Forward Genetic Analysis of Visual Behavior in Zebrafish

Autor: Ann M. Wehman, Karin Finger-Baier, Ethan Gahtan, Linda M Nevin, Patrick S. Page-McCaw, Akira Muto, Tong Xiao, Jeremy N. Kay, Nathan J. Gosse, Michael B. Orger, Wendy Staub, Herwig Baier, Matthew C. Smear
Rok vydání: 2005
Předmět:
Nervous system
Cancer Research
lcsh:QH426-470
genetic structures
Genetic Linkage
Mutant
Morphogenesis
Mutagenesis (molecular biology technique)
optokinetic response
Visual processing
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Genetics
medicine
optomotor response
Animals
Photoreceptor Cells
Ocular Physiological Phenomena
Molecular Biology
Zebrafish
visual behavior
Vision
Ocular

Genetics (clinical)
Ecology
Evolution
Behavior and Systematics

030304 developmental biology
0303 health sciences
Behavior
Animal

biology
zebrafish
biology.organism_classification
Phenotype
Axons
lcsh:Genetics
medicine.anatomical_structure
Gene Expression Regulation
Genetic Techniques
Mutagenesis
Ethylnitrosourea
forward genetic screen
030217 neurology & neurosurgery
Research Article
Visual phototransduction
Zdroj: PLoS Genetics
Muto, Akira; Orger, Michael B; Wehman, Ann M; Smear, Matthew C; Kay, Jeremy N; Page-McCaw, Patrick S; et al.(2005). Forward genetic analysis of visual behavior in zebrafish. PLOS Genetics, 1(5), 575-588. UC San Francisco: Retrieved from: http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/15s128vm
PLoS Genetics, Vol 1, Iss 5, p e66 (2005)
ISSN: 1553-7404
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.0010066
Popis: The visual system converts the distribution and wavelengths of photons entering the eye into patterns of neuronal activity, which then drive motor and endocrine behavioral responses. The gene products important for visual processing by a living and behaving vertebrate animal have not been identified in an unbiased fashion. Likewise, the genes that affect development of the nervous system to shape visual function later in life are largely unknown. Here we have set out to close this gap in our understanding by using a forward genetic approach in zebrafish. Moving stimuli evoke two innate reflexes in zebrafish larvae, the optomotor and the optokinetic response, providing two rapid and quantitative tests to assess visual function in wild-type (WT) and mutant animals. These behavioral assays were used in a high-throughput screen, encompassing over half a million fish. In almost 2,000 F2 families mutagenized with ethylnitrosourea, we discovered 53 recessive mutations in 41 genes. These new mutations have generated a broad spectrum of phenotypes, which vary in specificity and severity, but can be placed into only a handful of classes. Developmental phenotypes include complete absence or abnormal morphogenesis of photoreceptors, and deficits in ganglion cell differentiation or axon targeting. Other mutations evidently leave neuronal circuits intact, but disrupt phototransduction, light adaptation, or behavior-specific responses. Almost all of the mutants are morphologically indistinguishable from WT, and many survive to adulthood. Genetic linkage mapping and initial molecular analyses show that our approach was effective in identifying genes with functions specific to the visual system. This collection of zebrafish behavioral mutants provides a novel resource for the study of normal vision and its genetic disorders.
Synopsis While many genes have previously been implicated in the development and function of the vertebrate central nervous system, no systematic attempt has been made to build a comprehensive catalog of genes important for its behavioral output. Motion evokes two visual reflexes in zebrafish larvae, the optomotor and the optokinetic response. After mutagenesis with ethylnitrosourea and inbreeding over two generations, the authors of this study searched for point mutations disrupting either, or both, of these innate responses. In almost 2,000 F2 families, they discovered 53 recessive mutations in 41 genetic loci. Developmental phenotypes included abnormal differentiation or absence of photoreceptors, and deficits in retinal ganglion cell differentiation or axon targeting. Physiological phenotypes include disruptions of phototransduction, light adaptation, and behavior-specific responses. Most of the mutants are morphologically indistinguishable from wild type, and many survive to adulthood. Genetic linkage mapping and initial molecular analyses revealed that the authors' approach identified genes with functions specific to the visual system. This collection of zebrafish behavioral mutants provides a novel resource for studying the genetic architecture of the vertebrate central nervous system.
Databáze: OpenAIRE