In the past decade, a small tropical vertebrate fish, zebrafish, has rapidly gained the interest of research laboratories worldwide as a model system. This topic will provide updated perspectives on all fields of zebrafish research from experts gathering at the 5th Zebrafish Principal Investigators Meeting in Trento, 20-23 March 2018. The community of researchers using zebrafish is rapidly expanding, necessitating a clear plan for how to tackle central questions that remain a challenge in the field and providing inspiration for future studies. This is the aim of the workshop and the Frontiers Research Topic will provide a platform for dissemination of novel ideas arising from this meeting.
Animal models have traditionally played a crucial role in improving our understanding of brain pathogenesis. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) have generated considerable discoveries in the areas of genetics, embryology, endocrinology, and neuroscience. Zebrafish Models in Neurobehavioral Research emphasizes the growing importance of zebrafish in neurobehavioral research and portrays an extensive, thorough perspective on the emergence of zebrafish as robust and translational models. Written by leading international experts, the book covers major topics ranging from stress to learned recognition of environment, encompassing a wide spectrum of the utility of zebrafish within neurobiological disciplines. The chapters provide authoritative reviews of many zebrafish paradigms commonly used in the field today. This book will be a useful guide for zebrafish researchers, and will complement another related book from the popular Neuromethods series, Zebrafish Neurobehavioral Protocols. Comprehensive and up-to-date, Zebrafish Models in Neurobehavioral Research serves as an ideal resource for scientists new to the field as well as for established researchers seeking valuable insight into the growing utility of zebrafish in neuroscience.
The formation of blood vessels is an essential aspect of embryogenesis in vertebrates. It is a central feature of numerous post-embryonic processes, including tissue and organ growth and regeneration. It is also part of the pathology of tumour formation and certain inflammatory conditions. In recent years, comprehension of the molecular genetics of blood vessel formation has progressed enormously and studies in vertebrate model systems, especially the mouse and the zebrafish, have identified a common set of molecules and processes that are conserved throughout vertebrate embryogenesis while, in addition, highlighting aspects that may differ between different animal groups. The discovery in the past decade of the crucial role of new blood vessel formation for the development of cancers has generated great interest in angiogenesis (the formation of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones), with its major implications for potential cancer-control strategies. In addition, there are numerous situations where therapeutic treatments either require or would be assisted by vasculogenesis (the de novo formation of blood vessels). In particular, post-stroke therapies could include treatments that stimulate neovascularization of the affected tissues. The development of such treatments, however, requires thoroughly understanding the developmental properties of endothelial cells and the basic biology of blood vessel formation. While there are many books on angiogenesis, this unique book focuses on exactly this basic biology and explores blood vessel formation in connection with tissue development in a range of animal models. It includes detailed discussions of relevant cell biology, genetics and embryogenesis of blood vessel formation and presents insights into the cross-talk between developing blood vessels and other tissues. With contributions from vascular biologists, cell biologists and developmental biologists, a comprehensive and highly interdisciplinary volume is the outcome.
Temperature profoundly impacts both the phenotypes and distributions of organisms. These thermal effects exert strong selective pressures on behaviour, physiology and life history when environmental temperatures vary over space and time. Despite temperature's significance, progress toward a quantitative theory of thermal adaptation has lagged behind empirical descriptions of patterns and processes. In this book, the author draws on theory from the more general discipline of evolutionary ecology to establish a framework for interpreting empirical studies of thermal biology. This novel synthesis of theoretical and empirical work generates new insights about the process of thermal adaptation and points the way towards a more general theory. The threat of rapid climatic change on a global scale provides a stark reminder of the challenges that remain for thermal biologists and adds a sense of urgency to this book's mission. Thermal Adaptation will benefit anyone who seeks to understand the relationship between environmental variation and phenotypic evolution. The book focuses on quantitative evolutionary models at the individual, population and community levels, and successfully integrates this theory with modern empirical approaches. By providing a synthetic overview of evolutionary thermal biology, this accessible text will appeal to both graduate students and established researchers in the fields of comparative, ecological, and evolutionary physiology. It will also interest the broader audience of professional ecologists and evolutionary biologists who require a comprehensive review of this topic, as well as those researchers working on the applied problems of regional and global climate change.
