Advancements in zebrafish applications for 21st century toxicology

Abstract

The zebrafish model is the only available high-throughput vertebrate assessment system, and it is uniquely suited for studies of in vivo cell biology. A sequenced and annotated genome has revealed a large degree of evolutionary conservation in comparison to the human genome. Due to our shared evolutionary history, the anatomical and physiological features of fish are highly homologous to humans, which facilitates studies relevant to human health. In addition, zebrafish provide a very unique vertebrate data stream that allows researchers to anchor hypotheses at the biochemical, genetic, and cellular levels to observations at the structural, functional, and behavioral level in a high-throughput format. In this review, we will draw heavily from toxicological studies to highlight advances in zebrafish high-throughput systems. Breakthroughs in transgenic/reporter lines and methods for genetic manipulation, such as the CRISPR-Cas9 system, will be comprised of reports across diverse disciplines.

Toxicological Risk Assessment of Emerging Nanomaterials: Cytotoxicity, Cellular Uptake, Effects on Biogenesis and Cell Organelle Activity, Acute Toxicity and Biodistribution of Oxide Nanoparticles

“…Given its many advantages, zebrafish is now a recognized model for toxicological and biomedical assays [74][75][76][77]. The main advantages of this species are rapid development, external fertilization, easy observation of all developmental stages, small size, transparency of the embryos and larvae, large number of embryos, ease of maintenance and close contact with surrounding medium (water) allowing easy interface with materials.…”

Zebrafish as Toxicological model for screening and recapitulate human diseases

“…Derived from its use, have been reported comparable results to the data obtained with higher models [14][15][16] . This manuscript surveys recent studies testing the cardiotoxicity of drugs used to treat pathologies in different animal models, identifying as early as feasibly possible potential safety liabilities of drugs selected for human evaluation [17] .…”

Editorial: Special Issue “Effect-related evaluation of anthropogenic trace substances—concepts for genotoxicity, neurotoxicity and endocrine effects”

“…The new strategy uses in vitro testing on human cells allowing a prediction of the potential in vivo effects by identification of toxicological key mechanisms. In practice, this approach is based on "High-Throughput-Screening" (HTS) strategies (Garcia et al 2016) and the "Adverse Outcome Pathway" (AOP) concept (Ankley et al 2010;Russom et al 2014;Villeneuve et al 2014a, b The implementation of this strategy allows toxicity testing beyond environmentally irrelevant high-dosage studies. Substance patterns of anthropogenic trace substances identified so far provide evidence of exposure in the low-dose ranges.…”