Naloxone prolongs abdominal constriction writhing-like behavior in a zebrafish-based pain model. (24th August 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Costa, Fabiano V.; Canzian, Julia; Stefanello, Flavia V.; Kalueff, Allan V.; Rosemberg, Denis B.
• Is Part Of: Neuroscience letters. Volume 708(2019)
• Publication Date: 2019-08-24
• Subjects: Nociception -- Abdominal constriction writhing-like behavior -- Acetic acid -- Naloxone -- Zebrafish; Neurology -- Periodicals; Neurology -- Periodicals; Research -- Periodicals; Neurologie -- Périodiques; Neuroanatomie -- Périodiques; Neuropharmacologie -- Périodiques; Neurophysiologie -- Périodiques; Neurology; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 617.48
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2019.134336
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0304-3940

Abstract

Highlights: The effects of naloxone were tested in a zebrafish-based 'visceral pain' model. Acetic acid alone causes writhing-like behaviors that persist for 30 min. Naloxone prolongs the abdominal constriction writhing-like response. Naloxone elicits its effects in a dose-dependent manner. The antagonism of opioid receptors modulates pain duration in zebrafish. Abstract: The ability to detect noxious stimuli is essential to survival. However, pathological pain is maladaptive and severely debilitating. Endogenous and exogenous opioids modulate pain responses via opioid receptors, reducing pain sensibility. Due to the high genetic and physiological similarities to rodents and humans, the zebrafish is a valuable tool to assess pain responses and the underlying mechanisms involved in nociception. Although morphine attenuates pain-like responses of zebrafish, there are no data showing if the antagonism of opioid receptors prolongs pain duration in the absence of an exogenous opioid. Here, we investigated whether a common opioid antagonist naloxone affects the abdominal constriction writhing-like response, recently characterized as a zebrafish-based pain behavior. Animals were injected intraperitoneally with acetic acid (5.0%), naloxone (1.25 mg/kg; 2.5 mg/kg; 5.0 mg/kg) or acetic acid with naloxone to investigate the changes in their body curvature for 1 h. Acetic acid elicited a robust pain-like response in zebrafish, as assessed by aberrant abdominal body curvature, while no effects were observed following PBS injection. Although naloxone alone did not alter the frequency and duration of this behavior, it dose-dependently prolonged acetic acid-induced abdominal curvature response. Besides reinforcing the use of the abdominal writhing-like phenotype as a behavioral endpoint to measure acute pain responses in zebrafish models, our novel data suggest a putative role of endogenous opioids in modulating the recovery from pain stimulation in zebrafish.