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Determining the function of zebrafish epithalamic asymmetry.

Lucilla Facchin1, Harold A Burgess, Mahmud Siddiqi

  • 1Department of Embryology, Carnegie Institution for Science, 3520 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA.

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences
|December 10, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Zebrafish brain asymmetry, specifically the parapineal organ, influences behavior. Disrupting this left-right asymmetry impacts swimming initiation and navigation, suggesting a link to motivation pathways.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Behavioral Genetics

Background:

  • Zebrafish (Danio rerio) exhibit significant left-right (L-R) brain asymmetry, particularly in the epithalamus.
  • The parapineal organ and habenular nuclei are key structures involved in this L-R asymmetry.
  • Nodal signaling pathways are crucial for establishing and maintaining this epithalamic bias.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the behavioral consequences of randomized epithalamic asymmetry in zebrafish larvae.
  • To determine if altered brain asymmetry affects motor behaviors and responses to lateralized stimuli.
  • To explore the role of the habenular region in motivation and reward pathways.

Main Methods:

  • Utilizing fluorescent transgenic reporters for pre-selection of zebrafish larvae.

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  • Perturbing Nodal signaling, specifically the southpaw gene, to randomize epithalamic asymmetry.
  • Assessing various motor behaviors, including swimming initiation, distance navigated, and responses to lateralized stimuli.

    • Main Results:

    • Randomization of epithalamic asymmetry did not affect general motor behaviors or responses to lateralized stimuli.
    • Larvae with parapineal reversals exhibited significant deficits in swimming initiation.
    • Total distance navigated was also significantly reduced in larvae with reversed epithalamic asymmetry.

    Conclusions:

    • Epithalamic asymmetry, while not affecting all behaviors, plays a critical role in initiating locomotion.
    • The findings suggest a connection between habenular function, brain asymmetry, and the motivation/reward system.
    • Zebrafish larvae serve as a valuable model for studying the neuroanatomical basis of behavior and motivation.