Abstract
In recent years, small fishes such as zebrafish and medaka have been widely recognized as model animals. They have high homology in genetics and tissue structure with humans and unique features that mammalian model animals do not have, such as transparency of embryos and larvae, a small body size and ease of experiments, including genetic manipulation. Zebrafish and medaka have been used extensively in the field of neurology, especially to unveil the mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, and recently, these fishes have also been utilized to understand neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder. The turquoise killifish has emerged as a new and unique model animal, especially for ageing research due to its unique life cycle, and this fish also seems to be useful for age-related neurological diseases. These small fishes are excellent animal models for the analysis of human neurological disorders and are expected to play increasing roles in this field. Here, we introduce various applications of these model fishes to improve our understanding of human neurological disorders.
Highlights
When we think of model animals used in medical research, the typical animal is a mouse
Ease of Laboratory Management and Experimentation with Zebrafish, Medaka and Turquoise Killifish Neurodegeneration is a phenomenon characterized by the progressive loss of neurons, and Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are the Neurodegeneration is a phenomenon characterized by theThey progressive loss of neu- with major neurodegenerative diseases among humans
We have discussed the features of zebrafish, medaka and turquoise killifish in the laboratory and the actual analysis of neurodegenerative diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders using these small fishes
Summary
When we think of model animals used in medical research, the typical animal is a mouse. Throughout the history of science, many researchers have standardized and advanced experimental procedures using mice, including genetic techniques, biochemical analysis and behavioral analysis. Rats, flies and nematodes have a relatively long history as model animals. Small fishes such as zebrafish (Danio rerio), medaka (Oryzias latipes) and turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) are relative newcomers but are increasingly present (Table 1) [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]. This review outlines the characteristics of these small fishes, their relevance to humans, the benefits of using small fishes as model animals for neurological disorders and how small fishes are currently being used in research for neurodegenerative diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders.
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