Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 5, 2025
Small Molecule Screening and Toxicity Testing in Early-stage Zebrafish Larvae
Published on: March 7, 2025
Protocol for image-based small-molecule screen to identify neuroprotective compounds for dopaminergic neurons in
Gha-Hyun Jeffrey Kim1, Min Chen1, Sharie Kwok2
1Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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Whole-organism-based screen holds promise for discovering biologically active compounds. However, high-content imaging is challenging due to the difficulty of positioning live animals and individual variability of neuron counts. Here, we present a protocol to identify neuroprotective compounds for dopaminergic neurons in zebrafish using an image-based small-molecule screen. We describe steps for raising larvae, agarose embedding, and treatment to induce neurodegeneration. We then detail procedures for live confocal imaging, image processing, and data analysis. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Kim et al. (2021).1.
