Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 11, 2026
Modeling Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders in Zebrafish to Characterize the Impact of an Adverse Embryonic Environment on Adult Social Behavior
Published on: February 9, 2024
The side-by-side exploratory test: a simple automated protocol for the evaluation of adult zebrafish behavior
Isabel C Schaefer1, Anna M Siebel, Angelo L Piato
1aNeurochemistry and Psychopharmacology Laboratory bDevelopment Biology Laboratory, Cellular and Molecular Biology Department, Faculty of Bioscience, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul cNational Institute of Science and Technology in Translational Medicine dPharmacology Department, Basic Health Sciences Insitute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
Abstract:
The assessment of shoaling in adult zebrafish is technically difficult, but important, given their social nature. The present study aimed to characterize a new protocol using simple automated tracking software to evaluate general behavior and social interaction simultaneously. To this end, we used a single tank with a central transparent glass division and placed one zebrafish on each side for 5 min. This strategy allows fish to interact visually at the same time that individual automated evaluation of behavior can be easily performed. Our results showed that, when two fish are placed side-by-side, there is an increase in their height in the tank compared with isolated fish and they remain close to each other. The pharmacological treatments with benzodiazepines (bromazepam and clonazepam) and the serotonergic drugs buspirone, fluoxetine, and escitalopram did not affect locomotion at the concentrations tested, except for the highest concentration of buspirone. Nevertheless, benzodiazepines increased interfish distance (i.e. reduced shoaling behavior) and serotonergic drugs elevated height in the tank. These results support the use of the side-by-side exploratory test for behavioral studies with the zebrafish, including high-throughput behavioral screening for antidepressants and anxiolytics.
