PUBLICATION

Neoplasia and neoplasm-associated lesions in laboratory colonies of zebrafish emphasizing key influences of diet and aquaculture system design

Authors
Spitsbergen, J.M., Buhler, D.R., and Peterson, T.S.
ID
ZDB-PUB-130220-9
Date
2012
Source
ILAR journal   53(2): 114-125 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Buhler, Donald R., Spitsbergen, Jan
Keywords
Danio rerio, diet, hepatocyte megalocytosis, husbandry, naturally occurring carcinogen, neoplasia, nonprotocol-induced variation, zebrafish
MeSH Terms
  • Animal Husbandry*
  • Animals
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Fish Diseases/pathology
  • Fish Diseases/physiopathology
  • Hepatocytes/pathology
  • Neoplasms/pathology*
  • Neoplasms/physiopathology
  • Zebrafish
PubMed
23382343 Full text @ ILAR (Institute for Laboratory Animal Research)
Abstract

During the past decade, the zebrafish has emerged as a leading model for mechanistic cancer research because of its sophisticated genetic and genomic resources, its tractability for tissue targeting of transgene expression, its efficiency for forward genetic approaches to cancer model development, and its cost effectiveness for enhancer and suppressor screens once a cancer model is established. However, in contrast with other laboratory animal species widely used as cancer models, much basic cancer biology information is lacking in zebrafish. As yet, data are not published regarding dietary influences on neoplasm incidences in zebrafish. Little information is available regarding spontaneous tumor incidences or histologic types in wild-type lines of zebrafish. So far, a comprehensive database documenting the full spectrum of neoplasia in various organ systems and tissues is not available for zebrafish as it is for other intensely studied laboratory animal species. This article confirms that, as in other species, diet and husbandry can profoundly influence tumor incidences and histologic spectra in zebrafish. We show that in many laboratory colonies wild-type lines of zebrafish exhibit elevated neoplasm incidences and neoplasm-associated lesions such as heptocyte megalocytosis. We present experimental evidence showing that certain diet and water management regimens can result in high incidences of neoplasia and neoplasm-associated lesions. We document the wide array of benign and malignant neoplasms affecting nearly every organ, tissue, and cell type in zebrafish, in some cases as a spontaneous aging change, and in other cases due to carcinogen treatment or genetic manipulation.

Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping