Abstract
PurposeThe zebrafish is an established animal model commonly used in biological, neuroscience, and genetic research. We have developed a new light stimulating system using white light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to elicit ERGs from zebrafish larvae. The purpose of this study was to record full-field ERGs and to evaluate the inter-trial reliability of the ERGs recorded with our system from zebrafish larvae.MethodsThe stimulating device used white LEDs that were attached to a stereomicroscope, and the location of the recording electrode on the cornea could be monitored while the eye was being stimulated. Full-field scotopic and photopic ERGs were recorded from larvae at the age of 5–7 days post-fertilization (dpf). Intensity–response curves were constructed from the ERGs. Inter-trial reliability of the ERGs recorded by our system was evaluated.ResultsThis stimulating system could be used for efficient and reliable ERG recordings from 5–7 dpf larvae. The amplitudes, implicit times, and the waveforms of the scotopic and photopic ERGs were similar to those reported in earlier studies. Inter-trial reliability of the amplitudes of the photopic ERG b-waves was excellent with an intra-class correlation coefficient of 0.98.ConclusionWe conclude that this new light stimulation system using white LEDs attached to a stereomicroscope will be helpful in recording reliable ERGs from zebrafish larvae.
Highlights
The zebrafish is a well-established and useful animal model for biological, neuroscience, and genetic studies of development because they are small, easy to breed, translucent, and inexpensive [1]
Inter-trial reliability of the amplitudes of the photopic ERG b-waves was excellent with an intra-class correlation coefficient of 0.98. We conclude that this new light stimulation system using white light-emitting diodes (LEDs) attached to a stereomicroscope will be helpful in recording reliable ERGs from zebrafish larvae
In previous zebrafish studies using ERGs to assess the physiology of the retina, the light stimulation methods varied, and many authors have used light mainly from a fiber optic system that was placed in front of the eye that is being evaluated [6, 13,14,15,16,17]
Summary
The zebrafish is a well-established and useful animal model for biological, neuroscience, and genetic studies of development because they are small, easy to breed, translucent, and inexpensive [1]. For studies on the visual system, different genetic varieties and evaluation methods have been used to assess the properties of the visual system [2,3,4,5]. Electroretinography (ERG) has been used to evaluate the physiological properties of the retina of many different animals including humans, and the ERGs that are elicited by light stimulation represent the electrical potential changes in the different neurons in the retina [12]. In previous zebrafish studies using ERGs to assess the physiology of the retina, the light stimulation methods varied, and many authors have used light mainly from a fiber optic system that was placed in front of the eye that is being evaluated [6, 13,14,15,16,17]. Because the intensity of the light on the retina and the illuminated retinal area can change by the position of the zebrafish relative to the fiber optic bundle, this variability can affect the results
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