This volume focuses on defining the unique attributes of using the zebrafish cancer model for discovering important pathways and potential drug targets for the treatment of human cancers. Using the zebrafish model, the volume explores oncogene and tumor suppressor discovery, chemical genetic approaches, genomics, epigenetics, cancer imaging, and cell transplantation. Contributed chapters come from the most prominent laboratories working in this field, which provides a unique perspective on zebrafish models from a wide spectrum of the research community. In addition, the book offers a detailed analysis of the most current research in the area for specific zebrafish cancer models, including T cell leukemia, rhabdomyosarcoma, liver and pancreatic cancer, melanoma, neuroblastoma, germ cell tumors, and malignant peripheral sheath tumors. A chapter is also dedicated to the development and utilization of other piscine models of cancer. The compilation of chapters in the volume culminates into a comprehensive and definitive text on zebrafish and cancer, providing a much needed resource on the powerful attributes of the zebrafish model system.
Authored by leading experts in the field, this book provides the first comprehensive overview of the mechanisms of early patterning and morphogenesis in zebrafish. It summarizes the current knowledge and the key questions for the next decade of research.
This open access book presents recent advances in the pure sciences that are of significance in the quest for alternatives to the use of animals in research and describes a variety of practical applications of the three key guiding principles for the more ethical use of animals in experiments – replacement, reduction, and refinement, collectively known as the 3Rs. Important examples from across the world of implementation of the 3Rs in the testing of cosmetics, chemicals, pesticides, and biologics, including vaccines, are described, with additional information on relevant regulations. The coverage also encompasses emerging approaches to alternative tests and the 3Rs. The book is based on the most informative contributions delivered at the Asian Congress 2016 on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences. It will be of value for those working in R&D, for graduate students, and for educators in various fields, including the pharmaceutical and cosmetic sciences, pharmacology, toxicology, and animal welfare. The free, open access distribution of Alternatives to Animal Testing is enabled by the Creative Commons Attribution license in International version 4: CC BY 4.0.
This cutting-edge resource includes up-to-date information on zebrafish physiology and the tools used to study it, not only as a model species for studies of other vertebrates but with application for studies of human disease and aquatic toxicology. The utility of zebrafish for physiological research is based on several key features including i) a "fully" sequenced genome, ii) rapid (~3 month) generation times), iii) their capacity to produce large numbers of externally fertilized eggs, iv) optical transparency of embryos and larvae, and v) the applicability of reverse and forward genetics to assess gene function. Gene knockdown in embryos and the production of transgenic strains are now standard techniques being used to assess physiology. This book will be of keen interest not only to the typical readers of Fish Physiology but also to biomedical researchers, toxicologists and developmental biologists. - Integrates and synthesizes the biology of the zebrafish under one cover - Features contributions from the leading researchers in their fields - Reaches a wider audience of researchers and biologists with its broad inclusion of subjects relating to zebrafish physiology
Bringing together a distinguished interdisciplinary team of contributors, this volume provides a comprehensive exploration of translational toxicology—a systematic approach to developing therapeutic interventions that can protect against, mitigate, or reverse the effects of exposures. In particular, the book addresses modes of action and biomarkers, developmental risks of exposures, and potential translational toxicology therapeutics. The result is a compelling application of developmental toxicology in a new therapeutic discipline that is destined to become part of standard medical practice. Translational Toxicology: Defining a New Therapeutic Discipline is an essential text for regulatory authorities, scientists, and physicians who are concerned with environmental exposures, public health, nutrition, and pharmaceutical research and development. Basic science, epidemiological, and clinical investigators will also find this book a significant resource.
