhammad IM, Shephard R, Patrick RL, Saurborn T, Horstick EJ, Bergeron SA. Transcriptional control of visual neural circuit development by GS homeobox 1. PLoS Genet 2024; 20:e1011139. [PMID: 38669217 PMCID: PMC11051655 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1011139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
As essential components of gene expression networks, transcription factors regulate neural circuit assembly. The homeobox transcription factor encoding gene, gs homeobox 1 (gsx1), is expressed in the developing visual system; however, no studies have examined its role in visual system formation. In zebrafish, retinal ganglion cell (RGC) axons that transmit visual information to the brain terminate in ten arborization fields (AFs) in the optic tectum (TeO), pretectum (Pr), and thalamus. Pretectal AFs (AF1-AF9) mediate distinct visual behaviors, yet we understand less about their development compared to AF10 in the TeO. Using gsx1 zebrafish mutants, immunohistochemistry, and transgenic lines, we observed that gsx1 is required for vesicular glutamate transporter, Tg(slc17a6b:DsRed), expression in the Pr, but not overall neuron number. gsx1 mutants have normal eye morphology, yet they exhibit impaired visual ability during prey capture. RGC axon volume in the gsx1 mutant Pr and TeO is reduced, and AF7 that is active during feeding is missing which is consistent with reduced hunting performance. Timed laser ablation of Tg(slc17a6b:DsRed)-positive cells reveals that they are necessary for AF7 formation. This work is the first to implicate gsx1 in establishing cell identity and functional neural circuits in the visual system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra R. Schmidt
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Haiden J. Placer
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Ishmael M. Muhammad
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Rebekah Shephard
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Regina L. Patrick
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Taylor Saurborn
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Eric J. Horstick
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
- Department of Neuroscience, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
| | - Sadie A. Bergeron
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
- Department of Neuroscience, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virgina, United States of America
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13
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Li M, Sun H, Hou Z, Hao S, Jin L, Wang B. Engineering the Physical Microenvironment into Neural Organoids for Neurogenesis and Neurodevelopment. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2024; 20:e2306451. [PMID: 37771182 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202306451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2023] [Revised: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/30/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the signals from the physical microenvironment is critical for deciphering the processes of neurogenesis and neurodevelopment. The discovery of how surrounding physical signals shape human developing neurons is hindered by the bottleneck of conventional cell culture and animal models. Notwithstanding neural organoids provide a promising platform for recapitulating human neurogenesis and neurodevelopment, building neuronal physical microenvironment that accurately mimics the native neurophysical features is largely ignored in current organoid technologies. Here, it is discussed how the physical microenvironment modulates critical events during the periods of neurogenesis and neurodevelopment, such as neural stem cell fates, neural tube closure, neuronal migration, axonal guidance, optic cup formation, and cortical folding. Although animal models are widely used to investigate the impacts of physical factors on neurodevelopment and neuropathy, the important roles of human stem cell-derived neural organoids in this field are particularly highlighted. Considering the great promise of human organoids, building neural organoid microenvironments with mechanical forces, electrophysiological microsystems, and light manipulation will help to fully understand the physical cues in neurodevelopmental processes. Neural organoids combined with cutting-edge techniques, such as advanced atomic force microscopes, microrobots, and structural color biomaterials might promote the development of neural organoid-based research and neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minghui Li
- Key Laboratory of Biorheological Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Bioengineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China
- Southwest Hospital/Southwest Eye Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, 400038, China
| | - Heng Sun
- Key Laboratory of Biorheological Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Bioengineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China
| | - Zongkun Hou
- Key Laboratory of Infectious Immune and Antibody Engineering of Guizhou Province, Engineering Research Center of Cellular Immunotherapy of Guizhou Province, School of Biology and Engineering/School of Basic Medical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, 550025, China
| | - Shilei Hao
- Key Laboratory of Biorheological Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Bioengineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China
| | - Liang Jin
- Key Laboratory of Biorheological Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Bioengineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China
| | - Bochu Wang
- Key Laboratory of Biorheological Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Bioengineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China
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14
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Vasconcelos RO, Bolgan M, Matos AB, Van-Dunem SP, Penim J, Amorim MCP. Characterization of the vocal behavior of the miniature and transparent fish model, Danionella cerebruma). THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2024; 155:781-789. [PMID: 38289152 DOI: 10.1121/10.0024346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
Danionella cerebrum has recently been proposed as a promising model to investigate the structure and function of the adult vertebrate brain, including the development of vocal-auditory neural pathways. This genetically tractable and transparent cypriniform is highly vocal, but limited information is available on its acoustic behavior and underlying biological function. Our main goal was to characterize the acoustic repertoire and diel variation in sound production of D. cerebrum, as well as to investigate the relationship between vocal behavior and reproduction. Sound recordings demonstrated high vocal activity, with sounds varying from short sequences of pulses known as "bursts" (comprising up to 15 pulses) to notably longer sounds, termed "long bursts", which extended up to 349 pulses with over 2.7 s. Vocal activity peaked at midday and it was very low at night with only a few bursts. While the number of pulses was higher during the daytime, the interpulse interval was longer at night. In addition, calling time was positively associated with the number of viable eggs, suggesting that acoustic communication is important for reproduction. These preliminary findings reveal the potential of using D. cerebrum to investigate vocal plasticity and the implications for sexual selection and reproduction in a novel vertebrate model for neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raquel O Vasconcelos
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Macao, Special Administrative Region, China
- Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET Aquatic Research Network, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
- EPCV - Department of Life Sciences, Lusófona University, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Marta Bolgan
- Ocean Science Consulting Limited, Dunbar, United Kingdom
| | - André B Matos
- Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph, Macao, Special Administrative Region, China
- Departamento de Biologia Animal, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Sheila P Van-Dunem
- EPCV - Department of Life Sciences, Lusófona University, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Jorge Penim
- EPCV - Department of Life Sciences, Lusófona University, Lisbon, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia Animal, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - M Clara P Amorim
- Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET Aquatic Research Network, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia Animal, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
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15
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Jin DS, Neelakantan U, Lacadie CM, Chen T, Rooney B, Liu Y, Wu W, Wang Z, Papademetris X, Hoffman EJ. Brain Registration and Evaluation for Zebrafish (BREEZE)-mapping: A pipeline for whole-brain structural and activity analyses. STAR Protoc 2023; 4:102647. [PMID: 37897734 PMCID: PMC10641303 DOI: 10.1016/j.xpro.2023.102647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2023] [Revised: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Here, we present Brain Registration and Evaluation for Zebrafish (BREEZE)-mapping, a user-friendly pipeline for the registration and analysis of whole-brain images in larval zebrafish. We describe steps for pre-processing, registration, quantification, and visualization of whole-brain phenotypes in zebrafish mutants of genes associated with neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders. By utilizing BioImage Suite Web, an open-source software package originally developed for processing human brain imaging data, we provide a highly accessible whole-brain mapping protocol developed for users with general computational proficiency. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Weinschutz Mendes et al. (2023).1.
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Affiliation(s)
- David S Jin
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neurology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Uma Neelakantan
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Cheryl M Lacadie
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Tianying Chen
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Brendan Rooney
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Yunqing Liu
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Weimiao Wu
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Zuoheng Wang
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Xenophon Papademetris
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Section of Biomedical Informatics and Data Science, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Ellen J Hoffman
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA.
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16
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Johnson AL, Verbitsky R, Hudson J, Dean R, Hamilton TJ. Cannabinoid type-2 receptors modulate terpene induced anxiety-reduction in zebrafish. Biomed Pharmacother 2023; 168:115760. [PMID: 37865998 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.115760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2023] [Revised: 10/15/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Terpenes are the most extensive and varied group of naturally occurring compounds mostly found in plants, including cannabis, and have an array of potential therapeutic benefits for pathological conditions. The endocannabinoid system can potently modulate anxiety in humans, rodents, and zebrafish. The 'entourage effect' suggests terpenes may target cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors, among others, but this requires further investigation. In this study we first tested for anxiety-altering effects of the predominant 'Super-Class' terpenes, bisabolol (0.001%, 0.0015%, and 0.002%) and terpinolene (TPL; 0.01%, 0.05%, and 0.1%), in zebrafish with the open field test. Bisabolol did not have an effect on zebrafish behaviour or locomotion. However, TPL caused a significant increase in time spent in the inner zone and decrease in time spent in the outer zone of the arena indicating an anxiolytic (anxiety decreasing) effect. Next, we assessed whether CB1 and CB2 receptor antagonists, rimonabant and AM630 (6-Iodopravadoline) respectively, could eliminate or reduce the anxiolytic effects of TPL (0.1%) and β-caryophyllene (BCP; 4%), another super-class terpene previously shown to be anxiolytic in zebrafish. Rimonabant and AM630 were administered prior to terpene exposure and compared to controls and fish exposed to only the terpenes. AM630, but not rimonabant, eliminated the anxiolytic effects of both BCP and TPL. AM630 modulated locomotion on its own, which was potentiated by terpenes. These findings suggest the behavioural effects of TPL and BCP on zebrafish anxiety-like behaviour are mediated by a selective preference for CB2 receptor sites. Furthermore, the CB2 pathways mediating the anxiolytic response are likely different from those altering locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andréa L Johnson
- Department of Psychology, MacEwan University 6-329 City Centre Campus, 10700 - 104 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4S2, Canada; Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Ryan Verbitsky
- Department of Psychology, MacEwan University 6-329 City Centre Campus, 10700 - 104 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4S2, Canada
| | - James Hudson
- Department of Psychology, MacEwan University 6-329 City Centre Campus, 10700 - 104 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4S2, Canada
| | - Rachel Dean
- Department of Psychology, MacEwan University 6-329 City Centre Campus, 10700 - 104 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4S2, Canada
| | - Trevor J Hamilton
- Department of Psychology, MacEwan University 6-329 City Centre Campus, 10700 - 104 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4S2, Canada; Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
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17
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Kim J, Bang J, Ryu B, Kim CY, Park JH. Flubendazole exposure disrupts neural development and function of zebrafish embryos (Danio rerio). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 898:165376. [PMID: 37422240 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/10/2023]
Abstract
Flubendazole (FBZ) is a benzimidazole anthelmintic drug widely used for treating parasitic infections by disrupting microtubule formation and function through tubulin binding. Recently, its use has extended to include anticancer applications, leading to increased environmental exposure to benzimidazole drugs. However, the impact of FBZ on neural development in aquatic organisms, particularly in aquatic vertebrates, remains poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the potential developmental toxicity of FBZ during neural development using zebrafish model. Various assessments, including analysis of overall developmental changes, morphological abnormalities, apoptosis, gene expression alterations, axon length measurements, and electrophysiological neural function, were performed. FBZ exposure resulted in concentration-dependent effects on survival rate, hatching rate, heartbeat, and the occurrence of developmental abnormalities. Notably, FBZ-induced changes included reductions in body length, head size, and eye size, as well as the detection of apoptotic cells in the central nervous system. Gene expression analysis revealed upregulation of apoptosis-related genes (p53, casp3, and casp8), downregulation of neural differentiation-related genes (shha, nrd, ngn1, and elavl3), and alterations in neural maturation and axon growth-related genes (gap43, mbp, and syn2a). Additionally, shortened motor neuron axon length and impaired electrophysiological neural function were observed. These findings provide novel insights into the potential risks of FBZ on the neural development of zebrafish embryos, emphasizing the need for risk prevention strategies and therapeutic approaches to address the environmental toxicity of benzimidazole anthelmintics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin Kim
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Junpil Bang
- Laboratory Animal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Bokyeong Ryu
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, College of Applied Life Sciences, Jeju National University, Jeju, Republic of Korea
| | - C-Yoon Kim
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jae-Hak Park
- Laboratory Animal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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18
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Chaoul V, Dib EY, Bedran J, Khoury C, Shmoury O, Harb F, Soueid J. Assessing Drug Administration Techniques in Zebrafish Models of Neurological Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:14898. [PMID: 37834345 PMCID: PMC10573323 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241914898] [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: 07/24/2023] [Revised: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurological diseases, including neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders, affect nearly one in six of the world's population. The burden of the resulting deaths and disability is set to rise during the next few decades as a consequence of an aging population. To address this, zebrafish have become increasingly prominent as a model for studying human neurological diseases and exploring potential therapies. Zebrafish offer numerous benefits, such as genetic homology and brain similarities, complementing traditional mammalian models and serving as a valuable tool for genetic screening and drug discovery. In this comprehensive review, we highlight various drug delivery techniques and systems employed for therapeutic interventions of neurological diseases in zebrafish, and evaluate their suitability. We also discuss the challenges encountered during this process and present potential advancements in innovative techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Chaoul
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut P.O. Box 11-0236, Lebanon; (V.C.); (J.B.); (O.S.)
| | - Emanuel-Youssef Dib
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Sciences, University of Balamand, Kalhat P.O. Box 100, Lebanon; (E.-Y.D.); (C.K.)
| | - Joe Bedran
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut P.O. Box 11-0236, Lebanon; (V.C.); (J.B.); (O.S.)
| | - Chakib Khoury
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Sciences, University of Balamand, Kalhat P.O. Box 100, Lebanon; (E.-Y.D.); (C.K.)
| | - Omar Shmoury
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut P.O. Box 11-0236, Lebanon; (V.C.); (J.B.); (O.S.)
| | - Frédéric Harb
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Sciences, University of Balamand, Kalhat P.O. Box 100, Lebanon; (E.-Y.D.); (C.K.)
| | - Jihane Soueid
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut P.O. Box 11-0236, Lebanon; (V.C.); (J.B.); (O.S.)
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19
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Zhong Y, Zhang N, Zhao F, Chang S, Chen W, Cao Q, Sun L, Wang Y, Gong Z, Lu L, Liu D, Yang L. RBFOX1 and Working Memory: From Genome to Transcriptome Revealed Posttranscriptional Mechanism Separate From Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 3:1042-1052. [PMID: 37881587 PMCID: PMC10593897 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2022.08.006] [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: 05/27/2022] [Revised: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Many psychiatric disorders share a working memory (WM) impairment phenotype, yet the genetic causes remain unclear. Here, we generated genetic profiles of WM deficits using attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder samples and validated the results in zebrafish models. Methods We used 2 relatively large attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder cohorts, 799 and 776 cases, respectively. WM impairment was assessed using the Rey Complex Figure Test. First, association analyses were conducted at single-variant, gene-based, and gene-set levels. Deeper insights into the biological mechanism were gained from further functional exploration by bioinformatic analyses and zebrafish models. Results Genomic analyses identified and replicated a locus with rs75885813 as the index single nucleotide polymorphism showing significant association with WM defects but not with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Functional feature exploration found that these single nucleotide polymorphisms may regulate the expression level of RBFOX1 through chromatin interaction. Further pathway enrichment analysis of potential associated single nucleotide polymorphisms revealed the involvement of posttranscription regulation that affects messenger RNA stability and/or alternative splicing. Zebrafish with functionally knocked down or genome-edited rbfox1 exhibited WM impairment but no hyperactivity. Transcriptome profiling of rbfox1-defective zebrafish indicated that alternative exon usages of snap25a might partially lead to reduced WM learning of larval zebrafish. Conclusions The locus with rs75885813 in RBFOX1 was identified as associated with WM. Rbfox1 regulates synaptic and long-term potentiation-related gene snap25a to adjust WM at the posttranscriptional level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanxin Zhong
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
| | - Na Zhang
- School of Life Science, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Biological Science, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Feng Zhao
- School of Life Science, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Suhua Chang
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Chen
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
| | - Qingjiu Cao
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
| | - Li Sun
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
| | - Yufeng Wang
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
| | - Zhiyuan Gong
- Department of Biological Science, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Lin Lu
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, International Data Group, McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Dong Liu
- School of Life Science, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Li Yang
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, China
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Kozol RA, Dallman JE. Drugs prescribed for Phelan-McDermid syndrome differentially impact sensory behaviors in shank3 zebrafish models. F1000Res 2023; 12:84. [PMID: 37868296 PMCID: PMC10589628 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.127830.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Altered sensory processing is a pervasive symptom in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD); people with Phelan McDermid syndrome (PMS), in particular, show reduced responses to sensory stimuli. PMS is caused by deletions of the terminal end of chromosome 22 or point mutations in Shank3. People with PMS can present with an array of symptoms including ASD, epilepsy, gastrointestinal distress, and reduced responses to sensory stimuli. People with PMS are often medicated to manage behaviors like aggression and/or self-harm and/or epilepsy, and it remains unclear how these medications might impact perception/sensory processing. Here we test this using zebrafish mutant shank3ab PMS models that likewise show reduced sensory responses in a visual motor response (VMR) assay, in which increased locomotion is triggered by light to dark transitions. Methods: We screened three medications, risperidone, lithium chloride (LiCl), and carbamazepine (CBZ), prescribed to people with PMS and one drug, 2-methyl-6-(phenylethynyl) pyridine (MPEP) tested in rodent models of PMS, for their effects on a sensory-induced behavior in two zebrafish PMS models with frameshift mutations in either the N- or C- termini. To test how pharmacological treatments affect the VMR, we exposed larvae to selected drugs for 24 hours and then quantified their locomotion during four ten-minute cycles of lights on-to-off stimuli. Results: We found that risperidone normalized the VMR in shank3 models. LiCl and CBZ had no effect on the VMR in any of the three genotypes. MPEP reduced the VMR in wildtype (WT) to levels seen in shank3 models but caused no changes in either shank3 model. Finally, shank3 mutants showed resistance to the seizure-inducing drug pentylenetetrazol (PTZ), at a dosage that results in hyperactive swimming in WT zebrafish. Conclusions: Our work shows that the effects of drugs on sensory processing are varied in ways that can be highly genotype- and drug-dependent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert A. Kozol
- Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, Fl., USA
| | - Julia E. Dallman
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, 33146, USA
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21
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Sumathipala SH, Khan S, Kozol RA, Araki Y, Syed S, Huganir RL, Dallman JE. Context-dependent hyperactivity in syngap1a and syngap1b zebrafish autism models. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.09.20.557316. [PMID: 37786701 PMCID: PMC10541574 DOI: 10.1101/2023.09.20.557316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Background and Aims SYNGAP1 disorder is a prevalent genetic form of Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability (ASD/ID) and is caused by de novo or inherited mutations in one copy of the SYNGAP1 gene. In addition to ASD/ID, SYNGAP1 disorder is associated with comorbid symptoms including treatment-resistant-epilepsy, sleep disturbances, and gastrointestinal distress. Mechanistic links between these diverse symptoms and SYNGAP1 variants remain obscure, therefore, our goal was to generate a zebrafish model in which this range of symptoms can be studied. Methods We used CRISPR/Cas9 to introduce frameshift mutations in the syngap1a and syngap1b zebrafish duplicates (syngap1ab) and validated these stable models for Syngap1 loss-of-function. Because SYNGAP1 is extensively spliced, we mapped splice variants to the two zebrafish syngap1a and b genes and identified mammalian-like isoforms. We then quantified locomotory behaviors in zebrafish syngap1ab larvae under three conditions that normally evoke different arousal states in wild type larvae: aversive, high-arousal acoustic, medium-arousal dark, and low-arousal light stimuli. Results We show that CRISPR/Cas9 indels in zebrafish syngap1a and syngap1b produced loss-of-function alleles at RNA and protein levels. Our analyses of zebrafish Syngap1 isoforms showed that, as in mammals, zebrafish Syngap1 N- and C-termini are extensively spliced. We identified a zebrafish syngap1 α1-like variant that maps exclusively to the syngap1b gene. Quantifying locomotor behaviors showed that syngap1ab larvae are hyperactive compared to wild type but to differing degrees depending on the stimulus. Hyperactivity was most pronounced in low arousal settings, with overall movement increasing with the number of mutant syngap1 alleles. Conclusions Our data support mutations in zebrafish syngap1ab as causal for hyperactivity associated with elevated arousal that is especially pronounced in low-arousal environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sureni H. Sumathipala
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Suha Khan
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL USA
| | - Robert A. Kozol
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL USA
- Jupiter Life Science Initiative, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter FL, USA
| | - Yoichi Araki
- Department of Neuroscience and Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD USA
| | - Sheyum Syed
- Department of Physics, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL USA
| | - Richard L. Huganir
- Department of Neuroscience and Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD USA
| | - Julia E. Dallman
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL USA
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22
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Miguel Sanz C, Martinez Navarro M, Caballero Diaz D, Sanchez-Elexpuru G, Di Donato V. Toward the use of novel alternative methods in epilepsy modeling and drug discovery. Front Neurol 2023; 14:1213969. [PMID: 37719765 PMCID: PMC10501616 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1213969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Epilepsy is a chronic brain disease and, considering the amount of people affected of all ages worldwide, one of the most common neurological disorders. Over 20 novel antiseizure medications (ASMs) have been released since 1993, yet despite substantial advancements in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms behind epileptogenesis, over one-third of patients continue to be resistant to available therapies. This is partially explained by the fact that the majority of existing medicines only address seizure suppression rather than underlying processes. Understanding the origin of this neurological illness requires conducting human neurological and genetic studies. However, the limitation of sample sizes, ethical concerns, and the requirement for appropriate controls (many patients have already had anti-epileptic medication exposure) in human clinical trials underscore the requirement for supplemental models. So far, mammalian models of epilepsy have helped to shed light on the underlying causes of the condition, but the high costs related to breeding of the animals, low throughput, and regulatory restrictions on their research limit their usefulness in drug screening. Here, we present an overview of the state of art in epilepsy modeling describing gold standard animal models used up to date and review the possible alternatives for this research field. Our focus will be mainly on ex vivo, in vitro, and in vivo larval zebrafish models contributing to the 3R in epilepsy modeling and drug screening. We provide a description of pharmacological and genetic methods currently available but also on the possibilities offered by the continued development in gene editing methodologies, especially CRISPR/Cas9-based, for high-throughput disease modeling and anti-epileptic drugs testing.
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Kareklas K, Teles MC, Dreosti E, Oliveira RF. Autism-associated gene shank3 is necessary for social contagion in zebrafish. Mol Autism 2023; 14:23. [PMID: 37391856 PMCID: PMC10311831 DOI: 10.1186/s13229-023-00555-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/02/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Animal models enable targeting autism-associated genes, such as the shank3 gene, to assess their impact on behavioural phenotypes. However, this is often limited to simple behaviours relevant for social interaction. Social contagion is a complex phenotype forming the basis of human empathic behaviour and involves attention to the behaviour of others for recognizing and sharing their emotional or affective state. Thus, it is a form of social communication, which constitutes the most common developmental impairment across autism spectrum disorders (ASD). METHODS Here we describe the development of a zebrafish model that identifies the neurocognitive mechanisms by which shank3 mutation drives deficits in social contagion. We used a CRISPR-Cas9 technique to generate mutations to the shank3a gene, a zebrafish paralogue found to present greater orthology and functional conservation relative to the human gene. Mutants were first compared to wild types during a two-phase protocol that involves the observation of two conflicting states, distress and neutral, and the later recall and discrimination of others when no longer presenting such differences. Then, the whole-brain expression of different neuroplasticity markers was compared between genotypes and their contribution to cluster-specific phenotypic variation was assessed. RESULTS The shank3 mutation markedly reduced social contagion via deficits in attention contributing to difficulties in recognising affective states. Also, the mutation changed the expression of neuronal plasticity genes. However, only downregulated neuroligins clustered with shank3a expression under a combined synaptogenesis component that contributed specifically to variation in attention. LIMITATIONS While zebrafish are extremely useful in identifying the role of shank3 mutations to composite social behaviour, they are unlikely to represent the full complexity of socio-cognitive and communication deficits presented by human ASD pathology. Moreover, zebrafish cannot represent the scaling up of these deficits to higher-order empathic and prosocial phenotypes seen in humans. CONCLUSIONS We demonstrate a causal link between the zebrafish orthologue of an ASD-associated gene and the attentional control of affect recognition and consequent social contagion. This models autistic affect-communication pathology in zebrafish and reveals a genetic attention-deficit mechanism, addressing the ongoing debate for such mechanisms accounting for emotion recognition difficulties in autistic individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyriacos Kareklas
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, R. Q.ta Grande 6, 2780-156, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Magda C Teles
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, R. Q.ta Grande 6, 2780-156, Oeiras, Portugal
- ISPA - Instituto Universitário, Rua Jardim do Tabaco 34, 1149-041, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Elena Dreosti
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Rui F Oliveira
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, R. Q.ta Grande 6, 2780-156, Oeiras, Portugal.
- ISPA - Instituto Universitário, Rua Jardim do Tabaco 34, 1149-041, Lisbon, Portugal.
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24
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Wagh MS, Osborne WJ, Sivarajan S. Toxicity assessment of lead, nickel and cadmium on zebra fish augmented with Bacillus xiamenensis VITMSJ3: An insight on the defense mechanism against oxidative stress due to heavy metals. Food Chem Toxicol 2023; 177:113830. [PMID: 37182598 DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2023.113830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2023] [Revised: 05/06/2023] [Accepted: 05/11/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Increase urbanization in recent years has let to discharge of heavy metals into the environment which has caused severe impacts on soil as well as water. Therefore the current study was aimed to assess the toxicity of lead (Pb), nickel (Ni), and cadmium (Cd) from the contaminated water using zebra fish Danio rerio and detoxification of metals upon augmentation with Bacillus xiamenensis. Exposure doses till 150 mg L-1 of Pb, Ni and Cd in water showed lethal effects on fish. Similarly the histopathological analysis showed severe tissue disruption in the gills and liver which were less upon supplementation with bacterial strain VITMSJ3. On the 20th day, the uptake concentration of Pb, Ni and Cd in zebra fish was found to be 87 mg L-1, 89 mg L-1 and 91 mg L-1 respectively with VITMSJ3, from the water. Antioxidant enzymatic activities showed an increase upon bacterial supplementation, which reduced the oxidative stress. Further SEM-EDAX analysis confirmed the presence of Pb, Ni and Cd ions adsorbed on the gills. The results clearly showed less oxidative damages in fish with increased head and reduced tail %. Overall, the results showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) among the treatments compared with the control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mrunal S Wagh
- School of Bio Sciences and Technology, VIT, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632014, India.
| | - W Jabez Osborne
- School of Bio Sciences and Technology, VIT, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632014, India.
| | - Saravanan Sivarajan
- VIT School of Agricultural Innovations and Advanced Learning, VIT, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632014, India.
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25
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Zhou KC, Harfouche M, Cooke CL, Park J, Konda PC, Kreiss L, Kim K, Jönsson J, Doman T, Reamey P, Saliu V, Cook CB, Zheng M, Bechtel JP, Bègue A, McCarroll M, Bagwell J, Horstmeyer G, Bagnat M, Horstmeyer R. Parallelized computational 3D video microscopy of freely moving organisms at multiple gigapixels per second. NATURE PHOTONICS 2023; 17:442-450. [PMID: 37808252 PMCID: PMC10552607 DOI: 10.1038/s41566-023-01171-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023]
Abstract
Wide field of view microscopy that can resolve 3D information at high speed and spatial resolution is highly desirable for studying the behaviour of freely moving model organisms. However, it is challenging to design an optical instrument that optimises all these properties simultaneously. Existing techniques typically require the acquisition of sequential image snapshots to observe large areas or measure 3D information, thus compromising on speed and throughput. Here, we present 3D-RAPID, a computational microscope based on a synchronized array of 54 cameras that can capture high-speed 3D topographic videos over an area of 135 cm2, achieving up to 230 frames per second at spatiotemporal throughputs exceeding 5 gigapixels per second. 3D-RAPID employs a 3D reconstruction algorithm that, for each synchronized snapshot, fuses all 54 images into a composite that includes a co-registered 3D height map. The self-supervised 3D reconstruction algorithm trains a neural network to map raw photometric images to 3D topography using stereo overlap redundancy and ray-propagation physics as the only supervision mechanism. The resulting reconstruction process is thus robust to generalization errors and scales to arbitrarily long videos from arbitrarily sized camera arrays. We demonstrate the broad applicability of 3D-RAPID with collections of several freely behaving organisms, including ants, fruit flies, and zebrafish larvae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin C. Zhou
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
- Current affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Mark Harfouche
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Colin L. Cooke
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Jaehee Park
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Pavan C. Konda
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Lucas Kreiss
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Kanghyun Kim
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Joakim Jönsson
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Thomas Doman
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Paul Reamey
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Veton Saliu
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Clare B. Cook
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Maxwell Zheng
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | | | - Aurélien Bègue
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Matthew McCarroll
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Jennifer Bagwell
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | | | - Michel Bagnat
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Roarke Horstmeyer
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Ramona Optics Inc., 1000 W Main St., Durham, NC 27701, USA
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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Machado Lara Carvalho L, Varella Branco E, Delgado Sarafian R, Shigeru Kobayashi G, Tófoli de Araújo F, Santos Souza L, de Paula Moreira D, Shih Ping Hsia G, Maria Goloni Bertollo E, Barbosa Buck C, Souza da Costa S, Mendes Fialho D, Tadeu Galante Rocha de Vasconcelos F, Abreu Brito L, Elena de Souza Fraga Machado L, Cabreira Ramos I, da Veiga Pereira L, Priszkulnik Koiffmann C, Rita Dos Santos E Passos-Bueno M, Antonio de Oliveira Mendes T, Cristina Victorino Krepischi A, Rosenberg C. Establishment of iPSC lines and zebrafish with loss-of-function AHDC1 variants: models for Xia-Gibbs syndrome. Gene 2023; 871:147424. [PMID: 37054903 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2023.147424] [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: 12/12/2022] [Revised: 03/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/15/2023]
Abstract
Xia-Gibbs syndrome (XGS) is a syndromic form of intellectual disability caused by heterozygous AHDC1 variants, but the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this syndrome are still unclear. In this manuscript, we describe the development of two different functional models: three induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines with different loss-of-function (LoF) AHDC1 variants, derived by reprogramming peripheral blood mononuclear cells from XGS patients, and a zebrafish strain with a LoF variant in the ortholog gene (ahdc1) obtained through CRISPR/Cas9-mediated editing. The three iPSC lines showed expression of pluripotency factors (SOX2, SSEA-4, OCT3/4, and NANOG). To verify the capacity of iPSC to differentiate into the three germ layers, we obtained embryoid bodies (EBs), induced their differentiation, and confirmed the mRNA expression of ectodermal, mesodermal, and endodermal markers using the TaqMan hPSC Scorecard. The iPSC lines were also approved for the following quality tests: chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA), mycoplasma testing, and short tandem repeat (STR) DNA profiling. The zebrafish model has an insertion of four base pairs in the ahdc1 gene, is fertile, and breeding between heterozygous and wild-type (WT) animals generated offspring in a genotypic proportion in agreement with Mendelian law. The established iPSC and zebrafish lines were deposited on the hpscreg.eu and zfin.org platforms, respectively. These biological models are the first for XGS and will be used in future studies that investigate the pathophysiology of this syndrome, unraveling its underlying molecular mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Machado Lara Carvalho
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Elisa Varella Branco
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Raquel Delgado Sarafian
- National Embryonic Stem Cell Laboratory Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Gerson Shigeru Kobayashi
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Fabiano Tófoli de Araújo
- National Embryonic Stem Cell Laboratory Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Lucas Santos Souza
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Danielle de Paula Moreira
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Gabriella Shih Ping Hsia
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | | | | | - Silvia Souza da Costa
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Davi Mendes Fialho
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | | | - Luciano Abreu Brito
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | | | - Igor Cabreira Ramos
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Lygia da Veiga Pereira
- National Embryonic Stem Cell Laboratory Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Celia Priszkulnik Koiffmann
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Carla Rosenberg
- Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
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27
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Veenstra-VanderWeele J, O'Reilly KC, Dennis MY, Uribe-Salazar JM, Amaral DG. Translational Neuroscience Approaches to Understanding Autism. Am J Psychiatry 2023; 180:265-276. [PMID: 37002692 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.20230153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2023]
Abstract
While autism spectrum disorder affects nearly 2% of children in the United States, little is known with certainty concerning the etiologies and brain systems involved. This is due, in part, to the substantial heterogeneity in the presentation of the core symptoms of autism as well as the great number of co-occurring conditions that are common in autistic individuals. Understanding the neurobiology of autism is further hampered by the limited availability of postmortem brain tissue to determine the cellular and molecular alterations that take place in the autistic brain. Animal models therefore provide great translational value in helping to define the neural systems that constitute the social brain and mediate repetitive behaviors or interests. If they are based on genetic or environmental factors that contribute to autism, organisms from flies to nonhuman primates may serve as models of the neural structure or function of the autistic brain. Ultimately, successful models can also be employed to test the safety and effectiveness of potential therapeutics. This is an overview of the major animal species that are currently used as models of autism, including an appraisal of the advantages and limitations of each.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Veenstra-VanderWeele
- New York State Psychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York (Veenstra-VanderWeele, O'Reilly); Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Genome Center (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar), MIND Institute (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar, Amaral), and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Amaral), University of California, Davis
| | - Kally C O'Reilly
- New York State Psychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York (Veenstra-VanderWeele, O'Reilly); Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Genome Center (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar), MIND Institute (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar, Amaral), and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Amaral), University of California, Davis
| | - Megan Y Dennis
- New York State Psychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York (Veenstra-VanderWeele, O'Reilly); Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Genome Center (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar), MIND Institute (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar, Amaral), and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Amaral), University of California, Davis
| | - José M Uribe-Salazar
- New York State Psychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York (Veenstra-VanderWeele, O'Reilly); Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Genome Center (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar), MIND Institute (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar, Amaral), and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Amaral), University of California, Davis
| | - David G Amaral
- New York State Psychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York (Veenstra-VanderWeele, O'Reilly); Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Genome Center (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar), MIND Institute (Dennis, Uribe-Salazar, Amaral), and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Amaral), University of California, Davis
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28
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Weinschutz Mendes H, Neelakantan U, Liu Y, Fitzpatrick SE, Chen T, Wu W, Pruitt A, Jin DS, Jamadagni P, Carlson M, Lacadie CM, Enriquez KD, Li N, Zhao D, Ijaz S, Sakai C, Szi C, Rooney B, Ghosh M, Nwabudike I, Gorodezky A, Chowdhury S, Zaheer M, McLaughlin S, Fernandez JM, Wu J, Eilbott JA, Vander Wyk B, Rihel J, Papademetris X, Wang Z, Hoffman EJ. High-throughput functional analysis of autism genes in zebrafish identifies convergence in dopaminergic and neuroimmune pathways. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112243. [PMID: 36933215 PMCID: PMC10277173 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Advancing from gene discovery in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) to the identification of biologically relevant mechanisms remains a central challenge. Here, we perform parallel in vivo functional analysis of 10 ASD genes at the behavioral, structural, and circuit levels in zebrafish mutants, revealing both unique and overlapping effects of gene loss of function. Whole-brain mapping identifies the forebrain and cerebellum as the most significant contributors to brain size differences, while regions involved in sensory-motor control, particularly dopaminergic regions, are associated with altered baseline brain activity. Finally, we show a global increase in microglia resulting from ASD gene loss of function in select mutants, implicating neuroimmune dysfunction as a key pathway relevant to ASD biology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Uma Neelakantan
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Yunqing Liu
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Sarah E Fitzpatrick
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; MD-PhD Program, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Tianying Chen
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Weimiao Wu
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - April Pruitt
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - David S Jin
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neurology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | | | - Marina Carlson
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Cheryl M Lacadie
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | | | - Ningshan Li
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; SJTU-Yale Joint Center for Biostatistics and Data Science, Department of Bioinformatics and Biostatistics, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Dejian Zhao
- Department of Genetics, Yale Center for Genome Analysis, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Sundas Ijaz
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Catalina Sakai
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Christina Szi
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Brendan Rooney
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Marcus Ghosh
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Ijeoma Nwabudike
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; MD-PhD Program, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Andrea Gorodezky
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Sumedha Chowdhury
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Meeraal Zaheer
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Sarah McLaughlin
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | | | - Jia Wu
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Jeffrey A Eilbott
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Brent Vander Wyk
- Department of Internal Medicine, Section of Geriatrics, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Jason Rihel
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Xenophon Papademetris
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Zuoheng Wang
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Ellen J Hoffman
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA.
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Adhish M, Manjubala I. Effectiveness of zebrafish models in understanding human diseases-A review of models. Heliyon 2023; 9:e14557. [PMID: 36950605 PMCID: PMC10025926 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2022] [Revised: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the detailed mechanism behind every human disease, disorder, defect, and deficiency is a daunting task concerning the clinical diagnostic tools for patients. Hence, a closely resembling living or simulated model is of paramount interest for the development and testing of a probable novel drug for rectifying the conditions pertaining to the various ailments. The animal model that can be easily genetically manipulated to suit the study of the therapeutic motive is an indispensable asset and within the last few decades, the zebrafish models have proven their effectiveness by becoming such potent human disease models with their use being extended to various avenues of research to understand the underlying mechanisms of the diseases. As zebrafish are explored as model animals in understanding the molecular basis and genetics of many diseases owing to the 70% genetic homology between the human and zebrafish genes; new and fascinating facts about the diseases are being surfaced, establishing it as a very powerful tool for upcoming research. These prospective research areas can be explored in the near future using zebrafish as a model. In this review, the effectiveness of the zebrafish as an animal model against several human diseases such as osteoporosis, atrial fibrillation, Noonan syndrome, leukemia, autism spectrum disorders, etc. has been discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mazumder Adhish
- School of Bio Sciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, 632 014, India
| | - I. Manjubala
- School of Bio Sciences and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, 632 014, India
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30
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Gore SV, Kakodkar R, Del Rosario Hernández T, Edmister ST, Creton R. Zebrafish Larvae Position Tracker (Z-LaP Tracker): a high-throughput deep-learning behavioral approach for the identification of calcineurin pathway-modulating drugs using zebrafish larvae. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3174. [PMID: 36823315 PMCID: PMC9950053 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-30303-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Brain function studies greatly depend on quantification and analysis of behavior. While behavior can be imaged efficiently, the quantification of specific aspects of behavior is labor-intensive and may introduce individual biases. Recent advances in deep learning and artificial intelligence-based tools have made it possible to precisely track individual features of freely moving animals in diverse environments without any markers. In the current study, we developed Zebrafish Larvae Position Tracker (Z-LaP Tracker), a modification of the markerless position estimation software DeepLabCut, to quantify zebrafish larval behavior in a high-throughput 384-well setting. We utilized the high-contrast features of our model animal, zebrafish larvae, including the eyes and the yolk for our behavioral analysis. Using this experimental setup, we quantified relevant behaviors with similar accuracy to the analysis performed by humans. The changes in behavior were organized in behavioral profiles, which were examined by K-means and hierarchical cluster analysis. Calcineurin inhibitors exhibited a distinct behavioral profile characterized by increased activity, acoustic hyperexcitability, reduced visually guided behaviors, and reduced habituation to acoustic stimuli. The developed methodologies were used to identify 'CsA-type' drugs that might be promising candidates for the prevention and treatment of neurological disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sayali V. Gore
- grid.40263.330000 0004 1936 9094Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, 185 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912 USA
| | - Rohit Kakodkar
- grid.40263.330000 0004 1936 9094Center for Computation and Visualization, Brown University, Providence, RI USA
| | - Thaís Del Rosario Hernández
- grid.40263.330000 0004 1936 9094Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, 185 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912 USA
| | - Sara Tucker Edmister
- grid.40263.330000 0004 1936 9094Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, 185 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912 USA
| | - Robbert Creton
- grid.40263.330000 0004 1936 9094Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, 185 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912 USA
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31
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Prasad T, Iyer S, Chatterjee S, Kumar M. In vivo models to study neurogenesis and associated neurodevelopmental disorders-Microcephaly and autism spectrum disorder. WIREs Mech Dis 2023:e1603. [PMID: 36754084 DOI: 10.1002/wsbm.1603] [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: 08/17/2022] [Revised: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/10/2023]
Abstract
The genesis and functioning of the central nervous system are one of the most intricate and intriguing aspects of embryogenesis. The big lacuna in the field of human CNS development is the lack of accessibility of the human brain for direct observation during embryonic and fetal development. Thus, it is imperative to establish alternative animal models to gain deep mechanistic insights into neurodevelopment, establishment of neural circuitry, and its function. Neurodevelopmental events such as neural specification, differentiation, and generation of neuronal and non-neuronal cell types have been comprehensively studied using a variety of animal models and in vitro model systems derived from human cells. The experimentations on animal models have revealed novel, mechanistic insights into neurogenesis, formation of neural networks, and function. The models, thus serve as indispensable tools to understand the molecular basis of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) arising from aberrations during embryonic development. Here, we review the spectrum of in vivo models such as fruitfly, zebrafish, frog, mice, and nonhuman primates to study neurogenesis and NDDs like microcephaly and Autism Spectrum Disorder. We also discuss nonconventional models such as ascidians and the recent technological advances in the field to study neurogenesis, disease mechanisms, and pathophysiology of human NDDs. This article is categorized under: Cancer > Stem Cells and Development Congenital Diseases > Stem Cells and Development Neurological Diseases > Stem Cells and Development Congenital Diseases > Genetics/Genomics/Epigenetics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tuhina Prasad
- CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India.,Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, India
| | - Sharada Iyer
- CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India.,Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, India
| | - Sayoni Chatterjee
- CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India
| | - Megha Kumar
- CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India.,Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, India
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32
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Wang Z, Li K, Xu Y, Song Z, Lan X, Pan C, Zhang S, Foulkes NS, Zhao H. Ferroptosis contributes to nickel-induced developmental neurotoxicity in zebrafish. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 858:160078. [PMID: 36372175 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 10/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Nickel (Ni) is a widely utilized heavy metal that can cause environmental pollution and health hazards. Its safety has attracted the attention of both the environmental ecology and public health fields. While the central nervous system (CNS) is one of the main targets of Ni, its neurotoxicity and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, by taking advantage of the zebrafish model for live imaging, genetic analysis and neurobehavioral studies, we reveal that the neurotoxic effects induced by exposure to environmentally relevant levels of Ni are closely related to ferroptosis, a newly-described form of iron-mediated cell death. In vivo two-photon imaging, neurobehavioral analysis and transcriptome sequencing consistently demonstrate that early neurodevelopment, neuroimmune function and vasculogenesis in zebrafish larvae are significantly affected by environmental Ni exposure. Importantly, exposure to various concentrations of Ni activates the ferroptosis pathway, as demonstrated by physiological/biochemical tests, as well as the expression of ferroptosis markers. Furthermore, pharmacological intervention of ferroptosis via deferoxamine (DFO), a classical iron chelating agent, strongly implicates iron dyshomeostasis and ferroptosis in these Ni-induced neurotoxic effects. Thus, this study elucidates the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying Ni neurotoxicity, with implications for our understanding of the physiologically damaging effects of other environmental heavy metal pollutants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zuo Wang
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Kemin Li
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Yanyi Xu
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Zan Song
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Xianyong Lan
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Chuanying Pan
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Shengxiang Zhang
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Nicholas S Foulkes
- Institute of Biological and Chemical Systems, Biological Information Processing (IBCS-BIP), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany
| | - Haiyu Zhao
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China.
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Sivarajan D, Ramachandran B. Antibiotics modulate frequency and early generation of epileptic seizures in zebrafish. Exp Brain Res 2023; 241:571-583. [PMID: 36625966 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-023-06546-4] [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: 10/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/02/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Antibiotics have been used for decades to treat various bacterial infections. Apart from bactericidal activities, their potential side effects have not been much studied or evaluated. Neurotoxicity is a major concern in the case of β-lactam and fluoroquinolone families, which can result in convulsions or seizures. Here, we proposed a hypothesis to check whether antibiotic treatment can conclusively enhance anxiety-like behaviours and how seizure behavioural profile gets modulated in pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-treated zebrafish. Zebrafish were treated with selected antibiotics such as 25 mg/L Penicillin G (PG) and Ciprofloxacin (CPFX), for 7 days and thereafter exposed to PTZ (7.5 mM) for 20 min. The data indicate that PG and CPFX-treated groups exhibited anxiety-like or stressed behavioural phenotypes in the novel tank test (6 min), and also, they were found to promote hyperactivity. Early onset of PTZ-induced seizure-like behavioural scores, the heightened intensity of seizure and reduced latency in different scores were found in PG and CPFX-administered groups. This study substantiates that PG and CPFX as potential seizure modulators in zebrafish. The zebrafish is a well-established and still expanding model organism in many fields. Here, we again reinforce zebrafish as a prominent model to investigate seizure-like neuro-behavioural entities and confirm that chronic antibiotic use has negative consequences that can exacerbate the circumstances of vertebrate species exhibiting seizure-related reactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dhanusha Sivarajan
- Department of Zoology, Christ College (Autonomous), Irinjalakuda, Thrissur, Kerala, 680125, India
| | - Binu Ramachandran
- Neuronal Plasticity Group, Department of Zoology, University of Calicut, Thenhipalam, Malappuram, Kerala, 673635, India.
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Developing Novel Experimental Models of m-TORopathic Epilepsy and Related Neuropathologies: Translational Insights from Zebrafish. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24021530. [PMID: 36675042 PMCID: PMC9866103 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24021530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Revised: 12/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is an important molecular regulator of cell growth and proliferation. Brain mTOR activity plays a crucial role in synaptic plasticity, cell development, migration and proliferation, as well as memory storage, protein synthesis, autophagy, ion channel expression and axonal regeneration. Aberrant mTOR signaling causes a diverse group of neurological disorders, termed 'mTORopathies'. Typically arising from mutations within the mTOR signaling pathway, these disorders are characterized by cortical malformations and other neuromorphological abnormalities that usually co-occur with severe, often treatment-resistant, epilepsy. Here, we discuss recent advances and current challenges in developing experimental models of mTOR-dependent epilepsy and other related mTORopathies, including using zebrafish models for studying these disorders, as well as outline future directions of research in this field.
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Megagiannis P, Suresh R, Rouleau GA, Zhou Y. Reversibility and therapeutic development for neurodevelopmental disorders, insights from genetic animal models. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 2022; 191:114562. [PMID: 36183904 DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2022.114562] [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: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 09/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs) encompass a broad spectrum of conditions resulting from atypical brain development. Over the past decades, we have had the fortune to witness enormous progress in diagnosis, etiology discovery, modeling, and mechanistic understanding of NDDs from both fundamental and clinical research. Here, we review recent neurobiological advances from experimental models of NDDs. We introduce several examples and highlight breakthroughs in reversal studies of phenotypes using genetically engineered models of NDDs. The in-depth understanding of brain pathophysiology underlying NDDs and evaluations of reversibility in animal models paves the foundation for discovering novel treatment options. We discuss how the expanding property of cutting-edge technologies, such as gene editing and AAV-mediated gene delivery, are leveraged in animal models for the therapeutic development of NDDs. We envision opportunities and challenges toward faithful modeling and fruitful clinical translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Platon Megagiannis
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital; Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Rahul Suresh
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital; Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Guy A Rouleau
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital; Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Yang Zhou
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital; Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada.
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Zebrafish Embryos Display Characteristic Bioelectric Signals during Early Development. Cells 2022; 11:cells11223586. [PMID: 36429015 PMCID: PMC9688842 DOI: 10.3390/cells11223586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 11/08/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Bioelectricity is defined as endogenous electrical signaling mediated by the dynamic distribution of charged molecules. Recently, increasing evidence has revealed that cellular bioelectric signaling is critical for regulating embryonic development, regeneration, and congenital diseases. However, systematic real-time in vivo dynamic electrical activity monitoring of whole organisms has been limited, mainly due to the lack of a suitable model system and voltage measurement tools for in vivo biology. Here, we addressed this gap by utilizing a genetically stable zebrafish line, Tg (ubiquitin: ASAP1), and ASAP1 (Accelerated sensor of action potentials 1), a genetically encoded voltage indicator (GEVI). With light-sheet microscopy, we systematically investigated cell membrane potential (Vm) signals during different embryonic stages. We found cells of zebrafish embryos showed local membrane hyperpolarization at the cleavage furrows during the cleavage period of embryogenesis. This signal appeared before cytokinesis and fluctuated as it progressed. In contrast, whole-cell transient hyperpolarization was observed during the blastula and gastrula stages. These signals were generally limited to the superficial blastomere, but they could be detected within the deeper cells during the gastrulation period. Moreover, the zebrafish embryos exhibit tissue-level cell Vm signals during the segmentation period. Middle-aged somites had strong and dynamic Vm fluctuations starting at about the 12-somite stage. These embryonic stage-specific characteristic cellular bioelectric signals suggest that they might play a diverse role in zebrafish embryogenesis that could underlie human congenital diseases.
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Jeong S, Jang S, Kim SS, Bae MA, Shin J, Lee KB, Kim KT. Size-dependent seizurogenic effect of polystyrene microplastics in zebrafish embryos. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2022; 439:129616. [PMID: 36104895 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2022.129616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Revised: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 07/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The effects of polystyrene microplastic (PS-MP) size on neurotoxicity remain to be evaluated at various microsizes, and the seizurogenic effects of PS-MPs are unknown. This study aimed to evaluate the swimming behavior of zebrafish larvae under light-dark transitions after exposure to four PS-MP sizes (i.e., 1, 6, 10, and 25 μm) at concentrations of 500, 5,000, and 50,000 particles/mL. Changes in electroencephalographic signals, seizure-related gene expression, and neurochemical concentrations were measured. Locomotor activity was inhibited only by 10-μm PS-MPs. According to electroencephalographic signals, the number and total duration of seizure-like events significantly increased by 10-μm PS-MPs, which was confirmed by the altered expression of seizure-related genes c-fos and pvalb5. Additionally, an increase in the levels of neurochemicals choline, betaine, dopamine, 3-methoxytyramine, and gamma-aminobutyric acid indicated that the observed hypoactivity and seizure-like behavior were associated with the dysregulation of the cholinergic, dopaminergic, and GABAergic systems. Overall, these findings demonstrate that exposure to PS-MPs can potentially cause seizurogenic effects in developing zebrafish embryos, and we highlight that PS-MPs 10 µm in size dominantly affect neurotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soomin Jeong
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University of Sciences and Technology, Seoul 01811, the Republic of Korea
| | - Soogyeong Jang
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University of Sciences and Technology, Seoul 01811, the Republic of Korea
| | - Seong Soon Kim
- Bio & Drug Discovery Division, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon 34114, the Republic of Korea
| | - Myung Ae Bae
- Bio & Drug Discovery Division, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon 34114, the Republic of Korea
| | | | - Ki-Baek Lee
- Zefit Inc., Daegu 42988, the Republic of Korea
| | - Ki-Tae Kim
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University of Sciences and Technology, Seoul 01811, the Republic of Korea.
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Fasano G, Compagnucci C, Dallapiccola B, Tartaglia M, Lauri A. Teleost Fish and Organoids: Alternative Windows Into the Development of Healthy and Diseased Brains. Front Mol Neurosci 2022; 15:855786. [PMID: 36034498 PMCID: PMC9403253 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.855786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The variety in the display of animals’ cognition, emotions, and behaviors, typical of humans, has its roots within the anterior-most part of the brain: the forebrain, giving rise to the neocortex in mammals. Our understanding of cellular and molecular events instructing the development of this domain and its multiple adaptations within the vertebrate lineage has progressed in the last decade. Expanding and detailing the available knowledge on regionalization, progenitors’ behavior and functional sophistication of the forebrain derivatives is also key to generating informative models to improve our characterization of heterogeneous and mechanistically unexplored cortical malformations. Classical and emerging mammalian models are irreplaceable to accurately elucidate mechanisms of stem cells expansion and impairments of cortex development. Nevertheless, alternative systems, allowing a considerable reduction of the burden associated with animal experimentation, are gaining popularity to dissect basic strategies of neural stem cells biology and morphogenesis in health and disease and to speed up preclinical drug testing. Teleost vertebrates such as zebrafish, showing conserved core programs of forebrain development, together with patients-derived in vitro 2D and 3D models, recapitulating more accurately human neurogenesis, are now accepted within translational workflows spanning from genetic analysis to functional investigation. Here, we review the current knowledge of common and divergent mechanisms shaping the forebrain in vertebrates, and causing cortical malformations in humans. We next address the utility, benefits and limitations of whole-brain/organism-based fish models or neuronal ensembles in vitro for translational research to unravel key genes and pathological mechanisms involved in neurodevelopmental diseases.
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Deng J, Wang Y, Hu M, Lin J, Li Q, Liu C, Xu X. Deleterious Variation in BR Serine/Threonine Kinase 2 Classified a Subtype of Autism. Front Mol Neurosci 2022; 15:904935. [PMID: 35754711 PMCID: PMC9231588 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.904935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, deleterious variants in the BR serine/threonine kinase 2 (BRSK2) gene have been reported in patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), suggesting that BRSK2 is a new high-confidence ASD risk gene, which presents an opportunity to understand the underlying neuropathological mechanisms of ASD. In this study, we performed clinical and neurobehavioral evaluations of a proband with a de novo non-sense variant in BRSK2 (p.R222X) with other reported BRSK2 mutant patients. To validate BRSK2 as an ASD risk gene, we generated a novel brsk2b-deficient zebrafish line through CRISPR/Cas9 and characterized its morphological and neurobehavioral features as well as performed molecular analysis of neurogenesis-related markers. The proband displayed typical ASD behaviors and language and motor delay, which were similar to other published BRSK2 mutant patients. Morphologically, brsk2b–/– larvae exhibited a higher embryonic mortality and rate of pericardium edema, severe developmental delay, and depigmentation as well as growth retardation in the early developmental stage. Behaviorally, brsk2b–/– zebrafish displayed significantly decreased activity in open field tests and enhanced anxiety levels in light/dark tests and thigmotaxis analysis. Specifically, brsk2b–/– zebrafish showed a prominent reduction of social interaction with peers and disrupted social cohesion among homogeneous groups. Molecularly, the mRNA expression levels of homer1b (a postsynaptic density scaffolding protein), and mbpa, mpz, and plp1b (molecular markers of oligodendrocytes and myelination) were increased in the brain tissues of adult brsk2b–/– zebrafish, while the expression level of isl1a, a marker of motor neurons, was decreased. Taken together, for the first time, we established a novel brsk2b-deficient zebrafish model that showed prominent ASD-like behaviors. In addition, the disturbed mRNA expression levels of neurogenesis-related markers implied that the processes of postsynaptic signaling as well as oligodendrocytes and myelination may be involved. This discovery may suggest a path for further research to identify the underlying neuropathological mechanisms between BRSK2 and ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingxin Deng
- Division of Child Health Care, National Children' Medical Center, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yi Wang
- Division of Child Health Care, National Children' Medical Center, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Meixin Hu
- Division of Child Health Care, National Children' Medical Center, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jia Lin
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Birth Defect Prevention and Control, NHC Key Laboratory of Neonatal Diseases, Translational Medical Center for Development and Disease, National Children's Medical Center, Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Qiang Li
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Birth Defect Prevention and Control, NHC Key Laboratory of Neonatal Diseases, Translational Medical Center for Development and Disease, National Children's Medical Center, Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chunxue Liu
- Division of Child Health Care, National Children' Medical Center, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiu Xu
- Division of Child Health Care, National Children' Medical Center, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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Zebrafish Larvae Behavior Models as a Tool for Drug Screenings and Pre-Clinical Trials: A Review. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23126647. [PMID: 35743088 PMCID: PMC9223633 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23126647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
To discover new molecules or review the biological activity and toxicity of therapeutic substances, drug development, and research relies on robust biological systems to obtain reliable results. Phenotype-based screenings can transpose the organism’s compensatory pathways by adopting multi-target strategies for treating complex diseases, and zebrafish emerged as an important model for biomedical research and drug screenings. Zebrafish’s clear correlation between neuro-anatomical and physiological features and behavior is very similar to that verified in mammals, enabling the construction of reliable and relevant experimental models for neurological disorders research. Zebrafish presents highly conserved physiological pathways that are found in higher vertebrates, including mammals, along with a robust behavioral repertoire. Moreover, it is very sensitive to pharmacological/environmental manipulations, and these behavioral phenotypes are detected in both larvae and adults. These advantages align with the 3Rs concept and qualify the zebrafish as a powerful tool for drug screenings and pre-clinical trials. This review highlights important behavioral domains studied in zebrafish larvae and their neurotransmitter systems and summarizes currently used techniques to evaluate and quantify zebrafish larvae behavior in laboratory studies.
