International Journal of Molecular Sciences

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Dear Colleagues,

In the age of genome editing, the conservation of the development and function of blood and immune cells between humans and zebrafish has made zebrafish an important animal model for understanding human disease aetiology via the investigation of molecular pathways. Establishment of a relevant, accessible, and cheap animal model for exploring molecular pathways in vivo is a crucial step in investigating diseases. This could lead to tailored treatment regimens specific to the needs of the patient, improving their medical outcomes.

Dr Clifford Liongue’s research has added significantly to the understanding of cytokine receptor signalling via the JAK/STAT pathway in both blood and immune cells. Dr Liongue utilised genome editing techniques to establish a suite of customised zebrafish lines to aid in the understanding of cytokine receptor signalling-mediated disease aetiology in humans with a focus on leukaemias and lymphomas.

We are inviting novel research about the use of zebrafish models to study new pathways in biology.

Dr. Clifford Liongue
Guest Editor

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Keywords

cytokine
cytokine receptor
janus kinase
JAK
signal transducer and activator of transcription
STAT
suppressor of cytokine signalling
SOCS

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13 pages, 3819 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Knockout of sws2a and sws2b in Medaka (Oryzias latipes) Reveals Their Roles in Regulating Vision-Guided Behavior and Eye Development

by Ke Lu, Jiaqi Wu, Shulin Tang, Xiaodan Jia and Xu-Fang Liang

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(10), 8786; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24108786 - 15 May 2023

Viewed by 1196

Abstract

The medaka (Oryzias latipes) is an excellent vertebrate model for studying the development of the retina. Its genome database is complete, and the number of opsin genes is relatively small compared to zebrafish. Short wavelength sensitive 2 (sws2), a G-protein-coupled receptor expressed in the retina, has been lost in mammals, but its role in eye development in fish is still poorly understood. In this study, we established a sws2a and sws2b knockout medaka model by CRISPR/Cas9 technology. We discovered that medaka sws2a and sws2b are mainly expressed in the eyes and may be regulated by growth differentiation factor 6a (gdf6a). Compared with the WT, sws2a^−/− and sws2b^−/− mutant larvae displayed an increase in swimming speed during the changes from light to dark. We also observed that sws2a^−/− and sws2b^−/− larvae both swam faster than WT in the first 10 s of the 2 min light period. The enhanced vision-guided behavior in sws2a^−/− and sws2b^−/− medaka larvae may be related to the upregulation of phototransduction-related genes. Additionally, we also found that sws2b affects the expression of eye development genes, while sws2a is unaffected. Together, these findings indicate that sws2a and sws2b knockouts increase vision-guided behavior and phototransduction, but on the other hand, sws2b plays an important role in regulating eye development genes. This study provides data for further understanding of the role of sws2a and sws2b in medaka retina development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Zebrafish Models to Study New Pathways in Biology)

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18 pages, 4014 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Integrative Roles of Dopamine Pathway and Calcium Channels Reveal a Link between Schizophrenia and Opioid Use Disorder

by Siroshini K. Thiagarajan, Siew Ying Mok, Satoshi Ogawa, Ishwar S. Parhar and Pek Yee Tang

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(4), 4088; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24044088 - 17 Feb 2023

Viewed by 2335

Abstract

Several theories have been proposed to explain the mechanisms of substance use in schizophrenia. Brain neurons pose a potential to provide novel insights into the association between opioid addiction, withdrawal, and schizophrenia. Thus, we exposed zebrafish larvae at 2 days post-fertilization (dpf) to domperidone (DPM) and morphine, followed by morphine withdrawal. Drug-induced locomotion and social preference were assessed, while the level of dopamine and the number of dopaminergic neurons were quantified. In the brain tissue, the expression levels of genes associated with schizophrenia were measured. The effects of DMP and morphine were compared to vehicle control and MK-801, a positive control to mimic schizophrenia. Gene expression analysis revealed that α1C, α1Sa, α1Aa, drd2a, and th1 were up-regulated after 10 days of exposure to DMP and morphine, while th2 was down-regulated. These two drugs also increased the number of positive dopaminergic neurons and the total dopamine level but reduced the locomotion and social preference. The termination of morphine exposure led to the up-regulation of th2, drd2a, and c-fos during the withdrawal phase. Our integrated data implicate that the dopamine system plays a key role in the deficits in social behavior and locomotion that are common in the schizophrenia-like symptoms and opioid dependence. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Zebrafish Models to Study New Pathways in Biology)

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