PUBLICATION
Thyroid hormones are important for embryonic to larval transitory phase in zebrafish
- Authors
- Liu, Y.-W. and Chan, W.-K.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-020429-6
- Date
- 2002
- Source
- Differentiation; research in biological diversity 70(1): 36-45 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Chan, Woon-Khiong, Liu, Yi-wen
- Keywords
- thyroid hormone; thyroid hormone receptor; L-thyroxine; 3,5,3'-L-triiodothyronine; zebrafish; larval development
- MeSH Terms
-
- Zebrafish/anatomy & histology
- Zebrafish/embryology*
- Zebrafish/growth & development
- RNA, Messenger/metabolism
- Yolk Sac/drug effects
- Yolk Sac/embryology
- Digestive System/drug effects
- Digestive System/embryology
- Receptors, Thyroid Hormone/genetics
- Receptors, Thyroid Hormone/metabolism*
- Air Sacs/drug effects
- Air Sacs/embryology
- Amiodarone/pharmacology
- Antithyroid Agents/pharmacology
- Thyroid Hormones/pharmacology*
- Methimazole/pharmacology
- Animals
- Melanophores/drug effects
- Melanophores/physiology
- PubMed
- 11963654 Full text @ Differentiation
Citation
Liu, Y.-W. and Chan, W.-K. (2002) Thyroid hormones are important for embryonic to larval transitory phase in zebrafish. Differentiation; research in biological diversity. 70(1):36-45.
Abstract
In zebrafish, like many other teleost species, the development and differentiation of many major organs continue unabated into the yolk-sac larval stage before culminating in a free-swimming larva capable of exogenous feeding. We investigated the role of thyroid hormone (TH) in this important embryonic to larval transitory phase. Thyroid hormone receptor (TR) alpha and beta mRNAs are expressed during the early stages of zebrafish embryonic development. Beginning from the midblastula stage, the level of TR beta mRNAs increases dramatically and is maintained until the end of the transitory phase. Excessive exogenous thyroxine (T4; 30 nM) is toxic and causes severe developmental defects. Cotreatment of embryos with amiodarone, an antagonist of TR, and goitrogen methimazole (MMI) lead to severe retardation in the maturation of the gastrointestinal system, swim bladder, and the lower jaw cartilages and the resorption of the yolk sac. The developmental arrest is lethal, and treated larvae do not survive beyond 7 day postfertilization (dpf), but can be completely rescued by the presence of 10 nM T4. We propose that the embryonic to larval transitory phase in many teleost species is characterized by its dependency on the timely synthesis of TH and the concomitant autoinductive increase in TR beta mRNA levels.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping