Zebrafish as a Model for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

Ethyl glucuronide and ethyl sulfate in the zebrafish after ethanol exposure

Ethanol exposure during pregnancy is an important problem and is the cause of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). The etiology of FAS and FASD can be elucidated using animal models. Recently, a novel model, the zebrafish (Danio rerio), has garnered the interest of researchers. This study confirmed the negative influence of ethyl alcohol (0.5 %, 1.5 %, and 2.5 % v/v) on the development of zebrafish embryos. The observed malformations included pericardial and yolk sac edema, increased body curvature, tail edema, and a decreased embryo hatching rate. The differences in body length, body width, and heart rate were statistically significant. Due to the similarities in the quantity and function of ethanol biotransformation enzymes between zebrafish and mammals, this study investigated the nonoxidative metabolites of ethanol - ethyl glucuronide (EtG) and ethyl sulfate (EtS) - in zebrafish following ethanol exposure. This research confirmed that EtG and EtS concentrations can be measured in zebrafish embryos, and the levels of these metabolites appear to be associated with the ethyl alcohol concentration in the medium.

Long-term behavioral alterations following embryonic alcohol exposure in three zebrafish populations

Fetal alcohol exposure may lead to a condition known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), which comprises a set of consequences, including cognitive and behavioral impairments. Although zebrafish has been applied as a reliable model for studying FASD, there is no approach to the disorder's ontogeny and population differences. Here, we evaluated the behavioral outcomes of AB, Outbred (OB), and Tübingen (TU) zebrafish populations embryonically exposed to alcohol throughout the development to the adult stage. We exposed 24hpf eggs to 0%, 0.5%, or 1.0% alcohol for 2h. Fish were let grow and locomotor and anxiety-like behaviors were tested in a novel tank at larval - 6dpf, juvenile - 45dpf, and adult- 90dpf stages. At 6dpf, both AB and OB treated with 1.0% alcohol showed hyperactivity, while 0.5% and 1.0% TU fish exhibited hypolocomotion. At 45dpf, AB and TU fish maintained the larval pattern of locomotion. At the adult stage - 90dpf, both AB and TU populations showed increased locomotor activity and anxiogenic responses, while the OB population did not show altered behavior. Our results show for the first time that zebrafish populations exhibit behavioral differences in response to embryonic alcohol exposure and that it varies along animals' ontogeny. AB fish showed the most consistent behavioral pattern through developmental stages, TU fish showed behavioral changes only in adulthood, and OB population showed high interindividual variability. These data reinforce that different populations of zebrafish are better adapted to translational studies, offering reliable results in contrast to domesticated OB populations obtained from farms, which exhibit more variable genomes.

Embryonic ethanol exposure induces ectopic Hcrt and MCH neurons outside hypothalamus in rats and zebrafish: Role in ethanol-induced behavioural disturbances

Embryonic exposure to ethanol increases the risk for alcohol use disorder in humans and stimulates alcohol-related behaviours in different animal models. Evidence in rats and zebrafish suggests that this phenomenon induced by ethanol at low-moderate concentrations involves a stimulatory effect on neurogenesis and density of hypothalamic neurons expressing the peptides, hypocretin/orexin (Hcrt) and melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH), known to promote alcohol consumption. Building on our report in zebrafish showing that ethanol induces ectopic expression of Hcrt neurons outside the hypothalamus, we investigated here whether embryonic ethanol exposure also induces ectopic peptide neurons in rats similar to zebrafish and affects their morphological characteristics and if these ectopic neurons are functional and have a role in the ethanol-induced disturbances in behaviour. We demonstrate in rats that ethanol at a low-moderate dose, in addition to increasing Hcrt and MCH neurons in the lateral hypothalamus where they are normally concentrated, induces ectopic expression of these peptide neurons further anterior in the nucleus accumbens core and ventromedial caudate putamen where they have not been previously observed and causes morphological changes relative to normally located hypothalamic neurons. Similar to rats, embryonic ethanol exposure at a low-moderate dose in zebrafish induces ectopic Hcrt neurons anterior to the hypothalamus and alters their morphology. Notably, laser ablation of these ectopic Hcrt neurons blocks the behavioural effects induced by ethanol exposure, including increased anxiety and locomotor activity. These findings suggest that the ectopic peptide neurons are functional and contribute to the ethanol-induced behavioural disturbances related to the overconsumption of alcohol.