Studying the impact of antidepressants on zebrafish embryo locomotion using a visual-motor response assay.
Increasing prescription rates and inadequate wastewater treatment result in pharmaceuticals, including antidepressants, becoming a problem in our aquatic environment. Within the PHARMASEA project, we are assessing the effects of contaminants by testing the visual-motor response of zebrafish embryos after exposure to the antidepressant venlafaxine, sertraline, and paroxetine. This is done by recording the locomotion patterns of the embryos under alternating light and dark conditions. This method allows us to observe how these chemicals affect sensory perception and especially motor responses, such as distance travelled, in response to light stressors in a developing aquatic organism.
