PUBLICATION
Rest mutant zebrafish swim erratically and display atypical spatial preferences
- Authors
- Moravec, C.E., Li, E., Maaswinkel, H., Kritzer, M.F., Weng, W., Sirotkin, H.I.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-150226-7
- Date
- 2015
- Source
- Behavioural brain research 284: 238-48 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Maaswinkel, Hans, Sirotkin, Howard
- Keywords
- Rest/Nrsf, erratic swimming, locomotion, novel environment, zebrafish
- MeSH Terms
-
- Aging/physiology
- Animals
- Exploratory Behavior/physiology
- Female
- Genetic Fitness/physiology
- Male
- Motor Activity/physiology
- Mutation
- Repressor Proteins/genetics
- Repressor Proteins/metabolism*
- Sex Characteristics
- Space Perception/physiology*
- Spatial Behavior/physiology
- Swimming/physiology*
- Zebrafish
- PubMed
- 25712696 Full text @ Behav. Brain Res.
Citation
Moravec, C.E., Li, E., Maaswinkel, H., Kritzer, M.F., Weng, W., Sirotkin, H.I. (2015) Rest mutant zebrafish swim erratically and display atypical spatial preferences. Behavioural brain research. 284:238-48.
Abstract
The Rest/Nrsf transcriptional repressor modulates expression of a large set of neural specific genes. Many of these target genes have well characterized roles in nervous system processes including development, plasticity and synaptogenesis. However, the impact of Rest-mediated transcriptional regulation on behavior has been understudied due in part to the embryonic lethality of the mouse knockout. To investigate the requirement for Rest in behavior, we employed the zebrafish rest mutant to explore a range of behaviors in adults and larva. Adult rest mutants of both sexes showed abnormal behaviors in a novel environment including increased vertical swimming, erratic swimming patterns and a proclivity for the tank walls. Adult males also had diminished reproductive success. At 6 days post fertilization (dpf), rest mutant larva were hypoactive, but displayed normal evoked responses to light and sound stimuli. Overall, these results provide evidence that rest dysfunction produces atypical swimming patterns and preferences in adults, and reduced locomotor activity in larvae. This study provides the first behavioral analysis of rest mutants and reveals specific behaviors that are modulated by Rest.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping