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Zebrafish Larvae: A Review
Corresponding Author(s) : S. Keerthana
International Journal of Allied Medical Sciences and Clinical Research,
Vol. 13 No. 1 (2025): 2025 Volume -13 - Issue 1
Abstract
Zebrafish larvae have gained prominence as a model organism in biomedical research due to their unique characteristics, including transparent embryos and rapid development. These features allow for real-time observation of physiological processes and facilitate high-throughput screening of drugs and environmental toxicants. With approximately 70% genetic homology to humans, zebrafish serve as an ethically viable alternative to traditional mammalian models, particularly in studying developmental and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. Their small size and ease of genetic manipulation, including CRISPR technology, enhance their utility in understanding complex diseases and testing therapeutic compounds. Furthermore, zebrafish larvae are increasingly used in toxicological assessments, providing valuable insights into organ toxicity and the effects of various chemicals. As research continues to explore their capabilities, zebrafish larvae are poised to significantly contribute to advancements in drug discovery and safety evaluations across multiple fields.
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- Kimmel C.B., Ballard W.W., Kimmel S.R., Ullmann B., Schilling T.F. Stages of embryonic development of the zebrafish. Dev. Dyn. 1995;203:253–310. doi: 10.1002/aja.1002030302.
- Parichy D.M., Elizondo M.R., Mills M.G., Gordon T.N., Engeszer R.E. Normal table of postembryonic zebrafish development: Staging by externally visible anatomy of the living fish. Dev. Dyn. 2009;238:2975–3015. doi: 10.1002/dvdy.22113.
- Russell W.M.S., Burch R.L. The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique. Methuen; London, UK: 1959. p. 238.
- Bauer B, Mally A, Liedtke D. Zebrafish Embryos and Larvae as Alternative Animal Models for Toxicity Testing. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Dec 14;22(24):13417. doi: 10.3390/ijms222413417. PMID: 34948215; PMCID: PMC8707050.
- Bibliowicz J., Tittle R.K., Gross J.M. Toward a Better Understanding of Human Eye Disease: Insights from the zebrafish, Danio rerio. Prog. Mol. Biol. Transl. Sci. 2011;100:287–330. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-384878-9.00007-8.
- Richardson R., Tracey-White D., Webster A., Moosajee M. The Zebrafish Eye—A Paradigm for Investigating Human Ocular Genetics. Eye. 2017;31:68–86. doi: 10.1038/eye.2016.198.
- An Introduction to the Zebrafish: Danio rerio April 30,2023
- Adatto ILawrence CThompson MZon LI (2011) A new system for the rapid collection of large numbers of developmentally staged zebrafish embryos PLOS ONE 6:e21715. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0021715 Google Scholar
- 1000 Genomes Project Consortium Abecasis GR Auton A Brooks LDDePristo MADurbin RMHandsaker REKang HMMarth GTMcVean GA (2012) An integrated map of genetic variation from 1,092 human genomes Nature 491:56–65. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature11632 Google Scholar
- Stages of Development of the Fetus ByRaul Artal-Mittelmark, MD, Saint Louis University School of Medicine Reviewed/Revised May 2021 | Modified Sept 2022
- Wasel O, Freeman JL. Chemical and Genetic Zebrafish Models to Define Mechanisms of and Treatments for Dopaminergic Neurodegeneration. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Aug 20;21(17):5981. doi: 10.3390/ijms21175981. PMID: 32825242; PMCID: PMC7503535.
- Neurobiology Research Areas, https://www.bbe.caltech.edu/academics/neurobiology/research
- Redondo-Flórez L, López-Mora C, Yáñez-Sepúlveda R, Tornero-Aguilera JF. New Insights and Potential Therapeutic Interventions in Metabolic Diseases. Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Jun 26;24(13):10672. doi: 10.3390/ijms241310672. PMID: 37445852; PMCID: PMC10342188.
- Kao TW, Huang CC. Recent Progress in Metabolic Syndrome Research and Therapeutics. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Jun 25;22(13):6862. doi: 10.3390/ijms22136862. PMID: 34202257; PMCID: PMC8269131.
- Zebrafish as a model to study cardiac development and human cardiac disease Jeroen Bakkers Cardiovascular Research, Volume 91, Issue 2, 15 July 2011, Pages 279–288, https://doi.org/10.1093/cvr/cvr098 Published: 19 May 2011
- Zebrafish Models of Cardiac Disease: From Fortuitous Mutants to Precision Medicine Juan Manuel González-Rosa. 130(12) https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.122.320396
- Chia K, Klingseisen A, Sieger D, Priller J. Zebrafish as a model organism for neurodegenerative disease. Front Mol Neurosci. 2022 Oct 13;15:940484. doi: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.940484. PMID: 36311026; PMCID: PMC9606821
- 18.Zebrafish: A New Promise to Study the Impact of Metabolic Disorders on the Brain by Batoul Ghaddar andNicolas Diotel. Diabète Athérothrombose Thérapies Réunion Océan Indien (DéTROI), INSERM, UMR 1188, Université de La Réunion, 97400 Saint-Denis, France Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(10), 5372; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23105372
- Benchoula K, Khatib A, Jaffar A, Ahmed QU, Sulaiman WMAW, Wahab RA, El-Seedi HR. The promise of zebrafish as a model of metabolic syndrome. Exp Anim. 2019 Nov 6;68(4):407-416. doi: 10.1538/expanim.18-0168.
- Hason M, Bartůněk P. Zebrafish Models of Cancer-New Insights on Modeling Human Cancer in a Non-Mammalian Vertebrate. Genes (Basel). 2019 Nov 15;10(11):935. doi: 10.3390/genes10110935. PMID: 31731811; PMCID: PMC6896156
- Kim Kobar, Kim Kobar, Keon Collett, Keon Collett, Sergey V. Prykhozhij, Sergey V. Prykhozhij, Jason N. Berman, Jason N. Berman1 Zebrafish Models for Human Disease Studies Zebrafish Cancer Predisposition Models. Molecular and Cellular Pathology. 27 April 2021 Sec. Vol 9 – 2021. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.660069
- Astell KR, Sieger D. Zebrafish In Vivo Models of Cancer and Metastasis. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2020 Aug 3;10(8):a037077. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a037077. PMID: 31615862; PMCID: PMC7397842.
- Wang X, Zhang JB, He KJ, Wang F, Liu CF. Advances of Zebrafish in Neurodegenerative Disease: From Models to Drug Discovery. Front Pharmacol. 2021 Jul 14;12:713963. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.713963. PMID: 34335276; PMCID: PMC8317260
- Samuel R. AlperSamuel R. AlperRichard I. Dorsky Richard I. Dorsky. Spinal cord development and neural regeneration View all 11 articles Unique advantages of zebrafish larvae as a model for spinal cord regeneration. Neuroplasticity and Development. 07 September 2022 Sec. Vol 15- https://doi.org/10.3389/fnmol.2022.983336
- Why Use Zebrafish to Study Human Diseases? By Elizabeth Burke Tuesday, August 9, 2016
- Seth A, Stemple DL, Barroso I. The emerging use of zebrafish to model metabolic disease. Dis Model Mech. 2013 Sep;6(5):1080-8. doi: 10.1242/dmm.011346. PMID: 24046387; PMCID: PMC3759328.
- Elena Kardash (eekardash at gmail dot com) Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, Muenster, Germany. Datelast modified : 2022-10-10; doi:http//dx.doi.org/10.13070/mm.en.2.109
- Bauer B, Mally A, Liedtke D. Zebrafish Embryos and Larvae as Alternative Animal Models for Toxicity Testing. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Dec 14;22(24):13417. doi: 10.3390/ijms222413417. PMID: 34948215
References
Kimmel C.B., Ballard W.W., Kimmel S.R., Ullmann B., Schilling T.F. Stages of embryonic development of the zebrafish. Dev. Dyn. 1995;203:253–310. doi: 10.1002/aja.1002030302.
Parichy D.M., Elizondo M.R., Mills M.G., Gordon T.N., Engeszer R.E. Normal table of postembryonic zebrafish development: Staging by externally visible anatomy of the living fish. Dev. Dyn. 2009;238:2975–3015. doi: 10.1002/dvdy.22113.
Russell W.M.S., Burch R.L. The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique. Methuen; London, UK: 1959. p. 238.
Bauer B, Mally A, Liedtke D. Zebrafish Embryos and Larvae as Alternative Animal Models for Toxicity Testing. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Dec 14;22(24):13417. doi: 10.3390/ijms222413417. PMID: 34948215; PMCID: PMC8707050.
Bibliowicz J., Tittle R.K., Gross J.M. Toward a Better Understanding of Human Eye Disease: Insights from the zebrafish, Danio rerio. Prog. Mol. Biol. Transl. Sci. 2011;100:287–330. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-384878-9.00007-8.
Richardson R., Tracey-White D., Webster A., Moosajee M. The Zebrafish Eye—A Paradigm for Investigating Human Ocular Genetics. Eye. 2017;31:68–86. doi: 10.1038/eye.2016.198.
