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The Zebrafish Tol2 System: A Modular and Flexible Gateway-Based Transgenesis Approach
Published on: November 30, 2022
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Transgenic fish systems and their application in ecotoxicology
Okhyun Lee1, Jon M Green, Charles R Tyler
1Biosciences, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter , Exeter, Devon , UK.
Critical Reviews in Toxicology
|November 15, 2014
Summary
Transgenic fish, particularly zebrafish, offer advanced ecotoxicology tools for assessing chemical impacts. These models provide real-time, multi-target analyses of environmental toxicology, enhancing our understanding of chemical effects on organisms.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Toxicology
- Genetics
- Aquaculture
Background:
- Transgenic fish represent a recent advancement for understanding genetic mechanisms and developmental processes.
- They offer integrated systems for assessing chemical health impacts in ecotoxicology.
- Zebrafish (Daniorerio) are favored transgenic models due to fecundity, embryo transparency, and genetic resources.
Purpose of the Study:
- To illustrate techniques for generating transgenic zebrafish.
- To assess the progress in developing and applying transgenic fish for environmental toxicology studies.
- To provide a viewpoint on future development opportunities in this field.
Main Methods:
- Microinjection of transgenes into fertilized zebrafish eggs.
- Utilizing transposon and meganuclease for stable transgenic fish line production.
- Employing the GAL4-UAS system with promoter-controlled GAL4 and UAS-fused fluorescent markers.
Main Results:
- Transgenic fish models have been developed to study toxicity of heavy metals, oxidative stress, and organic chemicals via specific pathways (AHR, thyroid, glucocorticoid, estrogenicity).
- Current models show variable sensitivity, with few detecting environmentally relevant exposure levels.
- The potential for real-time, multi-target chemical effect analyses in intact organisms is significant.
Conclusions:
- Transgenic zebrafish are valuable tools for environmental toxicology research.
- Further development is needed to enhance model sensitivity for detecting environmentally relevant exposures.
- These systems hold considerable potential for future ecotoxicological assessments.
