Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae
In this study we have assessed the effects of increased cortisol levels during early embryonic development on immune function in zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae. Fertilized eggs were exposed to either a cortisol-containing, a dexamethasone-containing (to stimulate the glucocorticoid receptor selectiv...
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doaj-b6aebad780dd47548b025a0642479c8c2020-11-25T02:15:57ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Immunology1664-32242020-04-011110.3389/fimmu.2020.00727519401Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) LarvaeRuud van den Bos0Suzanne Cromwijk1Katharina Tschigg2Joep Althuizen3Jan Zethof4Robert Whelan5Gert Flik6Marcel Schaaf7Department of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute of Water and Wetland Research, Faculty of Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, NetherlandsDepartment of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute of Water and Wetland Research, Faculty of Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, NetherlandsDepartment of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute of Water and Wetland Research, Faculty of Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, NetherlandsDepartment of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute of Water and Wetland Research, Faculty of Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, NetherlandsDepartment of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute of Water and Wetland Research, Faculty of Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, NetherlandsAnimal Sciences and Health Cluster, Institute of Biology, Leiden University, Leiden, NetherlandsDepartment of Animal Ecology and Physiology, Institute of Water and Wetland Research, Faculty of Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, NetherlandsAnimal Sciences and Health Cluster, Institute of Biology, Leiden University, Leiden, NetherlandsIn this study we have assessed the effects of increased cortisol levels during early embryonic development on immune function in zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae. Fertilized eggs were exposed to either a cortisol-containing, a dexamethasone-containing (to stimulate the glucocorticoid receptor selectively) or a control medium for 6 h post-fertilization (0–6 hpf). First, we measured baseline expression of a number of immune-related genes (socs3a, mpeg1.1, mpeg1.2, and irg1l) 5 days post-fertilization (dpf) in larvae of the AB and TL strain to assess the effectiveness of our exposure procedure and potential strain differences. Cortisol and dexamethasone strongly up-regulated baseline expression of these genes independent of strain. The next series of experiments were therefore carried out in larvae of the AB strain only. We measured neutrophil/macrophage recruitment following tail fin amputation (performed at 3 dpf) and phenotypical changes as well as survival following LPS-induced sepsis (150 μg/ml; 4–5 dpf). Dexamethasone, but not cortisol, exposure at 0–6 hpf enhanced neutrophil recruitment 4 h post tail fin amputation. Cortisol and dexamethasone exposure at 0–6 hpf led to a milder phenotype (e.g., less tail fin damage) and enhanced survival following LPS challenge compared to control exposure. Gene-expression analysis showed accompanying differences in transcript abundance of tlr4bb, cxcr4a, myd88, il1β, and il10. These data show that early-life exposure to cortisol, which may be considered to be a model or proxy of maternal stress, induces an adaptive response to immune challenges, which seems mediated via the glucocorticoid receptor.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fimmu.2020.00727/fullcortisolglucocorticoid receptorzebrafishlarvaetail fin regenerationlipopolysaccharide |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Ruud van den Bos Suzanne Cromwijk Katharina Tschigg Joep Althuizen Jan Zethof Robert Whelan Gert Flik Marcel Schaaf |
spellingShingle |
Ruud van den Bos Suzanne Cromwijk Katharina Tschigg Joep Althuizen Jan Zethof Robert Whelan Gert Flik Marcel Schaaf Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae Frontiers in Immunology cortisol glucocorticoid receptor zebrafish larvae tail fin regeneration lipopolysaccharide |
author_facet |
Ruud van den Bos Suzanne Cromwijk Katharina Tschigg Joep Althuizen Jan Zethof Robert Whelan Gert Flik Marcel Schaaf |
author_sort |
Ruud van den Bos |
title |
Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae |
title_short |
Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae |
title_full |
Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae |
title_fullStr |
Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae |
title_full_unstemmed |
Early Life Glucocorticoid Exposure Modulates Immune Function in Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Larvae |
title_sort |
early life glucocorticoid exposure modulates immune function in zebrafish (danio rerio) larvae |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Immunology |
issn |
1664-3224 |
publishDate |
2020-04-01 |
description |
In this study we have assessed the effects of increased cortisol levels during early embryonic development on immune function in zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae. Fertilized eggs were exposed to either a cortisol-containing, a dexamethasone-containing (to stimulate the glucocorticoid receptor selectively) or a control medium for 6 h post-fertilization (0–6 hpf). First, we measured baseline expression of a number of immune-related genes (socs3a, mpeg1.1, mpeg1.2, and irg1l) 5 days post-fertilization (dpf) in larvae of the AB and TL strain to assess the effectiveness of our exposure procedure and potential strain differences. Cortisol and dexamethasone strongly up-regulated baseline expression of these genes independent of strain. The next series of experiments were therefore carried out in larvae of the AB strain only. We measured neutrophil/macrophage recruitment following tail fin amputation (performed at 3 dpf) and phenotypical changes as well as survival following LPS-induced sepsis (150 μg/ml; 4–5 dpf). Dexamethasone, but not cortisol, exposure at 0–6 hpf enhanced neutrophil recruitment 4 h post tail fin amputation. Cortisol and dexamethasone exposure at 0–6 hpf led to a milder phenotype (e.g., less tail fin damage) and enhanced survival following LPS challenge compared to control exposure. Gene-expression analysis showed accompanying differences in transcript abundance of tlr4bb, cxcr4a, myd88, il1β, and il10. These data show that early-life exposure to cortisol, which may be considered to be a model or proxy of maternal stress, induces an adaptive response to immune challenges, which seems mediated via the glucocorticoid receptor. |
topic |
cortisol glucocorticoid receptor zebrafish larvae tail fin regeneration lipopolysaccharide |
url |
https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fimmu.2020.00727/full |
work_keys_str_mv |
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