An Introduction to the Zebrafish: Danio rerio April 30,2023
Adatto ILawrence CThompson MZon LI (2011) A new system for the rapid collection of large numbers of developmentally staged zebrafish embryos PLOS ONE 6:e21715. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0021715 Google Scholar
1000 Genomes Project Consortium Abecasis GR Auton A Brooks LDDePristo MADurbin RMHandsaker REKang HMMarth GTMcVean GA (2012) An integrated map of genetic variation from 1,092 human genomes Nature 491:56–65. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature11632 Google Scholar
Stages of Development of the Fetus ByRaul Artal-Mittelmark, MD, Saint Louis University School of Medicine Reviewed/Revised May 2021 | Modified Sept 2022
Wasel O, Freeman JL. Chemical and Genetic Zebrafish Models to Define Mechanisms of and Treatments for Dopaminergic Neurodegeneration. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Aug 20;21(17):5981. doi: 10.3390/ijms21175981. PMID: 32825242; PMCID: PMC7503535.
Neurobiology Research Areas, https://www.bbe.caltech.edu/academics/neurobiology/research
Redondo-Flórez L, López-Mora C, Yáñez-Sepúlveda R, Tornero-Aguilera JF. New Insights and Potential Therapeutic Interventions in Metabolic Diseases. Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Jun 26;24(13):10672. doi: 10.3390/ijms241310672. PMID: 37445852; PMCID: PMC10342188.
Kao TW, Huang CC. Recent Progress in Metabolic Syndrome Research and Therapeutics. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Jun 25;22(13):6862. doi: 10.3390/ijms22136862. PMID: 34202257; PMCID: PMC8269131.
Zebrafish as a model to study cardiac development and human cardiac disease Jeroen Bakkers Cardiovascular Research, Volume 91, Issue 2, 15 July 2011, Pages 279–288, https://doi.org/10.1093/cvr/cvr098 Published: 19 May 2011
Zebrafish Models of Cardiac Disease: From Fortuitous Mutants to Precision Medicine Juan Manuel González-Rosa. 130(12) https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.122.320396
Chia K, Klingseisen A, Sieger D, Priller J. Zebrafish as a model organism for neurodegenerative disease. Front Mol Neurosci. 2022 Oct 13;15:940484. doi: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.940484. PMID: 36311026; PMCID: PMC9606821
18.Zebrafish: A New Promise to Study the Impact of Metabolic Disorders on the Brain by Batoul Ghaddar andNicolas Diotel. Diabète Athérothrombose Thérapies Réunion Océan Indien (DéTROI), INSERM, UMR 1188, Université de La Réunion, 97400 Saint-Denis, France Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(10), 5372; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23105372
Benchoula K, Khatib A, Jaffar A, Ahmed QU, Sulaiman WMAW, Wahab RA, El-Seedi HR. The promise of zebrafish as a model of metabolic syndrome. Exp Anim. 2019 Nov 6;68(4):407-416. doi: 10.1538/expanim.18-0168.
Hason M, Bartůněk P. Zebrafish Models of Cancer-New Insights on Modeling Human Cancer in a Non-Mammalian Vertebrate. Genes (Basel). 2019 Nov 15;10(11):935. doi: 10.3390/genes10110935. PMID: 31731811; PMCID: PMC6896156
Kim Kobar, Kim Kobar, Keon Collett, Keon Collett, Sergey V. Prykhozhij, Sergey V. Prykhozhij, Jason N. Berman, Jason N. Berman1 Zebrafish Models for Human Disease Studies Zebrafish Cancer Predisposition Models. Molecular and Cellular Pathology. 27 April 2021 Sec. Vol 9 – 2021. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.660069
Astell KR, Sieger D. Zebrafish In Vivo Models of Cancer and Metastasis. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2020 Aug 3;10(8):a037077. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a037077. PMID: 31615862; PMCID: PMC7397842.
Wang X, Zhang JB, He KJ, Wang F, Liu CF. Advances of Zebrafish in Neurodegenerative Disease: From Models to Drug Discovery. Front Pharmacol. 2021 Jul 14;12:713963. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.713963. PMID: 34335276; PMCID: PMC8317260
Samuel R. AlperSamuel R. AlperRichard I. Dorsky Richard I. Dorsky. Spinal cord development and neural regeneration View all 11 articles Unique advantages of zebrafish larvae as a model for spinal cord regeneration. Neuroplasticity and Development. 07 September 2022 Sec. Vol 15- https://doi.org/10.3389/fnmol.2022.983336
Why Use Zebrafish to Study Human Diseases? By Elizabeth Burke Tuesday, August 9, 2016
Seth A, Stemple DL, Barroso I. The emerging use of zebrafish to model metabolic disease. Dis Model Mech. 2013 Sep;6(5):1080-8. doi: 10.1242/dmm.011346. PMID: 24046387; PMCID: PMC3759328.
Elena Kardash (eekardash at gmail dot com) Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, Muenster, Germany. Datelast modified : 2022-10-10; doi:http//dx.doi.org/10.13070/mm.en.2.109
Bauer B, Mally A, Liedtke D. Zebrafish Embryos and Larvae as Alternative Animal Models for Toxicity Testing. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Dec 14;22(24):13417. doi: 10.3390/ijms222413417. PMID: 34948215