Behavioral responses of zebrafish depend on the type of threatening chemical cues.

Murilo S Abreu, Ana Cristina V Giacomini, Darlan Gusso, Gessi Koakoski, Thiago A Oliveira, Alessandra Marqueze, Rodrigo Egydio Barreto, Leonardo J G Barcellos

Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology 2016 Dec

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In fish, defensive reactions are induced by different chemical cues that emanate from sense-related stresses [physical, chemical, and visual (visual contact with predator)] or food stresses (acute fasting and chronic food restriction). Using a shuttle box with a two-chamber unmixed laminar flow that allowed fish to remain or flee from a chemical cue, we showed that the avoidance response depended on the type of the chemical cue. We show that zebrafish (Danio rerio) retreated from water conditioned with chemical cues released by chemically or physically stressed fish and acutely fasted fish, but not from water with cues from fish experiencing visual contact with predatory fish or fish suffering from chronic food restriction. Our data reinforced the hypothesis that fish use a combination of information and the context of the situation to determine their evasion strategy.

Citation

Murilo S Abreu, Ana Cristina V Giacomini, Darlan Gusso, Gessi Koakoski, Thiago A Oliveira, Alessandra Marqueze, Rodrigo Egydio Barreto, Leonardo J G Barcellos. Behavioral responses of zebrafish depend on the type of threatening chemical cues. Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology. 2016 Dec;202(12):895-901