Elevated sensitivity of capn3b−/− (rnaless) mutant to cholinesterase inhibitor treatment. (A) Birefringence analysis of wild-type and capn3b−/− (rnaless) mutant embryos after the control treatment or with increasing concentrations (0.3, 0.5, and 0.75 µM) of azinphos-methyl (APM). Images of embryos with normal and abnormal tail musculature for each genotype. The combined numbers out of the total analyzed are shown in the lower right-hand corner of the representative images. (B) Plot of the percentages of embryos of different genotypes with abnormal muscle structure (abnormality percentage) for different treatments. Significance is calculated using the Cochran–Mantel–Haenszel test using all available counts in three-dimensional contingency tables. “***” indicates p-values < 0.001. (C) Whole mount in situ hybridization for hspb11 muscle activity marker in control and 0.3 µM APM-treated wild-type and capn3b−/− (rnaless) mutant embryos from 2 to 3 dpf. Groups of 40 embryos were treated and analyzed, resulting in near-uniform labeling patterns shown in representative images (dpf = days post-fertilization).
