YSM Dean's Workshop: "Modeling Human Disease Using the Yale Zebrafish Phenotyping Core"

The newly established Yale Zebrafish Phenotyping Core now makes it possible for Yale researchers to study novel disease-causing mutations in a new vertebrate model. Zebrafish present a compelling alterna-tive to other model systems given their high fertility, large brood size, small larvae, rapid maturation, and physical transparency. Behavioral phenotypes com-pare against well-established zebrafish behaviors for swimming, learning, sleep, vision, avoidance, olfaction, reward, and social preference. It is also straightforward to visualize molecular phenotypes in zebrafish using microscopy with genetically encoded fluorescent reporters, in vivo stains, and immunohistochemical stains. Their small size makes high throughput screens accessible in zebrafish to identify small molecules protective in disease models, a further application for human disease modeling.

This workshop spotlights investigators at Yale currently using the core or the zebrafish model system to illustrate its power. Presenters will describe their applications involving zebrafish models in the fields of cell biology, genetics, cardiovascular research, and neuroscience.