Project description:Zebrafish populations recently collected from the wild differ from domesticated populations in anxiety-related behaviors. We measured anxiety-related behaviors in wild and domesticated zebrafish populations and performed a multi-brain region transcriptional comparison using microarrays to try to understand the genetic changes that accompany behavioral adaptation to domestication. We performed a microarray analysis comparing the midbrain and telencephalon brain regions of male and female adult zebrafish from four populations varying in domestication history (Wild: Nadia (N) and Pargana (P), and Domesticated: Scientific Hatchery (S) and Transgenic Mosaic 1 (T)). We collected 16 samples per brain region (4 samples per zebrafish population, with 1 telencephalon sample missing for the S population). We attempted to maintain equal sex ratios within each zebrafish population, but this was not always possible due to sex biases within some populations.
Project description:We used microarray analyses in adult female zebrafish (Danio rerio) to identify metabolic pathways regulated by starvation in two key organs that 1) serve biosynthetic and energy mobilizing functions (liver) and 2) consume energy and direct behavioral responses (brain). Starvation affected the expression of 574 transcripts in the liver, indicating an overall decrease in metabolic activity, reduced lipid metabolism, protein biosynthesis and proteolysis, and cellular respiration, and increased gluconeogenesis. Starvation also regulated expression of many components of the Unfolded Protein Response, the first such report in a species other than yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and mice (Mus musculus). The response of the zebrafish hepatic transcriptome to starvation was strikingly similar to that of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), but very different from common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and mouse. The transcriptome of zebrafish whole brain was much less affected than the liver, with only two differentially expressed genes, both down-regulated. Down-regulation of one of these genes, matrix metalloproteinase 9 (mmp9), suggests increased inhibition of apoptosis (neuroprotection) and decreased restructuring of the extracellular matrix in the brain of starved zebrafish. The low level of response in the transcriptome of whole zebrafish brain agrees with observations that the brain is metabolically protected compared to the rest of the body. Keywords: starvation study
Project description:The right optic nerve of 1 year old female and male Danio rerio were crushed and collected three days after. Matching controls of uninjured eyes were also collected. The tissue was dissected from euthanized fish and “flash” frozen on dry ice in Eppendorf tubes. Due to the small size of the nerves, for each category (female crush, female control, male crush, male control) n=24 the samples were pooled. The brain from one male fish was also collected for control/calibration. Lipid extraction was done with the Bligh and Dyer [2] method, followed by untargeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC MS-MS) lipid profiling using a Q-Exactive Orbitrap instrument coupled with Vanquish Horizon Binary UHPLC LC-MS system. The lipids were identified and quantified with LipidSearch 4.2.21 and the statistical analysis was conducted through Metaboanalyst 5.0.
Project description:17-ethinylestradiol (EE2) is a synthetic estrogen commonly used as an active substance in oral contraceptives. It is frequently found in waste water effluent and raise concern due to its persistent nature. EE2 binds to estrogen receptors with similar affinity to oestradiol and acts as one of the most potent hormone mimics found in the environment. Estrogen is involved in many aspects of the development of the neuroendocrine system influencing both brain structure and behavior. We and others have reported a significant effect on non-reproductive behaviors in adult fish and in recent studies we found that developmental exposure to EE2 resulted in an anxiogenic phenotype as adults even after a long remediation period. In this study we aim to study possible mechanisms behind the behavior alterations of zebrafish developmentally exposed to EE2 by sequencing the whole brain transcriptome. Zebrafish embryos were exposed to 0, 2.14 and 7.34 ng/L EE2 from 1 day to 80 days post fertilization. After the exposure period a remediation period of 120 days followed before the fish were sampled. 3 male brains from the control group (0 ng/L) and the 2.14 ng/L group were sampled and 3 female brains from the control group (0 ng/L) and 7.34 ng/L were sampled.
Project description:Methylmercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin and endocrine disruptor that accumulates in aquatic systems. Previous studies have shown suppression of hormone levels in both male and female fish, suggesting effects on gonadotropin regulation in the brain. We investigated the gene expression profile in adult female zebrafish whole brain induced by acute (96 hr) MeHg exposure. Fish were exposed by injection to 0 or 0.5 µg MeHg/g. Gene expression changes in the brain were examined using a two-color 22,000 feature zebrafish microarray. At a significance level of p<0.01, 79 genes were up-regulated and 76 genes were down-regulated in response to MeHg exposure. Individual genes exhibiting altered expression in response to MeHg exposure implicate effects on glutathione metabolism and GABA-A receptors in the mechanism of MeHg neurotoxicity. Gene ontology (GO) terms significantly enriched among altered genes included protein folding, cell redox homeostasis, and steroid biosynthetic process. The most affected biological functions were related to the nervous system development and function, as well as lipid metabolism and molecular transport. These results support the involvement of oxidative stress and effects on protein structure in the mechanism of action of MeHg in the female brain. Future studies will compare the gene expression profile induced in response to MeHg with that induced by other toxins and investigate responsive genes as potential biomarkers of MeHg exposure.
Project description:Methylmercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin and endocrine disruptor that accumulates in aquatic systems. Previous studies have shown suppression of hormone levels in both male and female fish, suggesting effects on gonadotropin regulation in the brain. We investigated the gene expression profile in adult female zebrafish whole brain induced by acute (96 hr) MeHg exposure. Fish were exposed by injection to 0 or 0.5 M-BM-5g MeHg/g. Gene expression changes in the brain were examined using a two-color 22,000 feature zebrafish microarray. At a significance level of p<0.01, 79 genes were up-regulated and 76 genes were down-regulated in response to MeHg exposure. Individual genes exhibiting altered expression in response to MeHg exposure implicate effects on glutathione metabolism and GABA-A receptors in the mechanism of MeHg neurotoxicity. Gene ontology (GO) terms significantly enriched among altered genes included protein folding, cell redox homeostasis, and steroid biosynthetic process. The most affected biological functions were related to the nervous system development and function, as well as lipid metabolism and molecular transport. These results support the involvement of oxidative stress and effects on protein structure in the mechanism of action of MeHg in the female brain. Future studies will compare the gene expression profile induced in response to MeHg with that induced by other toxins and investigate responsive genes as potential biomarkers of MeHg exposure. Wild-type strain AB-1 zebrafish (Zebrafish International Resource Center, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR) were cultured at the Columbia Environmental Research Center (CERC), USGS, for MeHg exposures. Adult female zebrafish were injected with 0 M-NM-<g/g or 0.5 M-NM-<g/g MeHg in 2 M-BM-5L Na2CO3 (pH 6.98)/g body weight. After 96 hr, fish were anesthetized using ethyl 3-aminobenzoate methanesulfonate (MS-222, Sigma, St. Louis, MO). Whole brains were removed, flash frozen with liquid nitrogen and stored at 80M-BM-0C. For the microarray experiment, two zebrafish brains were pooled per sample. Four pooled samples were taken from fish treated with 0.5 M-NM-<g/g of MeHg, and the other five were taken from control fish treated with sodium carbonate. Array hybridizations were performed using a reference design, where each sample was compared to a reference sample. The reference sample consisted of equal amounts of RNA from control and treated female brains. Five replicates for the control and four replicates for the treated were analyzed. cDNA synthesis, cRNA labeling, amplification and hybridization were performed following the manufacturerM-bM-^@M-^Ys kits and protocols (Agilent Low RNA Input Fluorescent Linear Amplification Kit and Agilent 60-mer oligo microarray processing protocol; Agilent, Palo Alto, CA).