Meeting Abstract
The stress response of vertebrates can be initiated by many different environmental stimuli including extreme temperatures, noxious chemicals, mechanical disturbance, and pain. These sensory inputs are integrated within the central nervous system (CNS), which then drives responses in the peripheral nervous and endocrine systems. Catecholamines and cortisol are released into the blood, resulting in a cascade of physiological changes that includes shifts in heart rate, blood pressure, and plasma glucose levels. Although the physiological effects of stress have been well-studied, it is not well understood how the stress response reciprocally affects neural responses within the CNS. Zebrafish larvae are an ideal organism in which to examine this question, since they are very well-suited to most behavioral and neurobiological methods. Larval zebrafish exhibit a weak preference for well-lit areas, and previous studies have suggested that stress modulates this behavior by enhancing light preference. We conducted a broad survey of this behavior in order to identify the features of the visual stimulus that affect this behavior, the specific kinematic changes that produce the observed light preference, and the effects of specific stressors (temperature, electric shock, noxious chemicals) on responses. Our results suggest a simple model for how visually-induced changes in kinematic patterns produce the observed light preference, and how stress-mediated changes in these responses affect this preference.