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Brondi M, Bruzzone M, Lodovichi C, dal Maschio M. Optogenetic Methods to Investigate Brain Alterations in Preclinical Models. Cells 2022; 11:1848. [PMID: 35681542 PMCID: PMC9180859 DOI: 10.3390/cells11111848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Revised: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Investigating the neuronal dynamics supporting brain functions and understanding how the alterations in these mechanisms result in pathological conditions represents a fundamental challenge. Preclinical research on model organisms allows for a multiscale and multiparametric analysis in vivo of the neuronal mechanisms and holds the potential for better linking the symptoms of a neurological disorder to the underlying cellular and circuit alterations, eventually leading to the identification of therapeutic/rescue strategies. In recent years, brain research in model organisms has taken advantage, along with other techniques, of the development and continuous refinement of methods that use light and optical approaches to reconstruct the activity of brain circuits at the cellular and system levels, and to probe the impact of the different neuronal components in the observed dynamics. These tools, combining low-invasiveness of optical approaches with the power of genetic engineering, are currently revolutionizing the way, the scale and the perspective of investigating brain diseases. The aim of this review is to describe how brain functions can be investigated with optical approaches currently available and to illustrate how these techniques have been adopted to study pathological alterations of brain physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Brondi
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council-CNR, Viale G. Colombo 3, 35121 Padova, Italy; (M.B.); (C.L.)
- Veneto Institute of Molecular Medicine, Via Orus 2, 35129 Padova, Italy
| | - Matteo Bruzzone
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Università degli Studi di Padova, Via U. Bassi 58B, 35121 Padova, Italy;
- Padova Neuroscience Center (PNC), Università degli Studi di Padova, Via Orus 2, 35129 Padova, Italy
| | - Claudia Lodovichi
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council-CNR, Viale G. Colombo 3, 35121 Padova, Italy; (M.B.); (C.L.)
- Veneto Institute of Molecular Medicine, Via Orus 2, 35129 Padova, Italy
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Università degli Studi di Padova, Via U. Bassi 58B, 35121 Padova, Italy;
- Padova Neuroscience Center (PNC), Università degli Studi di Padova, Via Orus 2, 35129 Padova, Italy
| | - Marco dal Maschio
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Università degli Studi di Padova, Via U. Bassi 58B, 35121 Padova, Italy;
- Padova Neuroscience Center (PNC), Università degli Studi di Padova, Via Orus 2, 35129 Padova, Italy
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Varela T, Varela D, Martins G, Conceição N, Cancela ML. Cdkl5 mutant zebrafish shows skeletal and neuronal alterations mimicking human CDKL5 deficiency disorder. Sci Rep 2022; 12:9325. [PMID: 35665761 PMCID: PMC9167277 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-13364-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
CDKL5 deficiency disorder (CDD) is a rare neurodevelopmental condition characterized primarily by seizures and impairment of cognitive and motor skills. Additional phenotypes include microcephaly, dysmorphic facial features, and scoliosis. Mutations in cyclin-dependent kinase-like 5 (CDKL5) gene, encoding a kinase essential for normal brain development and function, are responsible for CDD. Zebrafish is an accepted biomedical model for the study of several genetic diseases and has many advantages over other models. Therefore, this work aimed to characterize the phenotypic, behavioral, and molecular consequences of the Cdkl5 protein disruption in a cdkl5 mutant zebrafish line (sa21938). cdkl5sa21938 mutants displayed a reduced head size, suggesting microcephaly, a feature frequently observed in CDD individuals. Double staining revealed shorter craniofacial cartilage structures and decrease bone mineralization in cdkl5 homozygous zebrafish indicating an abnormal craniofacial cartilage development and impaired skeletal development. Motor behavior analysis showed that cdkl5sa21938 embryos had less frequency of double coiling suggesting impaired glutamatergic neurotransmission. Locomotor behavior analysis revealed that homozygous embryos swim shorter distances, indicative of impaired motor activity which is one of the main traits of CCD. Although no apparent spontaneous seizures were observed in these models, upon treatment with pentylenetetrazole, seizure behavior and an increase in the distance travelled were observed. Quantitative PCR showed that neuronal markers, including glutamatergic genes were dysregulated in cdkl5sa21938 mutant embryos. In conclusion, homozygous cdkl5sa21938 zebrafish mimic several characteristics of CDD, thus validating them as a suitable animal model to better understand the physiopathology of this disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tatiana Varela
- Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
| | - Débora Varela
- Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
| | - Gil Martins
- Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
| | - Natércia Conceição
- Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.
- Algarve Biomedical Center, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.
| | - M Leonor Cancela
- Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.
- Algarve Biomedical Center, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal.
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Barakat R, Campbell CA, Espin-Palazon R. Identification of Transcription Factor Binding Sites by Cleavage Under Target and Release Using Nuclease in Zebrafish. Zebrafish 2022; 19:104-108. [PMID: 35704898 PMCID: PMC9246268 DOI: 10.1089/zeb.2021.0082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Cleavage Under Targets and Release Using Nuclease (CUT&RUN) has emerged as a chromatin profiling strategy that excels traditional methods. Although CUT&RUN has been widely utilized in mammalian cells, its use in the zebrafish is at its early stages. In this study, we have developed a protocol to successfully perform CUT&RUN to map transcription factor (TF) binding sites in embryonic, adult tissues, and FACS-sorted zebrafish cells. We also provide a detailed workflow for the identification of predicted TF binding sites that can be utilized in any animal species. Altogether, our strategy will expand this invaluable tool to the zebrafish community, improving the epigenetic resolution that can be achieved in this model organism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Radwa Barakat
- Department of Genetics, Development and Cell Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
| | - Clyde A Campbell
- Department of Genetics, Development and Cell Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
| | - Raquel Espin-Palazon
- Department of Genetics, Development and Cell Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
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44
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Giordano D, Verde C, Corti P. Nitric Oxide Production and Regulation in the Teleost Cardiovascular System. Antioxidants (Basel) 2022; 11:957. [PMID: 35624821 PMCID: PMC9137985 DOI: 10.3390/antiox11050957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Revised: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Nitric Oxide (NO) is a free radical with numerous critical signaling roles in vertebrate physiology. Similar to mammals, in the teleost system the generation of sufficient amounts of NO is critical for the physiological function of the cardiovascular system. At the same time, NO amounts are strictly controlled and kept within basal levels to protect cells from NO toxicity. Changes in oxygen tension highly influence NO bioavailability and can modulate the mechanisms involved in maintaining the NO balance. While NO production and signaling appears to have general similarities with mammalian systems, the wide range of environmental adaptations made by fish, particularly with regards to differing oxygen availabilities in aquatic habitats, creates a foundation for a variety of in vivo models characterized by different implications of NO production and signaling. In this review, we present the biology of NO in the teleost cardiovascular system and summarize the mechanisms of NO production and signaling with a special emphasis on the role of globin proteins in NO metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela Giordano
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Napoli, Italy; (D.G.); (C.V.)
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn (SZN), Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy
| | - Cinzia Verde
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Via Pietro Castellino 111, 80131 Napoli, Italy; (D.G.); (C.V.)
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn (SZN), Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy
| | - Paola Corti
- Heart, Lung, Blood, and Vascular Medicine Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
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Abstract
Nervous system assembly relies on a diversity of cellular processes ranging from dramatic tissue reorganization to local, subcellular changes all driven by precise molecular programs. Combined, these processes culminate in an animal's ability to plan and execute behaviors. Animal behavior can, therefore, serve as a functional readout of nervous system development. Benefitting from an expansive and growing set of molecular and imaging tools paired with an ever-growing number of assays of diverse behaviors, the zebrafish system has emerged as an outstanding platform at the intersection of nervous system assembly, plasticity and behavior. Here, we summarize recent advancements in the field, including how developing neural circuits are refined to shape complex behaviors and plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica C. Nelson
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, 421 Curie Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Michael Granato
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, 421 Curie Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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46
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Tomasello DL, Wlodkowic D. Noninvasive Electrophysiology: Emerging Prospects in Aquatic Neurotoxicity Testing. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2022; 56:4788-4794. [PMID: 35196004 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c08471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The significance of neurotoxicological risks associated with anthropogenic pollution is gaining increasing recognition worldwide. In this regard, perturbations in behavioral traits upon exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of neurotoxic and neuro-modulating contaminants have been linked to diminished ecological fitness of many aquatic species. Despite an increasing interest in behavioral testing in aquatic ecotoxicology there is, however, a notable gap in understanding of the neurophysiological foundations responsible for the altered behavioral phenotypes. One of the canonical approaches to explain the mechanisms of neuro-behavioral changes is functional analysis of neuronal transmission. In aquatic animals it requires, however, invasive, complex, and time-consuming electrophysiology techniques. In this perspective, we highlight emerging prospects of noninvasive, in situ electrophysiology based on multielectrode arrays (MEAs). This technology has only recently been pioneered for the detection and analysis of transient electrical signals in the central nervous system of small model organisms such as zebrafish. The analysis resembles electroencephalography (EEG) applications and provides an appealing strategy for mechanistic explorative studies as well as routine neurotoxicity risk assessment. We outline the prospective future applications and existing challenges of this emerging analytical strategy that is poised to bring new vistas for aquatic ecotoxicology such as greater mechanistic understanding of eco-neurotoxicity and thus more robust risk assessment protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle L Tomasello
- Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, United States
| | - Donald Wlodkowic
- The Neurotox Lab, School of Science, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria 3083, Australia
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Silibinin and Naringenin against Bisphenol A-Induced Neurotoxicity in Zebrafish Model-Potential Flavonoid Molecules for New Drug Design, Development, and Therapy for Neurological Disorders. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27082572. [PMID: 35458770 PMCID: PMC9025613 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27082572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Revised: 04/09/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Bisphenol A (BPA), a well-known xenoestrogen, is commonly utilised in the production of polycarbonate plastics. Based on the existing evidence, BPA is known to induce neurotoxicity and behavioural issues. Flavonoids such as silibinin and naringenin have been shown to have biological activity against a variety of illnesses. The current research evaluates the neuropharmacological effects of silibinin and naringenin in a zebrafish model against neurotoxicity and oxidative stress caused by Bisphenol A. In this study, a novel tank diving test (NTDT) and light−dark preference test (LDPT) were used in neurobehavioural investigations. The experimental protocol was planned to last 21 days. The neuroprotective effects of silibinin (10 μM) and naringenin (10 μM) in zebrafish (Danio rerio) induced by BPA (17.52 μM) were investigated. In the brine shrimp lethality assay, the 50% fatal concentrations (LC50) were 34.10 μg/mL (silibinin) and 91.33 μg/mL (naringenin) compared to the standard potassium dichromate (13.15 μg/mL). The acute toxicity investigation found no mortality or visible abnormalities in the silibinin- and naringenin-treated groups (LC50 > 100 mg/L). The altered scototaxis behaviour in LDPT caused by BPA was reversed by co-supplementation with silibinin and naringenin, as shown by decreases in the number of transitions to the light zone and the duration spent in the light zone. Our findings point to BPA’s neurotoxic potential in causing altered scototaxis and bottom-dwelling behaviour in zebrafish, as well as the usage of silibinin and naringenin as potential neuroprotectants.
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Bekisz S, Baudin L, Buntinx F, Noël A, Geris L. In Vitro, In Vivo, and In Silico Models of Lymphangiogenesis in Solid Malignancies. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:1525. [PMID: 35326676 PMCID: PMC8946816 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14061525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2021] [Revised: 02/24/2022] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Lymphangiogenesis (LA) is the formation of new lymphatic vessels by lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) sprouting from pre-existing lymphatic vessels. It is increasingly recognized as being involved in many diseases, such as in cancer and secondary lymphedema, which most often results from cancer treatments. For some cancers, excessive LA is associated with cancer progression and metastatic dissemination to the lymph nodes (LNs) through lymphatic vessels. The study of LA through in vitro, in vivo, and, more recently, in silico models is of paramount importance in providing novel insights and identifying the key molecular actors in the biological dysregulation of this process under pathological conditions. In this review, the different biological (in vitro and in vivo) models of LA, especially in a cancer context, are explained and discussed, highlighting their principal modeled features as well as their advantages and drawbacks. Imaging techniques of the lymphatics, complementary or even essential to in vivo models, are also clarified and allow the establishment of the link with computational approaches. In silico models are introduced, theoretically described, and illustrated with examples specific to the lymphatic system and the LA. Together, these models constitute a toolbox allowing the LA research to be brought to the next level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Bekisz
- Biomechanics Research Unit, GIGA In silico Medicine, ULiège, 4000 Liège, Belgium;
| | - Louis Baudin
- Laboratory of Biology of Tumor and Development, GIGA Cancer, ULiège, 4000 Liège, Belgium; (L.B.); (F.B.); (A.N.)
| | - Florence Buntinx
- Laboratory of Biology of Tumor and Development, GIGA Cancer, ULiège, 4000 Liège, Belgium; (L.B.); (F.B.); (A.N.)
| | - Agnès Noël
- Laboratory of Biology of Tumor and Development, GIGA Cancer, ULiège, 4000 Liège, Belgium; (L.B.); (F.B.); (A.N.)
| | - Liesbet Geris
- Biomechanics Research Unit, GIGA In silico Medicine, ULiège, 4000 Liège, Belgium;
- Biomechanics Section, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- Skeletal Biology and Engineering Research Center, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
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Leggieri A, García-González J, Torres-Perez JV, Havelange W, Hosseinian S, Mech AM, Keatinge M, Busch-Nentwich EM, Brennan CH. Ankk1 Loss of Function Disrupts Dopaminergic Pathways in Zebrafish. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:794653. [PMID: 35210987 PMCID: PMC8861280 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.794653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Ankyrin repeat and kinase domain containing 1 (ANKK1) is a member of the receptor-interacting protein serine/threonine kinase family, known to be involved in cell proliferation, differentiation and activation of transcription factors. Genetic variation within the ANKK1 locus is suggested to play a role in vulnerability to addictions. However, ANKK1 mechanism of action is still poorly understood. It has been suggested that ANKK1 may affect the development and/or functioning of dopaminergic pathways. To test this hypothesis, we generated a CRISPR-Cas9 loss of function ankk1 zebrafish line causing a 27 bp insertion that disrupts the ankk1 sequence introducing an early stop codon. We found that ankk1 transcript levels were significantly lower in ankk1 mutant (ankk127ins) fish compared to their wild type (ankk1+/+) siblings. In ankk1+/+ adult zebrafish brain, ankk1 protein was detected in isocortex, hippocampus, basolateral amygdala, mesencephalon, and cerebellum, resembling the mammalian distribution pattern. In contrast, ankk1 protein was reduced in the brain of ankk127ins/27ins fish. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed an increase in expression of drd2b mRNA in ankk127ins at both larval and adult stages. In ankk1+/+ adult zebrafish brain, drd2 protein was detected in cerebral cortex, cerebellum, hippocampus, and caudate homolog regions, resembling the pattern in humans. In contrast, drd2 expression was reduced in cortical regions of ankk127ins/27ins being predominantly found in the hindbrain. No differences in the number of cell bodies or axonal projections detected by anti-tyrosine hydroxylase immunostaining on 3 days post fertilization (dpf) larvae were found. Behavioral analysis revealed altered sensitivity to effects of both amisulpride and apomorphine on locomotion and startle habituation, consistent with a broad loss of both pre and post synaptic receptors. Ankk127ins mutants showed reduced sensitivity to the effect of the selective dopamine receptor antagonist amisulpride on locomotor responses to acoustic startle and were differentially sensitive to the effects of the non-selective dopamine agonist apomorphine on both locomotion and habituation. Taken together, our findings strengthen the hypothesis of a functional relationship between ANKK1 and DRD2, supporting a role for ANKK1 in the maintenance and/or functioning of dopaminergic pathways. Further work is needed to disentangle ANKK1’s role at different developmental stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adele Leggieri
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Judit García-González
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Jose V. Torres-Perez
- Department of Brain Sciences, UK Dementia Research Institute, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - William Havelange
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Saeedeh Hosseinian
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Aleksandra M. Mech
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Marcus Keatinge
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Elisabeth M. Busch-Nentwich
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
- Department of Medicine, Cambridge Institute of Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Caroline H. Brennan
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
- *Correspondence: Caroline H. Brennan,
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Wang Z, Zhao H, Xu Y, Zhao J, Song Z, Bi Y, Li Y, Lan X, Pan C, Foulkes NS, Zhang S. Early-life lead exposure induces long-term toxicity in the central nervous system: From zebrafish larvae to juveniles and adults. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 804:150185. [PMID: 34509844 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Lead induced neurotoxicity has been extensively investigated. However, the potential connections between early-life lead exposure and the frequently observed aberrant neurobehavior in juveniles and adults remain unclear. In this study, zebrafish model was used to explore the immediate and long-term effects of early-life exposure to environmental levels of lead on the central nervous system, and the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the consequent abnormal neurobehavior. Lead exposed zebrafish larvae exhibited neurologic damage and defective neurobehavior. Consistent with clinical studies, despite being raised in lead-free conditions, the juvenile and adult fish experienced lead exposure earlier, presented ADHD-like symptoms, and the adult fish exhibited remarkably affected vitality and shoaling behavior. Their anxiety levels were elevated, whereas their social interaction, as well as learning and memory were strongly depressed. The expression profiles of key genes involved in neurodevelopment and neurotransmitter systems were significantly modulated, in similar patterns as in the larval stage. Notably, the density of neurons was decreased and varicosities in neuronal axons were frequently observed in the lead-exposed groups. It's tempting to speculate that the disruption of early neurodevelopment as well as the prolonged modulation of neuromorphic and neurotransmitter systems contribute to the lead-induced neurobehavioral disorders observed in juveniles and adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zuo Wang
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Haiyu Zhao
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China.
| | - Yanyi Xu
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Jianing Zhao
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China; Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Zan Song
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
| | - Yi Bi
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China; Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Yang Li
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Xianyong Lan
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Chuanying Pan
- Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Shaanxi Province, College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, No. 22 Xinong Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Nicholas S Foulkes
- Institute of Biological and Chemical Systems, Biological Information Processing (IBCS-BIP), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany
| | - Shengxiang Zhang
- School of Life Sciences, Gansu Key Laboratory of Biomonitoring and Bioremediation for Environmental Pollution, Lanzhou University, No. 222 South Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
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