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Updated: Jan 14, 2026
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Light Sheet Microscopy of Fast Cardiac Dynamics in Zebrafish Embryos
Published on: August 13, 2021
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Functional Cardiac Imaging in Zebrafish Embryos Using Standard Microscopy and Video Analysis: Applications in
Nikola Mitovic1, Sanjin Kovacevic2, Jelena Nesovic Ostojic2
1Medical Faculty, Department of Pathophysiology, University of Belgrade; nikolamitovic@gmail.com.
Journal of Visualized Experiments : Jove
|October 27, 2025
Summary
This study introduces a simple zebrafish embryo protocol to measure heart function using light microscopy. The method accurately assesses cardiac performance and detects cardiotoxicity in developing zebrafish.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Research
- Developmental Biology
- Toxicology
Background:
- Zebrafish embryos are valuable models for cardiovascular research due to genetic homology with humans and developmental transparency.
- Assessing cardiac function in early development is crucial for understanding congenital heart defects and cardiotoxicity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a standardized, accessible protocol for evaluating zebrafish embryo cardiac morphology and function at 96 hours post-fertilization (hpf).
- To enable quantitative assessment of cardiac performance using brightfield light microscopy and open-source software.
Main Methods:
- Embryo collection, morphological screening, and immobilization in agarose.
- Video recording of beating zebrafish hearts and image-based analysis of cardiac parameters (ventricular dimensions, heart rate, ejection fraction, cardiac output).
- Utilizing open-source software (ImageJ, Zembryo Analyzer) for geometric approximations and calculations.
Main Results:
- The protocol allows for reproducible measurement of key cardiac parameters in zebrafish embryos.
- Healthy embryos exhibited normal cardiac function, while cadmium-exposed embryos showed impaired morphology and significantly reduced cardiac output.
- Demonstrated the utility of the method in detecting developmental cardiotoxicity.
Conclusions:
- This protocol provides a cost-effective and non-invasive method for in vivo cardiac assessment in zebrafish.
- It is suitable for laboratories with limited resources and for high-throughput screening of cardiac function and cardiotoxicity.
