PUBLICATION
Bacteria evoke alarm behaviour in zebrafish
- Authors
- Chia, J.S.M., Wall, E.S., Wee, C.L., Rowland, T.A.J., Cheng, R.K., Cheow, K., Guillemin, K., Jesuthasan, S.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-190826-15
- Date
- 2019
- Source
- Nature communications 10: 3831 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Guillemin, Karen, Jesuthasan, Suresh
- Keywords
- none
- MeSH Terms
-
- Animal Communication*
- Animals
- Animals, Genetically Modified
- Fear/physiology
- Giant Cells/metabolism
- Giant Cells/microbiology
- Intravital Microscopy
- Mucus/cytology
- Mucus/metabolism
- Mucus/microbiology
- Neutrophils/metabolism
- Neutrophils/microbiology
- Optical Imaging
- Reflex, Startle/physiology
- Skin/cytology
- Skin/metabolism*
- Skin/microbiology
- Staphylococcus/metabolism*
- Symbiosis/physiology
- Zebrafish/injuries
- Zebrafish/microbiology
- Zebrafish/physiology*
- PubMed
- 31444339 Full text @ Nat. Commun.
Citation
Chia, J.S.M., Wall, E.S., Wee, C.L., Rowland, T.A.J., Cheng, R.K., Cheow, K., Guillemin, K., Jesuthasan, S. (2019) Bacteria evoke alarm behaviour in zebrafish. Nature communications. 10:3831.
Abstract
When injured, fish release an alarm substance (Schreckstoff) that elicits fear in members of their shoal. Although Schreckstoff has been proposed to be produced by club cells in the skin, several observations indicate that these giant cells function primarily in immunity. Previous data indicate that the alarm substance can be isolated from mucus. Here we show that mucus, as well as bacteria, are transported from the external surface into club cells, by cytoplasmic transfer or invasion of cells, including neutrophils. The presence of bacteria inside club cells raises the possibility that the alarm substance may contain a bacterial component. Indeed, lysate from a zebrafish Staphylococcus isolate is sufficient to elicit alarm behaviour, acting in concert with a substance from fish. These results suggest that Schreckstoff, which allows one individual to unwittingly change the emotional state of the surrounding population, derives from two kingdoms and is associated with processes that protect the host from bacteria.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping