Plating larval zebrafish prior to the day of experimentation has no impact on spontaneous swimming and startle responses.

ABSTRACT: Behavioural testing in larval zebrafish often involves pipetting the larvae into well plates for individual testing. Transferring larvae into plates the day prior to experimentation can increase efficiency of testing. Furthermore, pharmacological and toxicological studies can require a prolonged dosing period requiring the larvae to be pre-plated into the well plate the day prior to experimentation. Here, we compared the behavioural impact of pre-plating larval zebrafish at 4 days post-fertilization (dpf) to fish transferred at 5 dpf on the day of testing. Motion-tracking software was used to examine locomotion and zone preference, and responses to light, dark, and mechanical startle stimuli. We found no significant differences in distance moved, time spent in the thigmotaxis zone (outside

SUBMITTER: Harper MMM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12686660 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature