Monoassociation with bacterial isolates reveals the role of colonization, community complexity and abundance on locomotor behavior in larval zebrafish.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Across taxa, animals with depleted intestinal microbiomes show disrupted behavioral phenotypes. Axenic (i.e., microbe-free) mice, zebrafish, and fruit flies exhibit increased locomotor behavior, or hyperactivity. The mechanism through which bacteria interact with host cells to trigger normal neurobehavioral development in larval zebrafish is not well understood. Here, we monoassociated zebrafish with either one of six different zebrafish-associated bacteria, mixtures of these host-associates, or with an environmental bacterial isolate.

Results

As predicted, the axenic cohort was hyperactive. Monoassociation with three different host-associated bacterial species, as well as with the mixtures, resulted in control-like locomotor behavior. Monoassociation with one hos

SUBMITTER: Weitekamp CA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7818562 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature