Meeting Abstract

P1.70  Monday, Jan. 4  Determining the relationship between environmental conditions and somite development in zebrafish (Danio rerio) HAMILTON, M. A. *; WARD, A. B.; Adelphi University; Adelphi University MichelleHamilton@mail.adelphi.edu

Somites, the precursors of vertebrae, are integral to the formation and function of the vertebral column in Danio rerio. Found in early development stages, somites ultimately determine how many vertebrae the fish will have. Previous research has shown that fish raised in lower temperature environments have more vertebrae; fish raised in higher temperatures have fewer. If vertebrae are affected by temperature, it can be logically assumed that their precursors would also be affected. This experiment sought to find a relationship between temperature and somite development in early stage zebrafish. It was hypothesized that both the number and length of somites would vary based on the different temperatures. To test the hypothesis, zebrafish eggs were collected and treated at various stages of development including early cleavage, early gastrulation, mid-gastrulation, and early somitogenesis at four different temperatures. At 5 and 15 days old, the fish were either antibody stained or cleared and stained in order to visualize possible changes occurring in somite or vertebral formation. Results showed a variation in both number and length of somites based on the stage and temperature treatment. These results will help to provide a basic understanding of the relationship between number and length of somites, stage of development and environmental factors. It could also give support to an understanding of how changing somite number and length cause axial elongation.