Abstract
The hypothalamic Hypocretin/Orexin (Hcrt) neurons secrete two Hcrt neuropeptides. These neurons and peptides play a major role in the regulation of feeding, sleep wake cycle, reward-seeking, addiction, and stress. Loss of Hcrt neurons causes the sleep disorder narcolepsy. The zebrafish has become an attractive model to study the Hcrt neuronal network because it is a transparent vertebrate that enables simple genetic manipulation, imaging of the structure and function of neuronal circuits in live animals, and high-throughput monitoring of behavioral performance during both day and night. The zebrafish Hcrt network comprises ~16–60 neurons, which similar to mammals, are located in the hypothalamus and widely innervate the brain and spinal cord, and regulate various fundamental behaviors such as feeding, sleep, and wakefulness. Here we review how the zebrafish contributes to the study of the Hcrt neuronal system molecularly, anatomically, physiologically, and pathologically.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences |
| Publisher | Springer Verlag |
| Pages | 75-92 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2017 |
Publication series
| Name | Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences |
|---|---|
| Volume | 33 |
| ISSN (Print) | 1866-3370 |
| ISSN (Electronic) | 1866-3389 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This work was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (grant no. 690/15), the Legacy Heritage Biomedical Program of the Israel Science Foundation (grant no. 992/14), and by the US-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF, grant no. 2011335). IE is supported by the Nehemia Levtzion scholarship from the Council for Higher Education, Israel.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2016, Springer International Publishing AG.
Keywords
- Behavior
- Hypocretin
- Narcolepsy
- Orexin
- Sleep
- Zebrafish