Fig. 1

Paclitaxel induces sensory axon degeneration and loss of touch response in adult zebrafish. (A) Experimental design for induction and assessment of peripheral neuropathy in adult zebrafish by daily injections of 10 µM paclitaxel on 4 consecutive days, followed by 10 d of recovery. (B) Anti-acetylated tubulin staining of axons 1 d after the last injection. Fine cutaneous nerve endings are present in vehicle control (Top) but not in paclitaxel-treated (Bottom) fish. Vehicle axons were partially traced. (Scale bar, 100 µm.) (C) Selective nerve fiber loss in distal but not proximal caudal fin (n = 7, 5-6 fish per group). (D) Touch response assessed before each daily injection and during a recovery period reveals a significantly delayed response after four injections (day 3) (n = 7, 5-12 fish per group), which leads to variable recovery by day 14 (n = 2, 5 fish). (E) One-hour swimming distances are not significantly different between vehicle and paclitaxel-treated fish (n = 2, 5 fish per group). *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ****P < 0.0001. D, day; FL, fluorescence; preinj, preinjection day; rec, recovery.