PUBLICATION

Zebrafish: an animal model for research in veterinary medicine

Authors
Nowik, N., Podlasz, P., Jakimiuk, A., Kasica, N., Sienkiewicz, W., Kaleczyc, J.
ID
ZDB-PUB-151201-4
Date
2015
Source
Polish Journal of Veterinary Sciences   18: 663-674 (Review)
Registered Authors
Fedorowska - Nowik, Natalia, Jakimiuk, Anna, Kasica, Natalia, Podlasz, Piotr
Keywords
zebrafish, veterinary, bacteria, viruses, fungi, metabolic, diseases
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Disease Models, Animal*
  • Gene Expression Regulation
  • Genetic Diseases, Inborn
  • Metabolic Diseases/veterinary
  • Mutation
  • Mycoses/veterinary
  • Parasitic Diseases, Animal/parasitology
  • Veterinary Medicine/methods*
  • Virus Diseases/veterinary
  • Virus Diseases/virology
  • Zebrafish*
PubMed
26618602 Full text @ Pol. J. Vet. Sci.
Abstract
The zebrafish (Danio rerio) has become known as an excellent model organism for studies of vertebrate biology, vertebrate genetics, embryonal development, diseases and drug screening. Nevertheless, there is still lack of detailed reports about usage of the zebrafish as a model in veterinary medicine. Comparing to other vertebrates, they can lay hundreds of eggs at weekly intervals, externally fertilized zebrafish embryos are accessible to observation and manipulation at all stages of their development, which makes possible to simplify the research techniques such as fate mapping, fluorescent tracer time-lapse lineage analysis and single cell transplantation. Although zebrafish are only 2.5 cm long, they are easy to maintain. Intraperitoneal and intracerebroventricular injections, blood sampling and measurement of food intake are possible to be carry out in adult zebrafish. Danio rerio is a useful animal model for neurobiology, developmental biology, drug research, virology, microbiology and genetics. A lot of diseases, for which the zebrafish is a perfect model organism, affect aquatic animals. For a part of them, like those caused by Mycobacterium marinum or Pseudoloma neutrophila, Danio rerio is a natural host, but the zebrafish is also susceptible to the most of fish diseases including Itch, Spring viraemia of carp and Infectious spleen and kidney necrosis. The zebrafish is commonly used in research of bacterial virulence. The zebrafish embryo allows for rapid, non-invasive and real time analysis of bacterial infections in a vertebrate host. Plenty of common pathogens can be examined using zebrafish model: Streptococcus iniae, Vibrio anguillarum or Listeria monocytogenes. The steps are taken to use the zebrafish also in fungal research, especially that dealing with Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans. Although, the zebrafish is used commonly as an animal model to study diseases caused by external agents, it is also useful in studies of metabolic disorders including fatty liver disease and diabetes. The zebrafish is also a valuable tool as a model in behavioral studies connected with feeding, predator evasion, habituation and memory or lateralized control of behavior. The aim of the present article is to familiarize the reader with the possibilities of Danio rerio as an experimental model for veterinary medicine.
Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping